Sutton United look ahead to their second ever National League Cup fixture having beaten Tottenham Hotspur at the start of December, with West Ham United making the trip across London.
The Opposition
West Ham are set to be the second visitors to the VBS Community Stadium in the National League Cup, and will be looking to pick up their first points in the newly established competition.
The Irons entered the current campaign off the back of a successful season in the Premier League 2, finishing just four points behind league leaders Tottenham Hotspur last time out, although they currently sit 11th and will be keen to end a run of six games without a victory.
Recent Form
Manchester United 1-0 West Ham United
Braintree Town 4-2 West Ham United
West Ham United 0-3 Fulham
Cheltenham Town 3-1 West Ham United
Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-0 West Ham United
Manchester City 4-1 West Ham United
The Manager
Steve Potts
Former defender Steve Potts enjoyed a 17-year stint at Upton Park in which he made 505 appearances, enough to rank him in ninth place in the club’s all-time appearance charts. Potts would also take on the club captaincy between 1993 and 1996 and was voted Hammer of The Year in 1993 and 1995, as well as being runner-up in both 1992 and 1994, before hanging up his boots in 2003 following a season at Dagenham & Redbridge.
Following retirement, Potts has held a variety of coaching roles at the West Ham academy including head coach of the Under-16, Under-18 and Under-21 teams.
One to Watch
Lewis Orford
A lifelong West Ham United fan, Lewis Orford joined the Hammers at the age of five and has subsequently risen through the ranks, becoming a key part of the Under-21 team.
After a strong 2021/22 season in the Under-18s at the age of just 15, Orford went from strength to strength the following campaign with 22 goal contributions in 25 appearances as Kevin Keen’s side secured a historic Premier League South FA Youth Cup double. His performances did not go unnoticed, signing his first professional contract with the Club in February 2023 and making his Premier League 2 debut for Mark Robson’s U21 side in a home defeat against Manchester City in March 2023, before scoring his first goal for the development side in a 5-0 victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Orford was also involved in the first team senior squad, sitting on the bench during a 3-0 victory away to FCSB in the UEFA Conference League group stages
During the 2023/24 season, the talented midfielder travelled with the first team nine times across all competitions, made 27 appearances for the U21s and seven for the England U18s, captaining the side in a 2-1 win against Morocco.
In 2024/25, Orford was called up to England U19s, captaining the side on his debut against Portugal, where he featured as a second-half substitute, as well as his first start during their 4-1 victory over Netherlands where he was also on the scoresheet.
Played for Both
Mark Watson
Mark Watson joined Sutton United from local football at the start of the 1993/94 season and his form over the next two seasons, scoring over 20 goals in just over forty games, earned him a move to West Ham United in May 1995.
A regular in their reserves, he had loan spells at Leyton Orient, Shrewsbury and Cambridge United and made his one senior appearance for West Ham as a substitute against QPR in April 1996. After spells with AFC Bournemouth and Welling United he returned to Sutton in March 1998, scoring over 30 league and cup goals in the 1998/99 Isthmian championship success and finishing as top scorer for the club in the Conference the following season.
After playing for Woking, Chesham United and Aldershot Town, he would begin a third spell at Sutton in 2002, scoring his 100th goal for the club in the Surrey Senior Cup final win against Kingstonian at the end of the 2002/03 season and leaving the club the following November with a total of 104 goals in 238 games.
Watson is currently First Team Coach at Cray Valley Paper Mills.
