Sutton denied win with late Nuneaton goal
Andrew Delaney14 Aug – 20:33
Sutton United had to settle for a point after visitors Nuneaton Town equalised in the 89th minute of a competitive match at Coleshill Road
Sutton were trailing to a Danico Johnson goal at the break but showed great character to edge ahead in the second half with debut goals from Ronan Sheehan and George Ray. But Nuneaton pushed hard for the equaliser and Louis Baker fired his side level in the dying minutes.
The late equaliser preserved Nuneaton’s unbeaten start to the season despite their fall to second in the table, whilst Sutton have been showing improvements match-on-match and can feel positive with a hard-earned point against a well drilled side.
Captain Tom Massey returned to the starting lineup for Sutton, in an otherwise unchanged side from the win against Allexton & New Parks on Saturday.
The opening exchanges were very even, with Town having the first effort on goal in the 13th minute, when Aaron Williams curled a shot from the edge of the box that was comfortable for goalkeeper Connor Byrne. And Sutton responded with a Jack Whelan shot from the left that went wide of the target.
The visitors took the lead in the 22nd minute, when Johnson’s shot from eighteen yards came off the crossbar to bounce behind Byrne, and in the confusion Mullan was there to head in.
The match continued with both teams defending well. Town’s Alfie Birts denied Sheehan from six yards and for Sutton, Tion Pearce reacted superbly to deflect a shot from Liam Daly.
United made the perfect start to the second half with an equaliser in the 47th minute. Sheehan intercepted a back pass from Loyiso Recci to round the keeper and finish from a tight angle, after some good work from Whelan on the left flank.
There was very little goalmouth action for the next half an hour in a very evenly matched contest, until Massey’s cross to Sheehan at the back post had keeper Brandon Bache doing well to block at his near post.
In the 75th minute, Massey’s 25-yard effort had Bache diving to tip behind and when Kye Billingham-Belle whipped the resulting corner kick into the box, defender Ray was first to the ball to head United into the lead.
The visitors responded well to going behind and began to press Sutton deeper into their own half and as the minutes ticked down, Ray got in front of his man to defend a dangerous cross at the back post, but the ball then fell kindly to Louis Baker who volleyed home the equaliser.
With momentum now on their side, Nuneaton pressed for a winner in added time, but Sutton remained strong and held on to a well-deserved point.
Next Saturday sees Sutton on the road again with a trip to AFC Bridgnorth with a 3pm kick off.
Team: Sutton United
1. Connor Bryne
2. Kye Billingham-Belle
3. George Ray
4. Matt Bishop
5. Tion Pearce
6. Jon Grigg
7. Ronan Sheehan – 90+1’ Sef Semlali
8. Sam Jeeves – 62’ Abdul Touaiti
9. Joe Gildea – 73’ Leyton Hines
10. Tom Massey (c) – 85’ Robbie Brown
11. Jack Whelan – 62’ Hayden Froggatt
Management/Assistants:
Richard Heath
Adam Watson
Chris Bratt-Rose
Derek Culling
Team: Nuneaton Town
1. Brandon Bache
2. Alfie Birta – 66’ Harrison Bruce
3. Liam Daly (c)
4. Loyiso Recci
5. Trevor Edwards
6. Corey Currithers
7. Cody Mullan – 71’ Declan Somel
8. Aaron Williams
9. James Harrison – 60’ Justin Marsden
10. Louis Carl Baker
11. Danico Johnson 79’ Harry Jackson
Management/Assistants:
Darren Acton
Russell Boswell-Munday
Blake Reynolds
Dan Kemberley
Kevin Willden
Jackson Acton
Match Officials: Kian Soulsby, Steven White, Harry Turrall
| Sutton United | Statistics | Nuneaton Town |
| 2 | Goals | 2 |
| 9 | Attempts | 13 |
| 5 | Attempts on Target | 7 |
| 35% | Possession | 65% |
| 2 | Corners | 5 |
| 5 | Fouls Committed | 11 |
| 2 | Yellow Cards | 1 |
| 0 | Red Cards | 0 |
| Player | Appearances | Goals | Assists | Opp MOTM |
| Joe Gildea | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Jack Whelan | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| Ronan Sheehan | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| George Ray | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Hayden Froggatt | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Kye Billingham-Belle | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Abdul Touaiti | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Connor Byrne | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Robbie Brown | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tion Pearce | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tom Massey | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jonathan Grigg | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Leyton Hines | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sam Jeeves | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Louis Malin | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Aaron Cameron | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Aidan Jeynes | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Charlie Busst | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Matthew Bishop | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Scott Hardy | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Yousef Semlali | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 7 | 6 |