For the second Saturday running Sutton rescued a draw with a goal deep in to stoppage time to maintain the unbeaten record since Chris Agutter took over as Head Coach. For periods of the game U’s seemed on course for victory, leading through Lewis Simper’s goal at half time, and then, after Luke Charman had equalised for Hartlepool early in the second half, regaining the lead through substitute Brandon Njoku, who for the second Saturday in a row came on in the 57th minute and scored in the 60th. Questionable defending then allowed Hartlepool back in to the game and seemed to have gifted the managerless team all three points when Jermaine Francis put them ahead with six minutes to go, but, against one of his former clubs, Edon Pruti’s unstoppable header from a Simper corner in the sixth minute of stoppage time earned U’s their point.
With Hayden Muller recalled from Salisbury and immediately reinstated to the starting line-up in midfield, Sutton started well and Ashley Nadesan might have scored twice in the first five minutes, first scrambling a shot wide under pressure from Pools’ goalkeeper George Evans, one of two ex-Sutton loanees in the Hartlepool team, and then sending an angled shot straight at the keeper. The goal did come, though, with one of U’s best pieces of football so far this season as a delightful flick from David Ogbonna sent Jayden Harris down the left, and his pull back was hammered home first time by Simper.
Hartlepool had opportunities to equalise, Charman sending a snap shot too close to Aziaya and Adam Campbell hitting the foot of the post when a cross from Francis fell to him just inside the penalty area. For U’s, Ogbonna cut in from the left and hit a low shot which was comfortably saved by Evans, and it was a blow for Sutton to lose the lively winger at half time with a minor hamstring injury.
Hartlepool levelled seven minutes after half time as Francis, whose pace troubled the U’s defence all evening, found space on the right before laying a pass back to Jay Benn, whose cross was neatly glanced in off the far post by Charman. That set up a second half of fluctuating fortunes as Sutton regained the lead on the hour as Njoku burst on to a misplaced defensive pass and shot low past the advancing Evans, only for Aziaya and Jack Taylor to then fail to deal with a long ball over the top from the other ex-Sutton loanee Besart Topallaj, allowing Vadaine Oliver to lift the ball over Aziaya and watch it bounce in to the unguarded net.
Six minutes from time it seemed as though Hartlepool had turned the match round, with Sutton’s defending again found wanting as a quick free kick down the left found substitute Matty Daly in acres of space beyond U’s back line, and his cross was flicked superbly past Aziaya by Francis. Not for the first time in the last fortnight a first defeat under Chris Agutter’s tenure stared U’s in the face, but once again that outcome was averted as U’s spirit kept them going to win a corner with five minutes of stoppage time to play. Hartlepool ignored the adage of not making a substitution at a corner, replacing Jack Hunter with Maxim Kouogun, and when Simper swung the flag kick in from the right Pruti had a free run and powered his header past Evans in to the roof of the net. Both sides then had a moment to grab a winner, Hartlepool substitute Danny Johnson shooting wide from the edge of the penalty area and Sutton winning another corner which this time drifted over everyone and out beyond the far post.
Sutton: D Aziaya, A Jones (sub J Eccleston 88), E Pruti, J Taylor(sub W Tizzard 74), H Phipps, H Muller, D Ogbonna(Sub N Boutin H-T), L Simper, J Harris(sub B Njoku 57), A Nadesan, J Wadham. Subs n/u M Dabre, C Bell, K Eyers. Booked: Nadesan, Jones, Pruti.
Hartlepool: G Evans, J Benn, C John, N Sheron, B Topallaj, J Hunter(sub M Kouogun 90+5), J Francis, N Ferguson(sub J Miley 71), V Oliver(sub D Johnson 78), A Campbell(sub M Daly 71), L Charman. Subs n/u M DaCosta, K Foreman, A Smith. Booked: Ferguson, Francis.
Referee: Robert Massey-Ellis
Attendance: 2,557(144 away)
Photo Credit: Paul Loughlin
