Tonbridge Angels U18 (1) 2 Penman 20,71
Maidstone United U18 (0) 1 74
Attendance: 55
Admission: £5
Mileage: 38/1,644
Our Under-18’s progressed to the Isthmian Youth League Cup Quarter Finals with a 2-1 win over our friends from down the A26, Maidstone United.
Robert Penman scored twice, that’s now 10 goals in five games, in a thrilling game that was in doubt until the final seconds of an interminably long seven minutes of added time.
A naturally delighted Dom Welsh lauded his team’s resilience as they came under intense late pressure following the visitor’s goal on 74 minutes. “An outstanding team performance this evening from the Angels against a strong Maidstone United team. There’s more than one way to win games sometimes and the boys showed exactly that!.”
A wet evening that eventually turned to swirling mist saw Maidstone make the early running with a header that Josh Hanson pushed onto the underside of the crossbar before being cleared to safety.
The Stones continued to hold the momentum with Noah Millis making a goal-saving challenge on 10 minutes and a series of deflections somehow saw the ball over the byline.
So, it was a little against the run of play, the Maidstone goalkeeper had been asked to make a save from Penman, that the Angels went ahead after 20 minutes when some great wing play and cross from Tolu Fabimafobee opened up a scoring chance for Penman which he took with a shot into the bottom corner.
Maidstone responded immediately and a clearance from Gus Minster was needed after the centre forwarded had lobbed the ball over Hanson and the Angels’ stopper was required again on 25 minutes, saving from a header following a corner.
Tonbridge’s big outlet was Fabimafobee who was leading his full back a merry dance, creating chances for himself with a header that was saved and a shot that was narrowly over the bar.
The home side ended the first half on top with the Maidstone keeper the busier saving from Callum Fincham, who also had efforts deflected wide and in the final act of the half a shot that cleared the bar.
An early second half free kick on the edge of the box, that brought a booking for River Ballach, brought considerable concern as the ball only narrowly cleared the bar and whilst Maidstone enjoyed the best of the possession, Fincham and substitute Alfie Gilder also went close with the goalkeeper making a good, low saves.
Tonbridge went 2-0 up on 71 minutes when a catastrophic mix up between goalkeeper and defender allowed Penman the opportunity to place the ball into an unguarded net, which he calmly did.
If the Angels thought they were home and dry, three minutes later their lead was reduced to a single goal again as a shot from outside of the box was parried by Hanson but the centre forward was on hand to tuck home the rebound.
Maidstone pressed hard for an equaliser that would have taken the game to penalties, and the 20-odd minutes that remained seemed a very long time. On 76 minutes, they struck the outside of a post and, in added time, there were heart in mouths moments as the ball bobbed around the six yard box begging a touch.
There was an unseemly squabble at the final whistle that probably only illustrated the frustration and disappointment on one side and the celebration on the other. But, whatever, it is the Angels U18’s whose name goes into the quarter final hat.
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