Sutton reached the third round of the Adobe Women’s FA Cup for the first time ever with victory at Bowers & Pitsea, Millie Cutler scoring twice and earning the penalty for the first goal as the club enjoyed a second 3-2 away win of the weekend.
With both sides playing at the same level of the women’s pyramid it promised to be a closely contested affair and so it proved, with the home side starting brightly and Megan Taylor having to tip over a long range shot inside the first ten minutes. However it was Sutton who struck the first blow when Cutler was pulled back as she tried to burst through inside the penalty area, and Beth Humphrey (above) coolly converted the penalty.
Bowers & Pitsea came close to levelling in the first half, as Taylor made a fine save diving to her left to push a 20-yard shot round the post, and the resulting corner bobbling around the six yard box before bouncing narrowly wide.
Just before the break the home side had another chance as a low cross was turned over the bar from close range, but having reached half time in front Sutton came out strongly at the start of the second half, and Brianna Gilbert-Lawal shot straight at the goalkeeper after a jinking run by K’Shaela Burch-Waldron had set her up. There was no mistake a minute later, though, when Emma Spear’s fine wing play on the right ended with a low cross which was superbly turned in by a stretching Cutler.
Three minutes later the home side were back in it when a defensive error left a striker with a simple finish, and soon afterwards the ball was scrambled in to the Sutton net again following a corner, but the assistant’s offside flag cut short the celebrations, and a minute later Sutton had re-established the two goal lead as Cutler made space for herself just inside the penalty area and fired in to the corner of the net.
Burch-Waldron came close to making it four after another solo run ended with a shot that was blocked, and Eden Clark had a long range shot saved, but a nervous last ten minutes was set up when Hannah Baptiste mistimed a tackle in the penalty area and the arrears were reduced from the spot. Taylor had to be well placed to deal with one long range shot but Sutton held on to the lead, playing out over six minutes of stoppage time mainly in the Bowers & Pitsea half, and move on to the third round where the WSL 2 teams, including Sutton’s tenants Crystal Palace, enter the competition.
Sutton: M Taylor, T Allen, E Meehan, Z Walters, B Humphrey, E Oliver (sub A Warren), E Spear(sub B Olomudeji), P Langley(sub E Clark), M Cutler, K Burch-Waldron(sub H Baptiste), B Gilbert-Lawal.
Photo: Paul Loughlin
