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Maidstone United 1 Yeovil Town 1 match report: Regan Booty scores 96th-minute equaliser for the Stones

Regan Booty's 96th-minute penalty earned a point for Maidstone and tamed the boo-boys.

Manager Hakan Hayrettin and even the owners were copping it from a vocal section of the Genco Stand, with United trailing to Alex Fisher's first-half goal for Yeovil.

Maidstone United manager Hakan Hayrettin. Picture: Steve Terrell
Maidstone United manager Hakan Hayrettin. Picture: Steve Terrell

But they were cheering when a foul on Roarie Deacon gave Booty the chance to equalise.

Maidstone are 10 games without a win in the National League but it goes down as a point gained in the circumstances, with United finally rewarded after having 16 shots on goal.

Ryan Sandford took Yusuf Mersin’s place in goal after rejoining the Stones on loan from Millwall, as Hayrettin made three changes to the side beaten by Southend on Tuesday night

Christie Pattisson came in for James Alabi and Dominic Odusanya replaced the injured Sam Corne, with United abandoning their back three in favour of 4-3-3.

Pattisson’s cross, after a neat move, evaded Barham, who claimed a foul, as Maidstone threatened early on.

But the hosts fell behind to a goal out of nothing in the 13th minute, Fisher beating Jacob Mensah to a cross on the edge of the box and looping a header over Sandford.

It doesn’t take much to knock confidence after two months without a win and Maidstone struggled to clear their heads after the blow of going behind.

They finally worked Yeovil keeper Grant Smith in the 26th minute, the ex-Stones loanee getting down at his near post after Booty fed Deacon on the edge of the box.

Odusanya showed some positivity in midfield but generally the pace was slow and whenever Maidstone got balls in the box, Yeovil’s big defenders were first to everything.

The Glovers also looked more of a threat at the other end in the first half, be it from first or second balls from free-kicks and corners.

Ben Richards-Everton had a goal disallowed for offside, while Sandford denied Matthew Worthington as he went through one-on-one.

Pattisson had a shot blocked on the line after meeting Deacon’s free-kick early in the second half.

That lifted the crowd and Maidstone were looking more threatening, probing away in the Glovers half, with the visitors happy to sit on their lead.

Maidstone went close again after the hour mark when Barham met Ryan Galvin’s near-post cross, with Smith making a spectacular save to keep out his header.

Pattisson may frustrate with his final ball at times but you couldn’t fault his effort, running at the Yeovil defence and looking to make things happen.

Hayrettin threw on Josh Fawole for Barham and the substitute found himself in on goal from a through ball but poked wide as Smith raced out of his goal to meet him.

Deacon fired over from distance before Galvin’s header from a Gavin Hoyte cross hit the post as Yeovil began to push their luck in sitting back so deep.

Hoyte's header into the ground from Deacon's corner bounced over the bar with a minute of normal time left.

Six minutes' added time gave Maidstone further encouragement and they got their leveller in the end, with Booty's classy penalty into the bottom corner.

Maidstone: Sandford, Hoyte, Mensah, Greenidge, Galvin, Barkers (Alabi 56mins), Booty, Odusanya, Pattisson, Barham (Fawole 71mins), Deacon. Subs not used: Mersin, Ellul, Gurung.

Yeovil: Smith, Williams. Bevan, Staunton, Hunt, Richards-Everton, Worthington (Hulbert 72mins), Perry (Johnson 64mins), Clark (Wakefield 63mins), Linton, Fisher. Subs not used: Dawes, Hulbert, Toure.

Referee: Jacob Miles.

Attendance: 2,147 (133 away).

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