It was more disappointment for the Tudors as they suffered another defeat at home

A red card for Lee Angol saw ten-man Hemel Hempstead Town fail to hang onto their early lead as they fell to a 2-1 defeat at home to Maidstone.

Another George Williams set-piece fired the Tudors in front after just 13 minutes, a lead they looked good value for at half-time.

Missing seven defenders for the game, Town looked on course for an unlikely clean sheet until Angol’s reckless challenge ten minutes into the second-half saw him pick up a second booking and an early bath, handing the advantage to the visitors, who took full advantage.

Within a minute of the striker’s red card, Maidstone were level when Riley Court slotted home Jayden Davis’ cross. They thought they were in front five minutes later only to see a goal ruled out for offside, but it set the tone for the rest of the game.

Midway through the half, the Stones had their second as Ryan Hanson headed past keeper Michael Johnson to resign Hemel to defeat.

Speaking afterwards, boss Lee Bircham highlighted his side’s makeshift defence but commended his side’s effort after going down to ten men despite the defeat.

“The boys were good, they were all heart,” he said. “We got ourselves deservedly in front but the sending off changed things. Lee Angol was having a right tussle up there so to send him off for that was… it’s not worth talking about the officials. Their two goals probably weren’t down to that. We’re really disappointed.

“Someone misses a header for the first one and there’s a free header for the second one. Heading is our problem at the moment. It’s hard to do a training session on just heading, that has to come from desire.

“If you look at the seven defenders we’ve got injured, there are a lot of boys in there who can head a ball. If we don’t get bad luck we’d have no luck at all. I don’t want to use excuses, but we have to look at the facts. We’re missing Charlie Rowan, David Longe-King, Devante Stanley, David Sesay, Stefan Parkes, Harry Webster - they would all be misses for any team. And it’s hurting us.

“We’re giving it everything we can. We’ve got a lot of squad players in there who would do well coming in here or there with your experienced first-team players around them. But those six or seven are having to play every game, and they need a bit of help. They can’t do a lot more than they did today.

“But we’re making the same mistakes and it’s the same personnel making them over and over again.”