Report by Jack Foulger

Six years, eleven months and eight days on from the Stones’ first meeting with Dorking Wanderers back in 2019, Craig Fagan was able to see his new-look side take all three points at Meadowbank on Saturday afternoon. Goals from Tom Leahy, Ken Charles and Riley Court were enough to see Maidstone come from 1-0 down to register their first ever league win against the Surrey side.

Match Summary: Similar to the Folkestone game, the opening phases to the match certainly weren’t lacking in action, with both defences called into action on multiple occasions, although initial exchanges lacked a killer instinct with Maidstone in particular having a flurry of dangerous-looking set pieces that they unfortunately couldn’t convert.

As in midweek, the Stones fell behind, when Wanderers Man of the Match George Nikaj broke the deadlock in the 24th minute from a rebound shot after an initial save from Stones ‘keeper Lenny Holden. Once again however, a response arrived quickly as just 13 minutes later a scramble in the Dorking box eventually saw a Tom Leahy effort bounce off the bar and over the goal line, his first competitive goal for the Stones since rejoining on a permanent basis in the summer.

From there on out, the momentum notably shifted in Maidstone’s favour as they pushed for a second and indeed that almost became a reality as Riley Court found himself one-on-one with Dorking shot-stopper Glenn Morris. Unfortunately for Court, he was unable to bend his shot around the former Crawley and Gillingham man, who in the end comfortably did enough to keep the game level at half time.

Seven minutes after the break an excellent through ball from goalscorer Leahy picked out fellow striker Ken Charles who placed his shot into the base of the net to see his side ahead.

Dorking midfielder Frank Vincent had arguably their best shot at an equaliser in as his curled effort from just outside the box drifted just short of Lenny Holden’s left-hand post while Ken Charles missed a couple of opportunities to extend the lead.

Marc White’s side were made to pay in the 76th minute as another classy piece of vision from Tom Leahy saw him play through Riley Court who ran all the way from his own half, rounded the goalkeeper and calmly slotted home from an acute angle.

From that point onwards, it was game management for Craig Fagan and co as the Stones were able to confidently contain the red and white threat up until the 86th minute when forward Josh Barrett was able to beat the defence with an outrageous lob that flew over everyone and bounced into the net. Fortunately, Maidstone were still able to stand strong for a 3-2 victory in the end despite a late series of corners that the Wanderers could not capitalise on, ending their Meadowbank hoodoo whilst rising to fifth in the league table.

Man of the Match: While all 15 players who featured for the Stones deservedly took home the plaudits of all those who travelled to Surrey on Saturday afternoon, for me it was Tom Leahy who firmly stood out in black and amber as his goal and further two assists played an undeniably huge role in victory. His forward-thinking instinct and vision to identify and exploit numerous major positions on the field was crucial in enabling himself and his fellow attackers to do what they do best and ultimately be clinical when it mattered the most.

Whilst not the finished article, the effectiveness of Leahy’s overall play particularly in counterattacks and in build-up is evidently proving why incoming boss Craig Fagan chose to sign him following his short loan spell at the back end of the 2024/25 season as Maidstone fell narrowly short of promotion in the play-off final.

Up Next: Following this weekend’s major uplift, the Stones return to the Gallagher Stadium next Saturday (29th August) as they face Brian Dutton’s Salisbury side in a bid to secure back-to-back wins for the first time this season. The Whites will provide a tough test as they look to bounce back, having conceded in the 83rd and 92nd minute saw them let a 1-0 lead slip to Hemel Hempstead Town most recently.