A crowd of 2,041 saw Maidstone United move back up to third place in the Ryman Premier Division with a 2-0 victory over Lowestoft Town.
But, for long periods of the game, it was Lowestoft who played in the manner that had taken them to the Ryman Playoff Final for each of the last three seasons.
Lowestoft probably shaded the first half, but it took second half goals from Frannie Collin and Alex Flisher to seal the three points for the Stones’, and Lowestoft were reduced to 10 men as they chased the game.
Even Maidstone’s manager, Jay Saunders, admitted that the visitors deserved more by saying, “for the first half hour they were the better team.
It’s not like they passed through us, but they moved up the pitch, put us under pressure and were winning the second balls. On another day we could have been punished, but once we got to grips with what they are about, we put balls in the right areas and scored two good goals. We’ve got players who, at any stage of the game, can score goals, but sometimes we have to be solid.”
He added though “it’s nice to win, but you want to test yourselves against the better sides in your league. In the first half they controlled it; they were good. I thought they were probably one of the best sides to come down here this year, and to beat a team like that took a good performance. It took us a while to get into it, but once we did I thought we were full value.”
Indeed Maidstone were slow to get into the game at the start of each half and, had Lowestoft been more clinical in front of goal, they could have been out of sight long before the interval. Maybe it was the delayed start, through crowd congestion outside the Gallagher Stadium, which affected the home side as much as the pressure applied by the Trawlermen, but Maidstone could easily have been two down within five minutes.
Twice the Stones’ defence tried to be too intricate in and around their own penalty area. The first time, Lowestoft full-back Curtley Williams sliced wide having been set up by Erkan Okay. Then, as if the first warning hadn’t hit home, Jerrome Sobers was pressured into a hurried clearance by Lee Smith, which went straight to Robert Eagle whose curling shot was easily gathered by Lee Worgan.
Sam Gaughran was the first of five Lowestoft players to receive cautions in the match for a cynical body-check on Alex Flisher, and this seemed to wake the Stones’ players up.
Frannie Collin was the first to take aim for Maidstone, after Michael Phillips’ pinpoint crossfield ball was headed down by Zac Attwood. Collin had time to chest the ball down and hit a dipping volley just past the left post. In reply, Lowestoft’s Smith worked the ball to the edge of the Maidstone 6-yard area where Chris Henderson’s shot was blocked by Worgan’s legs.
Dan Gleeson went into Mr Goldsmith’s book for tugging back Attwood, which led to a freekick that Collin curled wide. And Henderson followed his skipper in seeing yellow for an ugly tangle with Phillips, while the Stones’ midfielder was on the ground awaiting treatment.
Steve Watt became the fourth caution seconds after the interval, and Lowestoft’s Gleeson had the chance to put his side ahead within two minutes of the restart, but his back-post header was held at the angle comfortably by Worgan.
Watt then met an Orlando Smith corner on the volley, only for Ashlee Jones to pull off a stunning reaction save. As the ball was scuffed clear, Fabio Saraiva fired a shot back through the crowd that Jones was able to save. At the other end, the Maidstone Under-18 captain, Jack Sullivan was the saviour as he got back onto the line to block a Jack Ainsley shot that seemed destined to find the back of the net.
On the hour though, Maidstone took the lead through their leading scorer Collin, who notched up his 13th goal in the Amber and Black. Saraiva slipped a ball into the Lowestoft half, where Collin set Flisher away down the left wing. As he ran into the area, Flisher’s attempted cross was deflected off Williams’ arm into the path of Collin, and the striker turned in one movement to fire home through the legs of Gleeson.
Flisher doubled the lead three minutes later, sweeping home first time beyond the depairing dive of Jones. Collin had set the move going, releasing Attwood on the left. Attwood, who failed to find the net for the first time in his 8th Maidstone game, ran to the by-line and pulled the ball back to Flisher eight yards out, and the winger made no mistake for only his third of the season.
Lowestoft threw on an extra forward, but their hopes of a recovery were virtually ended with eighteen minutes remaining, as skipper Gleeson earned a second yellow card for a late tackle on Collin. Jones and substitute Stuart Ainsley would also receive cautions, as the game grew increasingly scrappy.
Maidstone were content to sit and hit on the counter attack, but couldn’t find a telling ball into the area, whereas the only Lowestoft threat of note came from Ainsley’s 25-yard effort that flew wide without troubling the Maidstone goal.
MAIDSTONE UNITED: Lee Worgan, Jack Sullivan, Tom MIlls, Steve Watt (c), Jerrome Sobers, MIchael Phillips, Orlando SmIth (Rory Hill 79), Fabio Saraiva, Zac Attwood (Danny Lye 77), Frannie Collin (Paul Booth 86), Alex Flisher.
Subs not used: Graeme Andrews, Charlie Mitten.
Goals: Frannie Collin 60, Alex Flisher 63
Bookings: Steve Watt 46
LOWESTOFT TOWN: Ashlee Jones, Curtley Williams, Curtis Haynes-Brown, Erkan Okay, Dan Gleeson (c), Sam Gaughran, Lee Smith, Jack Ainsley, Michael Frew (Jake Reed 66), Chris Henderson, Robert Eagle (Stuart Ainsley 74).
Subs not used: Adam Smith, Luke Bailey, Will Viner.
Bookings: Sam Gaughran 7, Dan Gleeson 35, Chris Henderson 42, Ashlee Jones 78, Stuart Ainsley 89.
Sent Off: Dan Gleeson 72 (2nd booking).
Attendance: 2,041
Referee: Mr Matthew Goldsmith
Assistants: Mr Darren Eaton and Mr Kevin Roberts