Sutton Go Again Against Bromley
- Mark Bravery
- Dec 29, 2016
- 1 min read
Having suffered the agony of conceding a last-gasp winner at Bromley on Boxing Day, Sutton have an early opportunity to repair that damage when they meet the same opponents at Gander Green Lane on New Year's Day (Sunday, kick-off 3pm).
That 1-0 win has moved Bromley up to tenth in the National League table, six points and four places above Sutton. The Ravens are in good form, winning their last three league matches. But Paul Doswell's men will be hoping to build on an excellent home record which saw them win 21 out of 31 competitive matches at Gander Green Lane during 2016.
However, Doswell doesn't believe that Sutton's 3G pitch will confer much of an advantage on his side, noting that Bromley have already won 2-0 at Maidstone United, who also have a 3G pitch, and that Bromley themselves train on a 3G surface. As he told SUFCTV, “they're used to the surface, they've played on it, and they have a full-size 3G pitch, the same surface as us”.
Sutton will welcome back defender Dean Beckwith who has now completed his four-match suspension, although it may be difficult for him to dislodge Simon Downer who in Beckwith's absence has been playing well at the centre of defence alongside captain Jamie Collins. Full backs Kevin Amankwaah and Dan Spence missed the first Bromley game with knee and hamstring problems respectively; if they remain sidelined then Nicky Bailey and Ben Jefford can fill in again. New wide man Jeffrey Monakana awaits his Sutton debut.