Harambee Stars prospect watches as FA Cup fairytale run ends

STARS ABROAD Harambee Stars prospect watches as FA Cup fairytale run ends

Imran Otieno • 10:00 - 27.02.2024

The Kenyan forward was named on the matchday squad as their FA Cup run was brought to an end by Coventry City.

Kenyan forward Solomon Wanjau Smith was an unused substitute as his Maidstone United side suffered elimination from the FA Cup after a 5-0 drubbing at the hands of Coventry City.

The sixth tier side’s run in the competition has been nothing short of a fairytale having navigated through seven rounds of the cup.

Their inspiring run has seen them become the first team from outside the top five divisions to reach the 5th Round since 1978.

Maidstone’s clash was however off to a disastrous start after former Everton forward Ellis Simms took only nine minutes to open the scoring.

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Rocked by the shaky start, Maidstone soaked in the second goal five minutes later through that man again, Simms with Kasey Palmer again being the provider.

Simms proved to be a thorn in the flesh of the National League South side as he sealed his first-half hat-trick with just 35 minutes on the clock.

Maidstone gave a good account of themselves in the second half and managed to keep Coventry at bay for huge spells of the half.

They however crumbled late on in the game with Fabio Tavares putting the game beyond Maidstone with two minutes left on the clock.

There was still time for Fabio Tavares to hammer in the final nail in Maidstone’s coffin with a goal in the 91st minute that sent them to the quarters.

Maidstone are now left to focus on promotion to the National League where they have their work cut out as they are currently out of the playoff places.