The league leaders, Sidcup, visited The Mote requiring one win to secure promotion.

While they achieved their objective, with a 31-19 victory, Maidstone came out of this game with their heads held high after giving their best performance for some time, denying the visitors a winning margin until the start of injury time.

Skipper, Ben Williams, praised his side after the match for giving their all in a losing cause, particularly the pack, who had the edge on the visitors all afternoon. But of the four tries conceded, two resulted from Maidstone errors and ultimately, this was the difference between the teams.

Lucian Morosan was awarded the Man-of-the-match accolade for his tireless efforts in defence and attack but the greater cutting edge in the visitor’s back line ultimately accounted for the difference between the sides.

Josh Pankhurst returned to the front row, with Gary Beck dropping to the bench, giving the pack a familiar look. And with Danny Baker and Charlie Williams also on the bench, it emphasised the backs stretched resources, but with Ollie Newton available and taking up the right wing slot, there was the prospect of greater defensive security out wide. And so it proved.

With a cold north-easterly breeze tempering the spring sunshine, Sidcup were quickly into their stride and with less than five minutes on the board, turned field position into a try. From a penalty on the half way, the resultant line out, followed by a catch and drive, enabled the visitors to attack the Maidstone line with second row, Coughlan, getting the touch down and fly half, Twyford, adding the conversion, for a seven point lead.

The large Sidcup crowd began to hope for an afternoon easy on the nerves but Maidstone, alert and combative from the off, had other ideas. In a mirror image of the first try, Maidstone showed they were equally adept at the catch and drive, with Josh Pankhurst slipping through the Sidcup cover to score. With Caborn’s conversion drifting wide, Maidstone remained in deficit but they had shown their intent.

It was Maidstone that struck next, just at the end of the first quarter. This time it was Morosan’s quick tap at a penalty that set up the attack and with a second penalty on the Sidcup five metre line, it was Nathan Simpson that bundled over the line by the posts. With Caborn’s straightforward conversion, the hosts established a 12-7 lead.

Sidcup restored their two point advantage on the half hour. Once again, a penalty gave them position in the Maidstone 22 and a catch and drive took them to the line. But with the maul collapsing the ball was spun wide for hooker, Hopkins to cut through half way out. A Twyford conversion restored the two-point Sidcup lead.

But for Maidstone, there was an extra penalty as a yellow card was issued to Ben Massey for pulling down the maul. This negated the growing domination of the pack over the visitors eight but with defence the priority, Maidstone weathered the storm and resisted Sidcup’s efforts until a full complement was restored.

With half-time approaching, it took a charged down kick to allow Sidcup back on to the front foot and turn a promising Maidstone attack into desperate defence. With full back, Poland, breaking the Maidstone line, replacement scrum half, Osborn was on hand to take the scoring pass, just before the break. Twyford’s conversion gave the visitors a 21-12 half time lead.

Maidstone started the second half knowing that the next score would be crucial. But the yellow carding of Gary Beck at the kick off, for taking out the Sidcup catcher in the air, did not auger well.

A series of penalties to Maidstone, as they once again compensated for their numerical deficiency, put them in the Sidcup 22. And with complement restored, their first attempt on the visitors’ line was held up. A five-metre scrum yielded better returns as Ben Brill, in the No 8 position, picked up and drove over the line. With Caborn’s conversion, the deficit was reduced to two points once more.

As the half progressed, Sidcup’s play became less controlled and Maidstone’s defence stronger. But what was missing was the ability to stretch the visitors’ defence and while a number of opportunities presented themselves, Maidstone could not find the key to unpick the Sidcup defensive lock.

A penalty on the half hour, by Twyford, relieved some of the tension for the visitors by extending the lead to five points but inevitably, it was the superior guile in the Sidcup centre that proved decisive and with forty minutes on the clock, McMahon, slipped through to score by the posts to add to the lead.

The last five minutes of added time gave Maidstone the opportunity to mount further attacks on the Sidcup line and they gave their all in seeking bonus points for a fourth try and seven point margin. But it was not to be, as the visitors’ defence held to see out the win.

This game summed up Maidstone’s season. With a dominant pack, they have the capability to establish field position and a strong defence to withstand pressure. Fitness levels are as good as any team in the league but ultimately, without more penetration in the backs, made more difficult over recent weeks by injuries to Craig Webb and Ross Cooke, oppositions have found it too easy to dominate outside the scrum. With planning for next season under way, the priorities are clear.

Maidstone Ben Williams; Josh Pankhurst; Nathan Simpson: Adam Knight; Ben Massey: Ben Knight; Ben Brill; Matt Iles: Lucian Morosan; Euan Caborn: Ollie Newton; Filip Perica; Rory Beech; Matt Moore: Alex Clarke

Replacements: Danny Baker; Gary Beck; Charlie Williams (All used)

Pictures supplied by Bob Hayton.