Sutton Hope For Sunday Best At Cambridge
- Mark Bravery
- Nov 4, 2017
- 2 min read
Sutton United rediscover the excitement of Cup football this Sunday (5 November) as they travel to League Two Cambridge United in the first round proper of the Emirates FA Cup (kick-off 2pm).
Several hundred Sutton are expected at the Abbey Stadium, in what promises to be a good test for Paul Doswell's team, currently riding high in the National League.
Sunday's match will be the first competitive meeting between the two clubs, although Cambridge did win a pre-season friendly 2-1 at Gander Green Lane in July 2013.
Cambridge were promoted back to the Football League in 2014 after a nine-season spell in the Conference (now the National League). They currently stand tenth in the table, having won five of their eight home matches. Their leading scorer is Uche Ikpeazu with seven goals. They go into this tie undefeated in four games, goalless draws at Lincoln and Grimsby sandwiching 2-1 home victories over Yeovil Town and Chesterfield.
Sutton, who overcame Paulton Rovers to reach this stage of the competition, are now undefeated in eight matches. They will be missing midfielder Craig Eastmond, expected to be out until next month with ankle ligament damage, while defender Simon Downer is also recovering from an ankle injury.
The Cambridge United squad could include midfielder Paul Lewis who played against Sutton while on loan at Dover Athletic in last month's 2-2 draw at Gander Green Lane. A likely starter for them is defender Leon Legge who has played against Sutton in the past for Lewes and Tonbridge Angels.
Last season Cambridge overcame Dover then Coventry City in the Cup before bowing out 2-1 at home to Leeds United in the third round. Sutton, of course, went on to beat Leeds 1-0 in the fourth round to set up a fifth round encounter with Arsenal.
Cambridge United had their own meeting with a Premier League giant in the fourth round of the 2014/15 season, drawing 0-0 with Manchester United at the Abbey Stadium before losing the replay 3-0 at Old Trafford.
Looking ahead to Sunday's game, Paul Doswell told SUFC TV “it's a free bet for us because ultimately the FA Cup last year probably affected where we are in the league”. He went on to say “Cambridge will be expected to win. Their home form this season has been excellent, but we know that we've got enough in this team to compete”.
Cambridge's home colours are amber and black, so Sutton while give the first outing of the season to their white away strip. Although Sutton have sold over 400 advance tickets for the game, it will be possible for fans to pay at the turnstiles on the day.