Ben Watts
BBC Radio Kent

Those through-balls are how Maidstone have been undone.

At 2-0 they showed signs that they may be able to spring forward, hurt Coventry City and grab a goal, but that third seems to be tie over, even at half-time in this match.

I don't want to get too far ahead of myself, but it's looking possible that Coventry will become the first team through to the last-eight tonight.

Once this one is done and dusted, there are seven more FA Cup fifth-round ties to settle this week.

No replays at this stage, remember, but if needed we can look forward to extra-time and, ugh, penalties to decide who reaches the quarter-finals.

I suspect Maidstone would settle for penalties at this point...

Tuesday

Bournemouth v Leicester

Blackburn v Newcastle

Luton v Manchester City

Wednesday

Chelsea v Leeds

Nottingham Forest v Manchester United

Wolves v Brighton & Hove Albion

Liverpool v Southampton

Clive Eakin
BBC CWR Sport

It is pretty much a scoreline that Coventry would have wanted to write at this stage.

It has been the Simms/Palmer combination for all three goals.

Simms will take the plaudits but don't underestimate how outstanding Palmer has been in the number 10 role.

Image source, Getty Images

In celebrating his first goal against Maidstone this evening, Ellis Simms ran straight to the bench to collect a shirt bearing Tatsuhiro Sakamoto's number.

The Japan midfielder suffered what boss Mark Robins described as a "really bad injury" in Friday's defeat by Preston.

The Sky Blues have yet to confirm the severity, but Simms' tribute suggests Sakamoto is likely to be out for quite a while.

A first-half hat-trick for Ellis Simms, his first in senior football, is the difference at the break.

The Championship side have not given the National League South side a sniff.

Mark Robins cares not for FA Cup fairytales.

A first quarter-final place in 15 years for the Sky Blues is 45 minutes away.

Liam Kelly, who actually played with Stones manager George Elokobi at Ebbsfleet a decade ago, bends a 25-yard shot straight at Lucas Covolan.

The Brazilian keeper is well on the way to breaking the record of 12 saves recorded by both himself at Ipswich and his Stones predecessor Tom Hadler for Ramsgate at AFC Wimbledon in the second round in December.

Three minutes added on...

Clinton Morrison
Former Republic of Ireland striker on BBC Radio 5 Live

Image source, Reuters

He missed a sitter against Sheffield Wednesday.

He has not been in great form this season, but this will give him confidence going forwards.

A couple of feisty challenges have come in from Maidstone's George Fowler and now Joel Latibeaudiere for the hosts. Not sure this one is going to peter out before half-time.

Lucas Covolan into the action again, this time a more routine save, flopping to his left to keep out a curling effort from just outside the box from Liam Kitching after some attractive interplay down the left.

Moments later Kasey Palmer is crowded out in the box by Harry Kyprianou as he threatens to get a shot off.

Alistair Bruce-Ball
Commentator on BBC Radio 5 Live

252 teams have been involved in this competition, yet Maidstone have made it to the last 16.

Still a tremendous achievement.

Clive Eakin
BBC CWR Sport

(Kasey) Palmer goes for a speccy - his shot from distance was terrific, it was well saved - but Ellis Simms was on hand to claim his first hat-trick for Coventry City.

Maidstone have a really high line so Coventry play the ball in behind.

Kasey Palmer with an unofficial hat-trick, of sorts, with the assists.

Fabio Tavares goes down in a heap after a crunching tackle from Reiss Greenidge.

Hard but fair, that would have been all the rage in 1978 when Blyth Spartans were the last minnows to reach this stage of the FA Cup.

He's ok to continue.

A flurry of corners from Victor Torp are successfully negotiated by Maidstone with Fabio Tavares dragging a 20-yard volley well wide of the far post from the last of the three.

End-to-end stuff, Liam Sole and Manny Duku can't fashion an opening for Maidstone but Kasey Palmer nearly does at the other end, outmuscling Sam Corne and finding Haji Wright, who sees a shot from the left deflected behind for a corner.

Matt Cole
BBC Radio Kent

Nice approach play from Maidstone.

A nice enough move.

Image source, Getty Images

Whisper it but Coventry's ruthless hunger to assert themselves on the early stages of this one might just be satiated for a bit.

The two-goal cushion, which has certainly quietened the travelling 5,000-odd fans from Kent, has put the banana skin firmly in the bin.

That said, Liam Sole pulls away from the back post to gather a deep cross and fires in Maidstone's first shot on goal but he cannot get any bend on his angled effort and it sails well wide of Ben Wilson's goal.

Poor Reiss Greenidge has almost scored the unluckiest and most spectacular goal in FA Cup history.

George Fowler hammers an attempted clearance into his defensive partner's forehead 30 yards from goal and the ball loops back towards his own goal, just floating over the bar with Lucas Covolan frantically backpedalling.

Image source, Getty Images

The FA Cup script writers either have something very special in store later on or they have run out of ideas for Maidstone...

Either way this start from Coventry is the absolute blueprint for a big-gun to avoid a giant-killing on their own patch... so far!

There are 95 places between these sides but the main difference so far is Kasey Palmer.

Palmer bursts into the area to meet a back-heel from Fabio Tavares on the right but all-action Sam Corne follows him back to block his effort and concede a corner, which the Stones manage to clear.