Maidstone were disappointed not to have at least come away with a draw from this closely fought battle in their first league game of 2020. They made a sprightly start, building on last week’s momentum with youngsters Kate Smoker, Claudia Allsworth-Clarke and Player of the Match Lucy Wilkinson again linking up well in the midfield. The first half also saw solid defending to frustrate Burnt Ash and hold them to 0-0.

A slight drop of pace by Maidstone at the start of the second half saw them facing a wave of Burnt Ash attacks. Young keeper Freya Brown pulled off some stunning acrobatic saves but eventually Burnt Ash found a way through. At 1-0 down, Maidstone didn’t let their heads drop and were unlucky not to equalise. Burnt Ash’s second came from a messy goal circle scuffle but it was a great improvement on the 7-2 loss when the teams played earlier in the season.