'We sort of cut our own throats, really' - Paul Doswell offers honest assessment on Hawks' heavy defeat at National League South leaders Maidstone United

Paul Doswell conceded his Hawks players only had themselves to blame after crashing to a first defeat in eight National League South fixtures following their thumping 4-0 loss at table-toppers Maidstone United.
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Hawks were left with a mountain to climb, going two goals down inside eight minutes, while they fell 3-0 behind by the half-hour point as Joan Luque dispatched a penalty for the rampant Stones.

The defeat put a dent into Hawks' play-off ambitions - who dropped a place to 11th after the loss - as they now sit three points off seventh-placed Hungerford with seven games left to play this season.

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And after a stretch of seven matches without defeat, Doswell was disappointed at the manner in which his troops saw that unbeaten run ended.

Hawks midfielder Billy Clifford conceded the first-half penalty which Maidstone United's Joan Luque netted Picture: Dave HainesHawks midfielder Billy Clifford conceded the first-half penalty which Maidstone United's Joan Luque netted Picture: Dave Haines
Hawks midfielder Billy Clifford conceded the first-half penalty which Maidstone United's Joan Luque netted Picture: Dave Haines

‘We spoke all week about keeping the crowd quiet in that first 10 to 15 minutes,’ said the Hawks boss.

‘I will defend him because he's been magnificent for me over the years and the mistakes he makes, you can count on your fingers, unfortunately Ross (Worner) had two big errors in that first seven minutes and it's absolutely killed us.

‘The third one, again - I think all three goals (in the first-half) were ridiculous really - Billy (Clifford) has given away a silly penalty - that was frustration on his part where the game was going.

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‘It just never allowed us to get a foothold in the game. From 3-0, in all honesty they took their foot off the gas probably, we huffed and puffed a bit but once they scored the penalty it was game over.

Maidstone United's Jack Barham, left, hit a hat-trick and Joan Luque, right, got the other goal in the victory over Hawks Picture: Dave HainesMaidstone United's Jack Barham, left, hit a hat-trick and Joan Luque, right, got the other goal in the victory over Hawks Picture: Dave Haines
Maidstone United's Jack Barham, left, hit a hat-trick and Joan Luque, right, got the other goal in the victory over Hawks Picture: Dave Haines

‘When you're 2-0 down in seven minutes and then we give away a penalty on 28 minutes - we sort of cut our own throats, really, which was disappointing because we never gave ourselves the chance to be in the game.’

Jack Barham would prove a thorn in Hawks' side, netting a hat-trick, and lobbed Ross Worner inside a minute to give the leaders in perfect crowd in front of a bumper crowd of 2,730 at the Gallagher Stadium.

The visitors were stunned with Barham on hand to add a second just seven minutes later before Luque dispatched a penalty on the half-hour mark after midfielder Billy Clifford had committed a foul in the area. Clifford was then replaced by Jake Andrews five minutes later as a precaution having been booked for his reaction to a tackle on him.

Hawks attempted to find a way back into the game but they were unable to and Barham completed his treble a minute from the end of normal time to compound a day to forget for Doswell's troops.

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