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For the third year in a row, Maidstone United’s season will be decided by the outcome of their final game after they blew a goal lead to be defeated by Heybridge Swifts.
Throughout the campaign The Stones have been dogged by an inability to defend set pieces and this was to prove their downfall once again as they let in two poor goals from corners.
Maidstone will now be desperately hoping AFC Hornchurch will beat Folkestone on Monday night and depending on the result from this game, The Stones may have to beat Folkestone in order to avoid relegation.
United could not have wished for a better start in this crucial game against Heybridge as on seven minutes they took the lead. Ian Selley hit a deep free-kick into the box which was flicked on by Lee Shearer and Jacob Erskine steered the ball past Ollie Morris-Sanders.
Two minutes later Heybridge had their first opportunity when Ben Lewis failed to get the ball clear but Nathan Clarke’s weak shot went straight into Pat Mullin’s hands.
Maidstone then had a good shout for a penalty waved away on 18 minutes when Alex Tiesse appeared to be fouled by Ronnie Jones before David Wareham’s free-kick from 30 yards was comfortably caught by Mullin.
The visitors began to come more into the game as the half progressed but they were often wasteful with their possession and they frequently hit the ball out of play when they had the opportunity to put Maidstone under pressure.
However, Heybridge improved after the break and on 57 minutes they had good chance to equalise when The Stones defence fell asleep and the ball came to George Lay whose rising drive was tipped over the bar by Mullin.
Sixty seconds later, Sean Marks raced towards goal but Ben Lewis’ presence was enough to affect the Heybridge striker and his early tame shot failed to test Mullin.
The Stones went straight on the attack from Mullin’s kick and they won a corner on the right which was swung in by Selley. Erskine rose well at the back post to head the ball into the middle and Lee Shearer’s fierce drive deflected wide. Then from the resultant corner, Selley’s delivery once again caused problems for the Heybridge defence and this time the ball was bundled away from the line.
With 68 minutes played, Selley turned into space just outside the box and he fired the ball goalwards only to be denied by a good save from Morris-Sanders who flung himself to his right to parry the shot.
Then with just 16 minutes remaining, Maidstone had to defend a corner from the right but David Wareham’s cross ripped The Stones defence open and Stafford Browne slammed the ball in from close range.
There after it was clear that Heybridge were the more likely side to snatch a winner as Maidstone lost their shape and confidence and so it proved on 84 minutes when another corner from Wareham was headed in at the near post by substitute Tom Devaux.
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