After visiting Yeovil on Tuesday, Sutton face the other team to have been relegated from the Football League at the end of last season when Notts county are the visitors to the Knights Community Stadium. It won’t be the Magpies’ first game on the ground, as the teams have twice met at Sutton in the FA Cup in fairly recent times. In 2008 County won by the only goal, a Richard Butcher header, in the first round , and three years later, in the second round in front of live TV cameras, won 2-0 with both goals from Jeff Hughes. Craig Dundas, who played in both games, is pictured above in the 2008 fixture.
Going back to January 1994, Sutton also visited Meadow Lane in the third round, recovering from conceding two early goals to come back and tie things up at 2-2 before a late and controversial goal gave County the victory.
Having lost their Football League status at the end of last season Notts County have a similar record to Sutton after nine games, having won twice, drawn four games and lost three. Their one win on the road came at Harrogate, since when they have also beaten Chorley at home, and they come to Sutton with one defeat in their last six games, and two places above U’s in the table thanks to a better goal difference.
After the club’s off the field problems were resolved, former Wimbledon manager Neal Ardley has been able to add to his squad and this week added two names who will be familiar to Sutton supporters, full back John Brindley joining after being a regular for Bromley last season, and midfielder Sean Shields arriving from Ebbsfleet on a season long loan.
Sutton will be looking to reverse a run of four games without a win, and are still to win at the KCS this season and manager Matt Gray will be hoping that the injury problems which affected the line-up at Yeovil may have eased, with Rob Milsom, who was with Notts County last season, one of the players to miss the defeat at Huish Park. Omar Bugiel is still away, having won his sixth cap for Lebanon as a second half substitute in Thursday’s World Cup qualifying defeat in North Korea.
A reminder that, on this international weekend, season ticket holders at Premier League and Football League clubs can gain admission for £10 (concessions £5) on production of their season ticket. Segregation will be in force tomorrow, with the Collingwood end reserved for Notts County supporters.
