Goals from James Fennelow and Kai McKenzie weren’t enough as the U’s came off second best to Leyton Orient in an EFL Youth Alliance game that had it all.

In recent weeks, Sutton have had a habit of scoring very early goals, although on this occasion U’s presented the hosts with an opportunity to score an early goal themselves. A through ball down the left hand side found the lively winger Nzang, who was brought down from behind by defender Jay Coombes. The striker Lowe stepped up but blasted his penalty over the bar, with Klevis Muca diving the right way.

Sutton soon created a chance of their own as a delivery from McKenzie on the right hand side was met at the near post by Ezekiel Yohannes, with his shot flashing across the goal. Eleven minutes in, Muca made his first save, with Nzang causing more issues for Sutton’s backline, beating Blake San-Norton and delivering a low cross which was caught by the Sutton goalkeeper. Leyton Orient then created their best moment since the penalty with the other wide man Mensah delivering a ball into the box from the right which was met by Lowe who saw his soft header go past the post.

Despite the pressure from the home side, it was Sutton that opened the scoring just before the half hour mark.  A cross from Yohannes on the left was met by today’s captain McKenzie, who guided his header into the far corner. Glen Nichols described him today as someone who “played like a leader” and deserved to wear the armband. That was the striker’s thirteenth of the season.

Ten minutes from half time, Leyton Orient deservedly got an equaliser. A cross from Nzang found Lowe at the back post who directed his header into the opposite top corner, the perfect way for the striker to put the missed penalty behind him.

Glen did state that Sutton’s decision making was questionable at times, and this was seen five minutes before the break. A throw from Coombes went back to Muca, who played a risky pass across his own box to Haniel Boateng. The defender was pounced on by Mensah, and was brought down inside the box for Leyton Orient’s second penalty of the day. Despite a different penalty taker, the same outcome resulted although this time Muca was required to save it.

Leyton Orient threw one more attack at Sutton before the break. A through ball by Mensah found Lowe, whose shot was saved by Muca at the near post. Glen Nichols did admit that Sutton were fortunate to be level going into half time.

Five minutes after the restart a low free kick on the right fell to Gbadebo in the penalty area, whose strike was blocked on the line by Coombes with screams of handball. To start with, neither the referee nor the linesman seemed interested in giving the penalty. However, after a conversation between the two of them, the hosts were awarded their third penalty of the afternoon, and as if this wasn’t enough trouble for U’s, Coombes was also shown a straight red card. It was third time lucky for the hosts as their third penalty taker of the day, Nzang,  calmly chipped the ball down the middle, with Muca diving to his left hand side. The way the penalty was converted was a further dagger in the heart for the U’s.

Glen decided to bring on “ the big hitters”, making all five substitutions in an attempt to find a way back into what had already turned into a wild game. The changes had a positive impact as with twenty five minutes to play a low cross from Omotolani Bello found Bobby Sheargold inside the penalty area, but his shot couldn’t get past the defenders.

The hosts had everything in their favour to put the game to bed, and they were hunting for another goal. Botendo played a pass out wide, for the Orient player’s low shot to be saved by Muca at his near post. Glen had stated that for forty minutes of the second half, he believed that Sutton were “excellent”, t however the other five minutes saw the hosts grab their third. Sutton lethargically  lost the ball under no pressure on the half way line, resulting in Lowe being put through to go round Muca and place a shot into an empty net. That was his second of the afternoon.

However, Sutton kept on pushing and were rewarded in the fourth minute of stoppage time. Another low cross from Bello was met by the  substitute James Fennelow, who side footed the ball under Pike. It was the striker’s fourth goal of the season. Fennelow has been struggling with fitness all season, and after making his return in the win at Barnet, he was faced with another injury setback. Glen has stated that he is a “top quality striker”, and is pleased to have more than one fully fit striker with the U’s still having fifteen games to play this season, including a cup final in May.

It was too little too late for Sutton, as they suffered their first defeat in five.

Sutton: K Muca, B San-Norton ,H Boateng, J Coombes, G Katana, L Ginger(sub R Ruiz 56), D Ashia(sub C Lee 69), T Bamidele(sub A Reeves 52), O Bello, E Yohannes(sub B Sheargold 56), K McKenzie(sub J Fennelow 70).

Sutton are next in action this Saturday in the EFL Youth Alliance, as they play Gillingham, who beat them 1-0 earlier this month. The U’s will be without Jay Coombes who will serve his match ban. Glen has also said that he will be managing minutes carefully, ahead of welcoming Eastleigh in the National League Academy South Division on Wednesday. The Gillingham is currently scheduled for 10.30 at Knaphill FC. However, the location may change to Leatherhead Youth Club. Please check the website over the next few days for any changes.

Report: Finlay Harris