This Saturday sees Maidstone United return to the town for the opening of the new Gallagher Stadium.

The Stones are back within the town for the first time since 2001 having spent the past 24 years in the wilderness, using a ground at London Road from 1993, whilst spending time groundsharing with Dartford, Ashford and Sittingbourne.

For the showpiece opening of the new ground, Maidstone United will play a pre-season friendly against Championship side Brighton & Hove Albion in a sell-out at the 2,000 capacity stadium.

The day will see stars from the club, both past and present, come to the game with fans given the opportunity to see the new ground for the first time.

It’s been a remarkable turn around for the Stones, having seen many ups and down throughout their history. They were a Football League club between 1989 and 1992, but have fallen on hard times in the following twenty years.

Under the ownership of Oliver Ash and Terry Casey, the Stones are back on the up despite tasting relegation last season into the Ryman League Division One South.

The building of the new stadium close to the river at Whatman Way, using an artificial 3G surface, will give Maidstone United the opportunity to play in front of their own fans and climb the non league ladder once again.

Maidstone have also been given permission by the FA to play their FA Cup preliminary round fixtures at the ground, but would have to switch any games to another stadium should they make it to the First Round proper due to the nature of the surface they will be using.

It’s going to be a groundbreaking weekend for the club and Kent Sports News will be there to capture it all.