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Gateshead were condemned to defeat at Maidenhead United by a late double sucker punch in the final away game of the Vanarama National League season.
Luke Hannant deservedly put The Heed in front from the penalty spot nine minutes into the second half, only for goals from Kevin Lokko and Shawn McCoulsky in the final 10 minutes to leave the visitors empty handed.
Rob Elliot made nine changes to the starting 11 from Thursday’s defeat at AFC Fylde, with Kenton Richardson and Hannant the sole two men to retain their starting places for Gateshead’s second game inside 44 hours.
The best chances came the visitors’ way in the opening 45 after a relatively slow start, with it taking half an hour for the first opportunity of note to arrive as Callum Whelan saw a first-time effort from 18 yards saved by Craig Ross.
McCoulsky fired wide at the other end for Maidenhead, before Connor McBride was denied at the other end by an inadvertent block from Marcus Dinanga on the goal line, which led to him being ruled offside.
Dinanga had a goal chalked off for offside himself four minutes after the restart, while at the other end Nathan Harness was called upon to smother a close-range effort that would have put Maidenhead in front.
The opener arrived on 54 minutes though after McBride was felled in the area on the turn, allowing Hannant to step up and dispatch for his seventh league goal of the season.
Gateshead then saw a succession of chances to extend their lead go begging, with Louis Storey the first to come close at the back post when he got on the end of Hannant’s free kick, only for Ross to claw away from goal.
Ross would deny The Heed again with 71 minutes on the clock when he batted away Dinanga’s effort at the back post, keeping his side in the game to allow Lokko to head a deep free-kick past Harness with seven minutes to go.
The visitors pushed forward in an effort to restore their lead but were instead hit by an injury-time gut punch, as a clearance was taken in by McCoulsky on the halfway line before the forward evaded Richardson, Storey and Harness to score the winner for the hosts.
Defeat saw Gateshead remain in sixth place in the league table thanks to defeats for FC Halifax Town and Aldershot Town, though Elliot’s side now need to overturn a four point deficit in their two games in hand to overtake Solihull Moors.
Gateshead: Harness, Storey, Richardson, Grayson, Hannant, Allan (Olley, 76’), Francis, Whelan, Worman, McBride (Adom, 76’), Dinanga (Brown, 76’).
Substitutes: Booty, Tinkler.
Goals: Francis (32’), Hannant (54’, pen)
Yellow Cards: Hannant (90+9’)
Maidenhead United: Ross, Asare (Abrahams, 75’), Barratt, Beckwith (Massey, 63’), Clerima (Nathaniel-George, 37’), De Haviland, Lokko, McCoulsky, Mitchell-Lawson, Pettit, Smith.
Substitutes: Sho-Silva, Zimba.
Goals: Lokko (83’), McCoulsky (90+3’)
Attendance: 1,391