Paul Wimsett is a Maidstone United supporter who also keeps one eye on Hereford.
Maidstone have had a great run in the FA Cup this season. It ended last Monday evening at Coventry.
In this article Paul recalls the run in the Cup and what it means to a club like Maidstone, who play in the National South League, and its supporters.
Hope from ‘The Land of Dreams Come True’….
Sadly, I guess, increasingly few Bulls fans will have direct memories of this famous land, which older supporters will remember from 1972 and the games with Newcastle. Can I try to give you some hope from my team, Maidstone United, and our recent unexpected discovery of ‘the land of dreams come true’ and after a season in the ‘land of nightmares’? Two seasons ago Maidstone were promoted to the National League proper for the second time in recent years. Hope quickly turned to despair, as we were soon anchored in the relegation zone and endured a run of 20+ games without a win, with last minute goals conceded, referee decisions invariably against us and much more. The FA Cup brought no relief, out first go to Needham Market, which was a place and a team most fans had probably never heard of, but a few discovered was somewhere in Suffolk. The inevitable relegation came. For the second time, we simply didn’t have the means to compete with big boys in the National League.
The team needed completely rebuilding for this season and it still feels a work in progress, but something special stirred in the FA Cup. The 2nd and 3rd qualifying rounds produced workman-like wins at Steyning Community and Winchester City. The 4th qualifying round sent us to Torquay United. Fortunately, we seem to be Torquay’s bogey team having won something like 10 out of the last 11 games against them over 30 years, including a league win the week before. The cup game was won in good part due to one of the most fortunate refereeing decisions I have ever seen in our favour, which turned the game on its head and gave us our first goal. Lady Luck had made her first big appearance.
The 1st round proper, brought the 4th away game in a row, avoiding an exciting game against the likes of Portsmouth, Gillingham or Charlton to fans disappointment, but to be honest, relatively kindly, a tie at Chesham United, where we did the necessary. Round 2 brought renewed hopes for a good league 1 or 2 team. We got Barrow at home, which most of us thought was a pretty naff draw. The match attracted little wider interest, a not particularly huge gate, but a wonder goal secured a 2-1 win and a 3rd round chance for a game against a Premiership giant. At home to Stevenage was the outcome. Another draw for most of us to moan about. The TV companies showed no interest in potential giant-killers and picked all Premiership or League 1 teams. A great effort and the growing amount of luck secured a 1-0 win and entry into the 4th round and Match of the Day, at least, belatedly took notice. Surely a Premiership team this time? Back to Suffolk for Ipswich away was the outcome. There was still plenty of groaning from the fans about this and about the sale of away tickets, (even in your greatest cup run, you can be sure that fans will always find something to moan about)! Live TV at last, with all the money and publicity that brings. The outcome you will know. An amazing effort, with two incredible goals, an inspired keeper and Lady Luck watching over us all the way. Up in the hierarchy of shocks with Hereford and Newcastle? I had better move on fast, I think! In the 5th round draw, yet again the Premiership was still so frustratingly illusive. Coventry away was the outcome for this our 8th game in the cup and for the 6th time away from home. Away though was good for finance and the numbers able to watch. Sadly, it proved one game too many for us and, with Lady Luck elsewhere for once, we bowed out in front of an incredible sell-out 4,800 Maidstone fans for a Monday evening away match.
Now we can just treasure the many special moments, the 3 victories against league opposition, the big crowd feelings and begin to ask the question ‘what’s the lasting impact of this amazing cup run for a club like Maidstone?’. ‘Time will tell’ is probably the most honest answer, and here are some of the quandaries:
1) Finance. Sadly, at every level of football, so much come down to money. A good FA Cup run can be a great earner and Maidstone will probably have earned over £700,000 in money from prize fund, TV and share of gate receipts. You might think, as I think many Maidstone fans initially did, that this would be ‘game-changing’ for the club. We had visions of this paying for a much-needed new stand on one of the 2 under-developed sides of the ground. Whilst the £700,000 is incredibly welcome, our great co-owners have had to dampen our expectations and point out some tough truths. A new stand would cost a lot more than the £700K. There are also more mundane matters to pay for. The latest club accounts show that after 9 years in the black, last year’s failed attempt to stay in the National League led to a £200,000 loss, which needs to be covered. Our artificial pitch needs replacing (as they all do every 6 or so years) at the cost of another £200,000. New toilet blocks and a new TV gantry need to be paid for. A new eco-boiler is said to be another planned project. As you can see that has spent much of the £700K already. There is also the unfortunate question of the tax man. Corporation tax is payable on club profits. This could be another slice gone!
2) Club profile. The cup run has massively improved Maidstone’s profile, locally, nationally and even internationally. How this will affect the future, is the big unknown. Lincoln City are said to have found that their 2017 cup run, when they were still in the National League, led to a huge increase in gates from their local community. Maidstone, unlike Lincoln or Hereford, have a lot of bigger teams nearby, but even if the cup exploits could lead our average 2,000 gates to get to a regular 2,500 that would make a big difference to the club. Furthermore, if through the huge publicity the club has had, we can now generate more income through sponsorship or even, and this is the biggest one, attract new owners or co-owners with the funds to help us develop sustainably, then the club might be able to make a more serious assault on the National League. Two failed attempts in the last few years have shown us that, barring a miracle, we simply haven’t had, nor do not currently possess, the resources to compete at that level, and we can’t rely on the money from the cup run to change that.
3) Players and staff comings and goings. It could be that we may lose some people who have been key to our cup run and are now attracting the attention of bigger clubs. Certainly, our manager George Elokobi has attracted much praise for his inspiring and yet humble approach and could catch the eye higher up. A few players may also fall into this category. On the other hand, perhaps you could argue that Maidstone United might now be a club good players would be keen to come to? Or, would they remember the £700,000 and expect the club to be paying them silly money to come?
4) The Memories. I am sure that Bulls fans have lived off the Newcastle memories and would love to have some fresh ones for a new generation of fans. Maidstone players, staff and fans will be treasuring this season for decades to come. The incredible Ipswich game, beyond most of our dreams, we will be reliving time after time. For many of us, the truth is that such a run is unlikely to be repeated in our lifetimes, although we will definitely be hoping so each season to come.
So, Bulls fans, keep hoping and dreaming of that new Bulls cup run. Strangely, it came for Maidstone in a season when we were far from at our strongest and for the Ipswich and Coventry games, we had around 6 players out injured, suspended or cup-tied. Even if others seem to have all the advantages, your turn might be next season. The money gained is likely to be most helpful, but not as significant as you might hope. However, what it might do for the club in the longer term could be far greater and who can put a value on those incredible memories……?