MAIDSTONE UNITED 0 CRAY WANDERERS 2
If you’ve watched this club for long enough you’ll know that for every Ipswich there’s a Needham Market.
Our FA Cup history is littered with games better left forgotten: Wimborne away in the COVID season, Chesham and Bishop’s Stortford in the Jim Thompson era. Yet the last time Maidstone United lost an FA Cup tie at home to opponents from a lower division was all the way back in 1991, when Kettering beat us at Watling Street.
This replay was pregnant with menace, but the public seemed uninterested. The crowd at the “Save Oaken Wood Stadium” was low and Cray, who never really used to have many travelling fans, brought maybe 30 fans, who stood, unsegregated, in the Town End.
We responded to an average first game with Fowler, Uwakwe and Leech coming in for Lusala, Tuck and Charles.
Initially it seemed to work. The game wasn’t a minute old when Maidstone had the first effort on target, Uwakwe surging forwards and Leahy forcing a save from an angle. Court cut inside the area after a good advantage by the ref and forced Briggs into a save.
And then, midway through the first half, the first step on the road to disaster. Cray forced a couple of corners and from one of them Ogunwamide picked out the top corner. Holden seemed to get something on it, but couldn’t keep it out.
Court responded with one of his surges and the ball broke to Uwakwe, but he went for power and the ball flew over. Ogunwamide nearly did it again on 33 minutes, cutting into the box and hitting the bar. Then they reminded us all we were playing a South London team as their bench howled for a penalty shout so weak it might have been American lager.
In the final minute of the half, Uwakwe forced a corner with a long-range effort but it came to nothing. Boateng replaced him at half-time and should have had an immediate assist, but Court headed it straight at the keeper when it would have been easier to score.
After that initial burst of action it quietened down again, which was exactly what Cray wanted. A cry of “someone shoot” went up. A great run by Boateng set up Leahy, but the ball got tangled under his feet. 10 minutes from time we finally did get a shot as Boateng cut inside and missed by maybe a foot.
Holden kept us in it with a save at Yussuf’s feet with five left, then another from a free-kick. The scoreboard stopped working, which seemed symbolic and in four minutes of injury time, we created nothing, hoofing the ball up front and giving away stupid free-kicks that allowed Cray to run out the clock. At the very end they countered, Yussuf scored, and we got what we deserved. Absolutely fuck all.
