This was a game that had a twist in the tale and was good entertainment for the spectators.

New signing Dembo Sanneh

AFC Sudbury Reserve manager Ian Manby included in his line-up forward Dembo Sanneh, as well as central defender Shane Benham from the AFC Sudbury under 19 side.

Hadleigh had two early chances before on eight minutes AFC went in front when the visitors keeper played the ball out short to one of his defenders, Bradley Hughes was alive to the situation and nipped in and slotted the ball home from fully thirty-five yards.

Danny Swain making a comeback after sustaining an injury in last week’s first team warm up put in a great through ball to Hughes but he could not capitalise on it. Sanneh was seeing quite a lot of the ball but seemed a little overwhelmed by the game shooting tamely wide on two occasions.

Ex-AFC man Camillo Douglas was a constant threat for Hadleigh making good use of his pace on the right side, although he was not troubling Norton in the home goal. The home keeper did pull off a good save at his near post before Hadleigh struck his far post after a right-wing corner.

Both of AFC’s wide men Ryan Kent and Lee Ifield looked extremely lively getting forward at every opportunity.

Hadleigh equalised on thirty-eight minutes, a corner was not cleared and in a goalmouth scramble the ball was put away by Luke Waugh.

There was controversy just before the break, Sanneh shot and the ball was deflected away by a Hadleigh defender for a corner. To most in the crowd and the AFC management it seemed that the ball had been handled but to the man that mattered the referee thought otherwise.

Half time: AFC Sudbury Reserves 1 Hadleigh United Reserves 1

An early chance was put over by Hughes and then Jacob Brown was rather harshly booked for a very ordinary looking tackle.

Ifield put the ball over the Hadleigh bar after a good passing movement before Hadleigh replied with a cross that struck the bar and the follow up was put wide.

The game seemed to be end to end but with neither side able to penetrate. On seventy-three minutes Sanneh was replaced by Jonathan Moore up front but it was Norton in the home goal who produced the next save. Three minutes later central defender John Camfield was substituted with Jake Johnson coming on.

The game really burst into life in the final three minutes of normal time. On eighty-seven minutes Hadleigh were awarded a free kick on the left edge of the penalty area, Waugh took the kick and it was unfortunate that Norton who had performed well could only push the ball onto the post for it to go back into the goal.

Sudbury’s reply was almost instant with the ball being played through to Hughes who running down the centre of the pitch fired a shot that went high over the keeper and into the net of the equaliser.

Hadleigh were in even more shock on eighty-nine minutes when from a corner Benham rose to head home what was to be the winning goal.

The home side saw out stoppage time to earn all three points against a Hadleigh side that battled all the way.