STONES ARE THE HISTORY MAKERS

PROUD George lavished boss Elokbi praise on his FA Cup heroes as Maidstone United made history by reaching the fourth round for the first time since reformation in 1992.

- Ruth Pettifer

Sam Corne's penalty on the stroke of halftime ensured the Stones defied a 69-place gap between themselves and League One high-flyers Stevenage to become the first National League South club to reach this stage of the competition since Havant & Waterlooville in 2008.

"We set out today to make sure history was made," Elokobi beamed. "I told the players before they came out to enjoy every bit of it, leave everything on the football pitch, and have no regrets at the end.

"We won the game through respect, through our preparations and the players believed. When you believe in football then you can achieve incredible things." Maidstone needed to start well and they looked confident from the outset.

Sol Wanjau-Smith fired wide with a deflected effort on 11 minutes after good work from Jacob Berkeley-Agyepong saw him cross into the box.

And from the resulting corner, Corne picked out Lamar Reynolds, who drew a stretching save from Taye Ashby-Hammond.