A.F.C. Sudbury kicked-off their home Ryman League Division One North campaign with Ilford making the journey to the MEL Group Stadium. A mixture of familiar, returning and fresh players greeted the home crowd for the first game held at the ground since extensive drainage work carried out during the summer and the pitch certainly looked in superb condition.

Sudbury kicked off the match on a calm, warm evening with a light drizzle falling throughout. James Baker created immediate concern in the Ilford defence, causing the visitor’s to concede a fourth minute corner from the left. Michael Shinn’s delivery reached Tom Devaux whose header went wide of the right hand post. Ilford then cleared a second Shinn corner as Sudbury looked to take a firm grip on possession and pressure. This was well in evidence when Danny Emmanuel ran strongly through the heart of the Ilford defence and found Dave Wareham. His shot cannoned off the Ilford defence for Sudbury’s third corner with just six minutes elapsed. This became four when Michael Shinn’s corner from the left found the head of a leaping James Baker whose effort was superbly pushed around the left hand upright by Ilford goal-keeper Rob Budd. This was easily dealt with by the Ilford defence who looked glad to have relieved the sustained early pressure.

Shaun Harris looked to make space in the Sudbury penalty area in a rare sortie up-field by the visitors, but Sam Clarke put in the block at the expense of the first Ilford corner of the night. The ball fell for Derek Hawtin whose cross flew high and wide of the home goal. Adam Bolle managed to turn in the home penalty area in the twelfth minute, but his shot lacked real power and was an easy gather for Sudbury ‘keeper Danny Gay. Sudbury’s fifth corner came on the quarter-hour when Sam Clarke’s shot was saved low to his right by the busy Rob Budd. From Shinn’s corner kick Richard Howell rose to head home, but the goal was chalked off for a push.

Sudbury forced three more left wing corners with the Ilford defence standing firm on each occasion. On twenty-eight minutes Michael Shinn latched onto a loose ball in a central position and ran strongly towards goal. His superb cross from the right fell for the on-rushing Jemel Fox whose header flashed tantalisingly across the face of goal before being gratefully thrashed up-field. The corner kicks continued to rain in on the Ilford goal as Sudbury notched up ten in the first half in which they were totally dominant. On forty-two minutes a James Baker shot was grabbed and stopped on the line by Rob Budd who was proving Sudbury’s nemesis in their search for that elusive opener. Before the half closed Budd saved from Danny Emmanuel’s shot on the turn and the Ilford defence charged down a James Baker drive.

Half Time; AFC Sudbury 0 Ilford 0

Sudbury again started purposefully with Sam Clarke firing over on forty-six minutes. Tom Devaux fired a shot from seven yards and seemed certain to score, only for Rob Budd to pull of an astonishing point-blank save. On fifty-three minutes Budd punched Richard Howell’s precision cross from the right wing clear of the penalty area. A rare Ilford break saw Jemel Fox tackle Aime Blessing with excellent timing as the Ilford striker raced away. Dave Wareham cut inside from the left wing and Budd again produced an amazing stop to keep out the yellow tide of pressure.

David Lorimer Made AFC Debut

Sudbury replaced Danny Emmanuel with David Lorimer on 68 minutes as they continued to press for the opening goal. Ilford substitute Greg Akpele sent a shot just wide of the Sudbury goal from inside the penalty area on seventy-five minutes as Ilford began to venture forward. Nathan Clarke found David Lorimer who in turn sent a ball towards a foraging Michael Shinn. The ball was marginally behind Shinn whose flick on the run looped agonisingly over the crossbar. A second substitution came for A.F.C. Sudbury when Chris Sullivan came on to replace the hard-working Dave Wareham.

Off The Mark James Baker

Despite their possession and in excess of sixteen corner kicks, Sudbury looked to be heading for successive draws to raise the curtain on the new season when Sam Clarke fell in the penalty area. From the awarded penalty kick, James Baker hit a hard low shot into the corner of the net beyond the hitherto faultless Rob Budd who was injured in his effort to make the save.

A hard won win for A.F.C. Sudbury for whom persistence and patience eventually paid off with the first three point haul of 2011-2012.

Richard Whiting