HEYBRIDGE SWIFTS 2 SUTTON UTD 0

Despite a second half in which they spent long periods in their opponents' half, Sutton couldn't claw back the advantage that Heybridge had gained during a two minute spell in the first half, and slumped to a fourth defeat in five goalless games. It was the first time that they have returned from Scraley Road without anything to show for their day's work, but for all their territorial domination in the second half they didn't create enough in the way of clear opportunities to justify a better result. Heybridge did little apart from defend well, but in that two minute spell around the half hour they took a grip on the game that was to prove decisive. Sutton had just worked their clearest opening, Lewis Gonsalves shooting wildly over the bar after being put through by Haworth's pass, but instead found themselves a goal down when Kevin Budge turned on the left corner of the penalty area and hit a shot which had no great pace but seemed to take a slight deflection and somehow squirmed between Tommy Dunn and his near post. Worse followed two minutes later, but if Dunn will have been unhappy at the first goal going in he was entitled to feel unlucky with the second. Referee Tony Mason played his part with a good advantage after Mike Mison had fouled Budge, as Lewis Baillie took the attack on. Dunn came out and made a fine stop, but was unable to do anything as Jamie Windows lifted the rebound over him and the covering defenders for a first senior goal, the outcome of the move not sparing Mison a yellow card. Haworth brought a good save out of Kingsley Banks just before half time with a low shot, and with the wind on their backs in the second period U's will still have had hopes of recovery. They almost had a flying start to the second half as Eddie Akuamoah and Nick Bailey both battled hard to tur the ball across goal and set Haworth up for what seemed to be a certain goal, but Banks and a defender threw themselves at his feet to smother any chance of getting a shot in. U's had one scare in the second half, when Rob Walker's low cross was fired high over the top by Budge, but apart from that it was a question of whether they could do anything with all the possession that they had. The answer was in the negative as the most promising moves came to grief outside the area and too often a cross failed to get past the first defender. When substitute Matt Fowler did put in a good ball from the left, Haworth's header was high and wide, while Matt Gray probably came closest with a volley just too high. Heybridge's most alarming moment came when Banks was adjudged, on the most borderline of decisions, to have handled outside the penalty area as Haworth chased a pass on the left. The keeper, who should have been sent off at Sutton earlier in the season when his foul denied Mison a tap-in, again escaped with a yellow card although with Haworth by no means a certainty to be able to profit from a pass that had the wind behind it the colour this time seemed right. Paul Honey and substitute Graham Tydeman were also booked before the end as was home replacement Gareth Cleverly, who barely lived up to his name by kicking the ball away after the foul for which he was received the yellow card.

Heybridge: Banks, Cranfield, Barber(Taylor 62), Haydon, Pollard, Baillie, Walker, Tomlinson(Cleverly 78), Windows(Roberts 77), Budge, Payne.

Sutton: Dunn, Palmer, Gonsalves, Mison, Hammonds(Fowler 68), Honey, Drew, Bailey(Tydeman 68), Gray, Haworth, Akuamoah. Sub n/u Timothy.

Referee: T Mason Attendance: 204