MATCH REPORT | Hemel Town 1-2 Maidstone United
Written by Chris Wheeldon
An action packed game saw Maidstone get the better of a hard working Hemel Hempstead, who pushed The Stones to the very end.
The home side started off the better as Hemel Hempstead were awarded a free kick on the edge of the area, which was whipped into the top corner by George Williams just 13 minutes in. Just moments later Darion Dowrich was in on goal and brought down inside the box, which surprisingly wasn’t given as a penalty and no card was shown. Within the same minute the Maidstone manager Craig Fagan saw red for his outrage shown to the referee.
Both sides kept the game physical throughout the first half including a yellow card being shown to Lee Angol for a reckless challenge by the corner flag. No real chances came to either side as the Tudors held their own for the first half showing signs of a positive result gainst tough opposition.
Half-Time Score: 1-0
Maidstone took off in the second 45 minutes as they attacked the box from the whistle with Stepien-Iwumene hit the crossbar off a scramble in the box to set the tone. It got more tough for Hemel Town, who saw their striker Lee Angol get a second yellow card for another poor challenge and put his team down to ten men with 35 minutes to go.
The Stones pounced on that red card and equalised just a minute later with Riley Court slotting home their first from a low cross in by Jayden Davis. Just six minutes later Maidstone grabbed another goal, however after a discussion between the ref and the linesmen the goal was disallowed due to handball from a Maidstone player that kept the score at 1-1.
That didn’t stop the visitors as only 11 minutes after that they finally got their second through Ryan Hanson, who headed the ball past Michael Johnson to complete their comeback. Hemel Hempstead kept it close with a few good chances towards the end of the game. One of which saw Dowrich narrowly missing the ball from a Marshall Francis cross to the relief of the Maidstone support.
Despite the loss, Hemel Hempstead made it difficult for the visitors and will be looking to keep that energy moving forward onto another home tie against Torquay.
Full-time score: 1-2
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