Saturday saw a big derby game in Kent attracting a suitably large crowd. Not the hastily manufactured rivalry between Bromley and Gillingham who’ve played each other about three time in the league, but the A26 derby between Tonbridge Angels and Maidstone Utd who’ve been kicking lumps out of each other for nearly 80 years.
A lovely sunny afternoon and a healthy crowd of 2500 was the backdrop to the 90 minutes, traditionally this game has been played on Boxing Day or New Years Day and in some cases back to back fixtures which has become unpopular due to the hassle involved, the National League separating the return games.
Derby games usually involve jittery nerves and the form book going out of the window, especially in front of larger than normal crowds and unfortunately on this occasion the person who froze was the referee.
He made the decision to keep a lid on any potential of over excitement by asserting his authority from the first whistle but inadvertently turned the game into a non-contact effort.
For whatever reason this appeared to greatly favour the Stones who racked up an extraordinary free kick surplus over the 90 minutes, one such leading to their opener on five minutes.
A muddled Angels defence let the ball bobble around the penalty area instead of whacking it clear and it was poked into the net by Deon Moore to give the visitors the early lead.
This gave Maidstone the cushion they needed, alongside making the most of the referee’s unwillingness to break up the game up into a scrappy and dull first half where the ball was probably only in play for around 25 minutes in total.
Tonbridge made a few changes at half time, notably bringing on Scott Wagstaff who brought a cohesion and some energy to the midfield, the ball moving around more on the floor than in the air. This paid dividend on 67 minutes when the substitute’s pinpoint cross was tapped by Ricky Korboa for the equaliser.
The woodwork saved the Stones three times in the second period, including one agonising moment when a Korboa shot hit the post and rolled along the line before landing in the keeper’s hands.
Wagstaff’s influence however was short-lived as the recurrence of a shoulder dislocation saw the popular midfielder substituted and a trip to the local A&E.
The Angels almost grabbed a late winner in the 96th minute but Franklin Domi’s one on one effort beat the keeper but not the bar and ball landed on top of the net instead of inside it.
Bearing in mind their respective league positions Tonbridge will be particularly pleased to have taken four points out of six against their bitter rivals and there is every chance the two will still be locking horns again next season in the National League South.
Courtesy of Trevor Brittain
