For the second game in a row Sutton fell behind after leading, but a fine reaction from U’s to going behind midway through the second half saw Brandon Njoku’s deflected shot tie the scores again, and it was arguably the home side who were the more grateful to hear the final whistle and claim a point that moved them in to the final play-off place in the Enterprise National League table.

With Jake Taylor failing to recover from his head injury at Yeovil, Osman Foyo came in to an otherwise unchanged starting line-up, with Kai Jennings taking Taylor’s place in the more defensive midfield role, Jermaine Francis playing an attacking midfield role and Foyo and Njoku the strikers, and it was Sutton who made the better start as they put Halifax under pressure and made it difficult for the home side to gain any lengthy spells of possession. The goal that U’s deserved for their start came in the 12th minute as Francis and Besart Topallaj combined on the left, Francis collecting the left back’s low cross and squaring it for Njoku, who was unable to work a shooting position but laid the ball back to Lewis Simper, who drilled a left foot shot high in to the net.

Goalkeeper Sam Johnson had little chance with that, but created his own problems soon afterwards as he allowed himself to be dispossessed by Njoku and will have been relieved to see referee Kirsty Dowle wave away Njoku’s penalty appeals as he went over under the keeper’s challenge. Indeed it wasn’t until the 29th minute that a free kick was given for a foul, although by then Topallaj had been pulled up for a foul throw and Francis booked for preventing Tommy Lavery taking a quick throw-in.

Halifax’s frustration at being distinctly second best in the first half hour saw a change of formation, AJ Warburton moving from left back to right wing as the home side went to a back three, and the change bore fruit within two minutes as Josh Hmami cut in from the left before rolling the ball to Cody Johnson, whose shot from the edge of the penalty area beat Jack Sims to his right and went in off the post. The lively Johnson came close to a second on the stroke of half time with a dipping shot from the corner of the penalty area that came back off the angle of post and bar, and Will Harris’s follow up was somehow kept out by Sims with the help of his post despite claims that from Halifax that the ball had crossed the line.

Harris had another golden opportunity early in the second half when Edon Pruti presented him with the ball in the penalty area with a mishit pass, but Harris dragged his shot wide, and when he turned an Owen Bray cross wide from close range soon afterwards, although his blushes were spared by an offside decision against Bray, Halifax’s leading scorer seemed in for a frustrating afternoon. However midway thorough the half his glancing header from another Bray cross beat Sims to his left, hit the post and bounced in to the net with Sims this time unable to intervene.

Having struggled to make much impact in the second half, Sutton nevertheless responded well to going behind and within six minutes Foyo showed a good burst of pace on the right before pulling a cross back to Njoku, whose first time shot took a heavy deflection to wrongfoot Johnson and bring U’s level.

The goal led to a final twenty minutes when either side looked capable of winning, Bray blazing Halifax’s best chance wide, but it was Sutton who finished the stronger and substitute Jayden Harris collected a superb through pass from Topallaj and saw his attempt to lift the ball over Johnson deflect up off the keeper, who was able to gather it before it reached the goal. Neither side could force the late goal, though, and the points were shared.

Sutton: J Sims, K Donkor(sub D Ogbonna 72), B Topallaj, J Eccleston, E Pruti, H Muller(sub C Bell 61), K Jennings, L Simper(sub J Harris 72), O Foyo(sub A Nadesan 78), B Njoku, J Francis. Subs n/u D Rodari, D Eze, C Haigh. Booked: Francis, Harris.

Halifax: S Johnson, T Lavery, AJ Warburton, W Hugill, S Hobson, J Mills, J Turner-Cooke(sub D Crowe 90+6), J Hmami(sub J Jenkins 88), W Harris(sub D Kawa 79), C Johnson(sub B Waters 79), O Bray(sub K Morris 88). Subs n/u A Adetoto, N Ford. Booked: Hugill

Referee: Kirsty Dowle

Attendance: 1,278(107 away)

Photo Credit: Paul Loughlin