Gary McCann said that he was very proud of the squad as he reflected on the games against Margate and Dulwich Hamlet.

Following the Margate match, he said, "I look back on our performance with a very proud feeling. My players, yet again, gave me absolutely everything.

"Our preparations were badly disrupted by the crash on the M25 on the way to Margate. We had only 10 players in the dressing room at 7.20.

"It was disappointing to lead three times and be pulled back, but when we went behind with eight minutes to go it was the sort of blow that would leave most teams on their backs from a knockout punch. But the boys never know when they are beaten.

"There is just a never-say-die attitude. Even when we got it back to 4-4 we had a couple of chances to win the game.

"Defensively, you think every goal is avoidable at some level and that was certainly so with at least three of their goals last night. We have been so good defensively in this run so the mistakes were uncharacteristic.

"This was a fantatstic game for the neutral and it was a good point for us, not so good for Margate, but a great result for Maidstone. But where we are at now, we think of this as two points lost."

Gary then struggled to find words to describe his team’s effort against Dulwich. "This was yet another heroic performance by my team," he said. "The resilience of the players has been quite astounding.

"Their energy levels were fantastic and the way they were able to get back into the match was incredible.

"Our title hopes are hanging by a thread, but it is not over yet. Maidstone have two games left and both have the potential for dropped points. If they don't win either game and we win our last three then the miracle will have been achieved."