Sutton v Grimsby preview

14 March 2023

After the longest trip of the season on Saturday, Sutton are back on home soil this evening with a first ever visit from Grimsby Town for a Sky Bet League Two game, kick off 7.45pm. The game will see us supporting the Level Playing Field 'Unite for Access' campaign, further details of which are below.

Originally scheduled for this coming Saturday, the game had to be switched due to Grimsby's superb FA Cup run this season, which has seen them reach the quarter finals for the first time in 84 years, with a visit to Brighton & Hove Albion coming up this Sunday. With Grimsby's midweek schedule between now and the end of the season already full, the only option was to bring the game forward to tonight.

Grimsby were promoted back to the Football League through the National League play-offs last season, beating Solihull at the London Stadium, and they have settled well back in League Two, currently lying just below mid table but with games in hand over most sides, and with just one defeat in their last six games. Only one of their sixteen away league games has been drawn, at Salford, with seven wins and eight defeats in the other matches on their travels, with five of those defeats by the odd goal.

Sutton made it nine games without defeat with Saturday's goalless draw at Barrow and sit just one point outside the play-off zone. There were no fresh injury concerns after the Barrow game, but one piece of squad news is that midfielder Adam Lovatt has joined Farnborough on loan until the end of the season. Assistant manager Jason Goodliffe said: ''Adam was really unlucky to sustain a concussion injury at Carlisle in December as he had got his place in the team and done really well in a difficult period, but since he's been fit the form and fitness of the players in his position have made it difficult for us to put him back in, so we hope hell get some good games under his belt at Farnborough to regain his match fitness''.

Referee Andy Davies is making his second visit of the season to the VBS Community Stadium, having taken charge of the Barrow game in August. He has been on the EFL list since 2012 and is the only referee on the list to have been a professional player.

Tickets are on sale on line here, prices are £20 for adults, £14 for concessions and £6 for juniors, with tickets for under 12s free if bought in conjunction with an adult or concession ticket. Stand seats are £5 extra. Tickets can also be bought at the ground tonight, but prices for adult and concession tickets bought at the ground on the day rise by £2, an increase not applicable to tickets bought on line, even today.

The Sutton fanzone will open as usual at 6pm with food and drink, with Pizza di Prato making their debut tonight. The visitors' fan zone opens at 6.30pm.

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Anyone not at the game can watch a live stream through our iFollow service, with a match pass costing £10. Click here to buy a pass. A programme can also be ordered on line to be sent out after the game. Click here to order a copy.

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We are tonight participating in Level Playing Field's national campaign 'Unite For Access' - a celebration of accessibility and inclusion for disabled sports fans. Level Playing Field is the leading charity advocating for disabled sports fans in England and Wales, and the campaign has seen EFL clubs designating a game over the past fortnight to support the campaign.

If you want to know more about the work of Level Playing Field please visit www.levelplayingfield.org.uk.

You can also find them on social media by searching Level Playing Field.

Match Previews

Match Reports

Match report for Sutton United 0 Grimsby Town 1

14 March 2023

Sutton United 0 Grimsby Town 1 (Efete 34)

Sutton suffered a first defeat in ten games against a Grimsby side who showed no signs of having one eye on this week's FA Cup quarter final against Brighton, starting the game brightly and comfortably defending Michee Efete's 34th minute goal against a U's side that endured a rare collective off night, but who remain within a point of the play-offs, although having played more games than all the sides above them.

It was U's 37th league game of the season, the point after which the two game ban for accumulating ten cautions stops being applied, and as a result Craig Eastmond, one short of that number, was on the substitutes' bench while Omar Bugiel failed a late fitness test, so Harry Beautyman returned in midfield as captain and Matt Dennis partnered Lee Angol up front. Rob Milsom was preferred to Sam Hart and found the lively Efete a tough opponent, picking up an early booking when Efete's pace lured him in to a mistimed tackle.

By then Grimsby might have already been ahead, Kieran Green sending a shot curling just away from the far post inside the first five minutes, and then Ryan Taylor turning to create space for a shot but sending his effort high and wide. The visitors had started much the brighter, but as the half wore on it was looking as though Sutton might have survived the early pressure as U's created some openings, but Ali Smith was off target from twenty yards and Beautyman failed to keep a volley down after David Ajiboye's cross had evaded Angol, whose presence might have unsighted Beautyman. However from the resulting goal kick Grimsby scored the goal they had threatened as Taylor outjumped Coby Rowe to flick the ball on and George Lloyd sent Efete clear to slot the ball past the advancing Jack Rose.

Although Milsom was just too high with an inswinging free kick it was tough going for U's against a solid Grimsby defence that lost little in the air, and Sutton's best moment of the game came ten minutes after half time when Dennis collected a Milsom throw and cut in past two defenders before sending in a shot that Max Crocombe diverted away with his foot at the near post.

That was the goalkeeper's only serious action other than to collect harmless crosses, as U's attempts floundered on Grimsby's central defensive trio, and when several set pieces offered a way back in to the game they were squandered with either fouls or by players running offside. On the one occasion Ajiboye looked as though he might be able to launch a swift counter attack a cynical trip from Harry Clifton, for which a booking was happily accepted, ended the danger before he had even reached the halfway line.

Grimsby came close to a second when Green met a Danny Amos corner with a header which was only just wide, but apart from one moment when substitute Donovan Wilson found a bit of space but could only head weakly in to Crocombe's arms they rarely looked likely to need more than the one goal to claim the victory.

Sutton: J Rose, J Kizzi, R Milsom, C Rowe, B Goodliffe, D Ajiboye, M Dennis(sub E Boldewijn 75), A Smith, L Angol(sub K Kouassi 67), H Beautyman, W Randall(sub D Wilson 74) Subs n/u B House, C Dundas, S Hart, C Eastmond. Booked: Milsom, Beautyman, Rowe, Kizzi

Grimsby: M Crocombe, M Efete, D Amos, (sub J Emmanuel 90+1), K Green,(sub G Holohan 74) Smith, L Waterfall, B Morris, R Taylor, G Lloyd, H Clifton, N Maher. Subs n/u J McAtee, O Khan, M O'Neill, D Orsi, E Khouri. Booked: Amos, Clifton

Referee: Andy Davies

Attendance: 2,751(273 away)

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Sutton's players wore T-shirts in their pre-match warm up supporting the Unite for Access campaign being run by Level Playing Field, which has seen EFL clubs nominate a game over the past two weeks to highlight and celebrate accessibility and inclusion for disabled sports fans, and which we were proud to support on Tuesday night.

Level Playing Field is the leading charity advocating for disabled sports fans in England and Wales, and if you want to know more about their work please visit www.levelplayingfield.org.uk.

You can also find them on social media by searching Level Playing Field.