Maidstone midfielder Jack Parkinson was thrilled after knocking League 2 Stevenage out of the FA Cup.

Parkinson played a key role in midfield for Stones and admitted: "I can’t describe how it feels. It’s unbelievable.

"The shift the lads put in two weeks ago at Stevenage two weeks ago (was amazing), and to come here today and do the same thing is an absolute credit to everyone involved with the club.

"Jay’s got a tremendous squad together here. It’s a credit to the club. We genuinely did feel on the day that if we were at our best, we could beat them.

"Losing the skipper (Steve Watt to injury) before the game was always a big blow but massive credit to Aaron Simpson, who’s come in at right-back. He’s 18 and he fitted straight in. It’s a tremendous achievement from everybody."

Maidstone took an early lead through top marksman Frannie Collin but it was their resilience that impressed Parkinson.

"We could see straight away they were playing a very high line and although we’re not the quickest up front, we did feel that if we could get in behind early," he said.

"It was a straight ball from Worgs, we got in, a great finish from Fran. It was a blow to lose the goal so early in the second half because we felt, if we could hold on for 15 minutes, we’d have a chance. But we dug in, it was a great ball from Ben and Fran does what he does in the box.

"The game went so quick today. When I asked the referee ‘how long to go?’ (after the winner went in) I genuinely thought there would be about 15 minutes – but he said three minutes. It’s brilliant. Words can’t describe it.

"It’s for Terry Casey and Oliver Ash more than anybody. They took a big gamble here, putting their money into 3G pitches and it’s paid off massively."

Parkinson admitted that the Stevenage players were complaining about the 3G surface at The Gallagher Stadium but felt it was a case of sour grapes.

"I was a bit disappointed with a few of the comments from their players during the game," he added. "I made the right decision (not to go to Stevenage). This is a massive club.

"People think that when I left Woking I was chasing money and moving down leagues but it’s the complete opposite. The fanbase here is tremendous.

"There were comments about the pitch. A few of their players were moaning about the pitch – I don’t like this and I don’t like that, the ball doesn’t bounce – but it’s all nonsense. We’ve shown that we can play on it and other teams have shown they can play on it.

"It doesn’t surprise me (about the comments). There are a few prima donnas flying about."