A late strike from James Gale stole the points away from Sutton United’s grasp, following first half goals from Jai Rowe and Will Davies.
Boston United drew first blood after 23 minutes when a lethal Brad Nicholson throw-in caused havoc in the box, and saw Rowe power home the opening goal, before being pegged back on the half-hour mark when Davies met Eduino Vaz’s delivery to fire home his 18th league goal of the season, and ensure their lead lasted just six minutes.
While there were few clear chances after the break, Davies did have the chance to win the match for the U’s with 15 minutes left when he was brought down inside the area following Siju Odelusi’s dangerous low cross, but Boston goalkeeper Cameron Gregory produced a superb stop to deny his powerful strike, and set the Pilgrims on their way to a late, late victory as a deep free kick from Cameron Green caused havoc in the box, and eventually fell to Gale who volleyed the looping ball past Sims to steal the three points.
Defeat at the Jakeman’s Community Stadium sees the U’s drop to 14th, and will be looking to bounce back with the National League Cup Semi-Final on Tuesday night.
Two changes to the starting lineup saw new recruit Kain Adom come in for his debut on just his second day as a Sutton player, replacing the injured Josh Coley, and was joined by Vaz who replaced Ryan Jackson.
A quiet opening ten minutes saw Boston see most of the ball, but they struggled to create anything of note until Frankie Maguire sent a strike well off target from the edge of the box.
This preceded a handful of opportunities for the visitors, with Sutton beginning to find their feet in Lincolnshire. First, Alex Woodyard showed brilliant strength to keep possession before picking out Ashley Nadesan, who saw the ball bounce off him and into the path of Adom, who almost opened his U’s account just 13 minutes into his debut when he saw a shot trickle away via a deflection.
This was followed by a similar chance for Nadesan, with Adom combining well with the on-loan Gillingham man to send him away, before checking inside and seeing a low shot deflected behind off Green. The subsequent corner almost resulted in a Sutton lead in incredibly fortuitous fashion though, with Gregory failing to deal with the dangerous in-swinging delivery and almost drop it into his own net, with Boston frantically clearing their lines. Sutton did well to recycle possession though, and saw Lewis Simper eventually send a hopeful drive from distance over the crossbar.
Despite a positive spell of possession, Boston soon responded with the opener as Rowe met Nicholson’s huge throw-in from the left flank and headed past Jack Sims to break the deadlock.
Sims then had to be in fine form to prevent Boston from adding a second moments later, with Green sending a powerful, angled drive towards the top corner which the U’s goalkeeper had to palm away.
And this proved to be a pivotal moment as Sutton found themselves level just six minutes after going behind, with Vaz’s dangerous free kick meeting the head of Davies who’s shot bounced onto the post and trickled past Gregory.
It had certainly been an even contest so far, and saw few clear cut chances following Davies’ equaliser as both sides remained resolute at the back. Sutton were forced to make an alteration in their backline shortly before half time though, with Jack Taylor going off in place of Harry Ransom, and preceded six minutes of added time being indicated by the Fourth Official.
This allowed both sides to produce one more opportunity, with Davies rifling a low effort wide of the target, before Jacob Hazel tried a back heel amidst a crowd of bodies shortly before the break, and saw his effort blocked as both sides went into the interval with one goal apiece.
Looking to take the lead, an early chance fell to Sutton after the restart with Simper’s 25-yard strike flying off target, and was followed by a switch on the flank in an attempt to inject some more energy onto the wing, with Adom being replaced by Jackson.
It was opposite number Vaz who came close to scoring next though, trying his luck from distance with a low shot that failed to really trouble Gregory, but nonetheless preceded a dominant period for the U’s in their search for a winner.
Boston remained firm for much of this spell, with Odelusi being introduced in place of Woodyard as Morison looked to add some energy into the middle of the park.
And it was the former Aveley man who produced a golden opportunity for Sutton to take the lead, with his low cross from the right picking out Davies, who got the ball under control before going to ground under a challenge inside the area, with the referee pointing to the spot.
However, Gregory guessed the right way to deny Davies’ powerful shot from 12 yards, and gave Boston a lifeline in their own search for a winner.
The Pilgrims did think they had restored their lead moments later when substitute Keaton Ward stroked the ball past Sims, but the referee had already blown for a foul on Vaz.
This meant the score remained all square until the death, when Green’s deep free kick from the halfway line was eventually cleared as far as Ward, who’s low effort was blocked by Odelusi and sent a looping deflection into the path of Gale, who stroked the ball into the bottom corner to win the match.
Boston United: Gregory; Green, Hazel (Marriott 85’), Rowe, Teale, Nicholson, Knowles (Gale 70’), Richards, Maguire (Ward 70’), Mills, Hill (Sloggett 70’). Subs n/u Wadsworth, Green, Lovelace. Booked: Hazel
Sutton United: Sims; French, Simper, Davies, Vaz, Barbrook, Taylor (Ransom 45’), Nadesan, Woodyard (Odelusi 70’), Topallaj, Adom (Jackson 52’). Subs n/u Boateng, Wadham, Tume, Kerbey. Booked: French, Sims, Simper, Odelusi.
Referee: Richard Aspinall
Attendance: 2,302 (120 away)
Photo Credit: Paul Loughlin
