York City produced a dominant display at the LNER Community Stadium, routing Maidenhead United 6-2 in a thrilling National League encounter. The Minstermen were rampant in the opening half, racing to a commanding 4-0 lead inside 32 minutes. The scoring spree began in the 15th minute when Ollie Pearce expertly finished a move initiated by Joe Felix. Pearce doubled his tally ten minutes later from the penalty spot, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way after a Maidenhead infringement inside the area. Just three minutes later, the lead was extended to 3-0 as Tyrese Sinclair capitalised on a pinpoint pass from Daniel Batty. The onslaught continued as Ashley Nathaniel-George made it 4-0, converting a chance created by Adam Crookes, leaving the Maidenhead defence reeling. A glimmer of hope emerged for the visitors just before half-time when Shawn McCoulsky pulled a goal back, assisted by Owen Cochrane.
The second half began with Maidenhead showing signs of a fightback. However, their hopes were dealt a significant blow in the 50th minute when Alan Massey received a second yellow card, reducing them to ten men. Sam Barratt converted the resulting penalty, narrowing the deficit to 4-2. Despite their numerical disadvantage, Maidenhead briefly threatened to mount a comeback. York, however, swiftly extinguished any such hopes. Adam Crookes restored York’s three-goal cushion, assisted by Malachi Fagan-Walcott. Late goals from Luca Thomas, assisted by substitute Dipo Akinyemi, sealed a comprehensive victory for the home side. The numerous substitutions in the second half, including the withdrawal of several goal scorers and assist providers, underlined York’s impressive squad depth. Maidenhead, meanwhile, struggled to contain York’s attacking prowess, particularly after going down to ten men. The result sees York climb to the top of the table, whilst Maidenhead remain in the relegation zone. While the two sides have a relatively even head-to-head record in recent seasons, today’s emphatic scoreline highlighted the stark contrast in form between the two teams this season.