In over 123 years of history it had never happened, yesterday at Gander Green Lane history was made, and now a new story will begin: we will see Sutton United in EFL, next season the Amber will be one of the 24 clubs that will make up the League Two.

The season of the National League

The season in the National League started late due to Covid-19, the first matches were in fact only played on 3rd October, about a month later than expected;  this also involved numerous midweek shifts to finish the season on schedule.  In addition, the various organizational difficulties, including the exclusion of two clubs from the competition, have further complicated the calendar with many partial rounds and as many recoveries to be made once again during the week.

The London Club made their debut with a 3-0 home win over Maidenhead United and, after a slightly fluctuating start, reached second place on Matchday 13 behind Torquay, and then surpassed them in the standings on Matchday 24;  at that point he resisted in the lead for sixteen rounds, until he was overcome, four rounds from the end, again by Torquay due to a few draws and a defeat in the direct match.

In the final sprint, at Sutton‘s three straight wins against Woking FC, Maidenhead United and Hartlepool;  Torquay responded with three draws, the last of which, against Barnet, gave them the chance to celebrate their National League title victory at Gander Green Lane in yesterday’s game, one match early.

The protagonists

The pillars of coach Matt Gray’s line-up are three players of depth and experience: Captain Greg Eastmond, former Liverpool goalkeeper Bouzanis and playmaker Harry Beautyman.

The 4-4-2 proposed for the entire season saw a solid defense with the pair of central players composed of Goodliffe and Jhon (author of five goals) and the push of the defensive side Barden and in particular Milsom who, on the left wing, made a fundamental contribution in offensive supplies.

In midfield, Eastmond supported by Kenny Davies, a midfielder of balance and order;  the offensive part made the difference with Olaofe, Bugiel, Ajiboye and Donovan who took turns during the season, guaranteeing goals and assists.

The best scorer of the season was Olaofe with 13 goals, followed by Beautyman with 11, then Donovan with 7, many of which were decisive.

Manager Matt Gray

The Manager is Matt Gray, 39, born in London, on his debut in the role of Coach;  in previous seasons he was technical assistant in Crawley Town, Aldershot Town and Eastleigh FC.

Under his leadership, Sutton have done 84 points this season, resulting in 25 wins, 9 draws and 7 defeats;  72 goals scored while only 34 conceded.

The programming for the next season will begin shortly;  in the meantime, around Gander Green Lane, they are enjoying the well-deserved success;  promotion to EFL represents a very prestigious goal: participation in the Professional leagues is the dream of every non-league club.

Di Gianluca Urgnani e Marco Fornasari