The Eagles dominated possession and created some presentable openings in Mostar, but led by just a goal to nil at half-time, when Ismaïla Sarr struck crisply from Jørgen Strand Larsen’s clever lay-off.
Yet mistakes early in the second-half allowed Karlo Abramovic to smash the hosts level at a boisterous Bijeli Brijeg Stadium, and try as they might to reestablish their lead, Palace were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw to take back to Selhurst Park next week.
Richards told Palace TV: “I think on paper, when you look at the quality of the teams, it seems pretty straightforward. But coming here, in a hostile environment, it's a tough pitch to play on… we’re a little bit disappointed with the result, but also a 1-1 is also something you can take into the next leg with a lot of optimism.
“I think it's mixed emotions, but I think in the grand scheme of things, we have to take care of business at home now.
“There’s also a reason they're in the Conference League. They're a good team. They defended well.
“Again, we didn't make the most of our chances and I think defensively we made a few mistakes.
“But regardless, I think it's a performance that we can work on and we can continue with. But a bit frustrating that we kind of lacked a little bit in both areas this evening.”