George Elokobi said Chesham “wanted it a little bit more” after Maidstone lost their long unbeaten record on Saturday.
The Stones went down 2-0 in Buckinghamshire, a first defeat in 19 National League South games and a result that saw them drop from second to fifth.
It was also their first away league loss of the season, leaving Liverpool as the only side in the top six divisions of English football still to taste defeat on the road.
Both goals came early in the second half after Maidstone lost possession in Chesham territory.
The Generals were worthy winners and Stones boss Elokobi had no complaints.
“We are disappointed but credit to Chesham,” he said.
“It’s important we give them credit.
Report: Chesham 2-0 Maidstone
“They did the basics well, they wanted it a little bit more than we did and it’s about making sure in both boxes we ensure we nullify their strengths, we stop crosses and then block shots, like they did in their box.
“It’s been a long time since we tasted defeat but it’s important we learn from this and reset and we go again.
“I’ve said this all along, teams up their game when they’re playing against Maidstone and if we don’t match them for their efforts then we can come undone, like we saw today.
“I didn’t feel like we were clinical in terms of making first contacts.
“It was a game where we needed to play the conditions better, they did it better than us and rightly so got the deserved victory.
“When we go to stadiums like this we have to make sure we roll our sleeves up, we show a lot of character.
“But, importantly, I’m not going to knock our players down now. They’ve been magnificent for us, our supporters. They’ve been tremendous.”
Elokobi named striker Shaq Coulthirst in the starting XI after his 13-minute hat-trick as a substitute against Enfield.
He’d earned a shot after his performance last weekend, with the Stones boss keen to keep his team fresh.
“There was no pressure to start him,” said Elokobi.
“At the end of the day, I’ve always said whoever trains well, plays well, comes on and does the business, deserves a start in the team.
“It’s important to rotate as much as we can because the players have played lots of minutes.
“Shaq has been working hard and waiting for his moment and it was a chance to start giving him minutes and keep building his fitness.
“We’ve got a squad we need to utilise and we need to rotate as much as we can to keep everyone fresh without picking up lots of injuries.”
Sol Wanjau-Smith had recovered sufficiently from a shoulder injury to play at Chesham, along with Sam Corne.
“We didn’t know if Sol was going to make it,” said Elokobi.
“He’s only trained on Thursday and a little bit on Friday.
“Credit to Sol. He’s well strapped up; Sam Corne, same thing.
“These are battlers, these are warriors for me, for us. They’re giving everything.”
Maidstone visit Weymouth in a rearranged league game on Tuesday (7.45pm).
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