Ipswich Town 1-2 Maidstone United: Reaction from manager George Elokobi as non-league Stones beat Championship high-fliers in FA Cup fourth round

George Elokobi hailed his FA Cup heroes after Maidstone’s victory over Ipswich.

The Stones bridged a gap of 98 places to win 2-1 at Portman Road and book a place in the FA Cup fifth round.

Elokobi’s men were rank outsiders against a Tractor Boys side sitting second in the Championship.

But his National League South outfit, backed by 4,500 away fans, pulled off the unthinkable against Kieran McKenna’s Premier League hopefuls.

The Stones scored with their only two shots of the match while Ipswich had 38 efforts, including 13 on target, running into an inspired keeper in man-of-the-match Lucas Covolan.

“This was a historic occasion for Maidstone United, for our group of players, our supporters, but more so for our community,” said Stones boss Elokobi.

“Someone had to win today and the gods were with us.

“After the first 25 minutes we had to earn our luck and it’s important our players stayed resilient in those moments.

“We knew we wouldn’t create too many chances here because of the magnificent job Kieran is doing with Ipswich, a fantastic outfit sitting second in the Championship.

“We knew to come here and get a result was going to take some doing.

“We had to be resilient for like we saw today 98 minutes and I drummed this into our group of players and we prepared right.

“I told them one thing, go out there and enjoy the occasion.

“You are already history markers in the eyes of the world, in the eyes of the people that watch football.”

Maidstone worked their socks off to reach the last 16, with Elokobi’s unshakeable belief in his side fully vindicated.

He said: “I am a believer and every project I embark on as an individual, as a management team, we believed we could truly come here and compete against a fantastic