Actonians 8 - 0 Sutton Utd

Capital Senior Cup weekend as Sutton United were today’s visitors to Rectory Park. No changes from last week’s Actonians outfield lineup after the big win at Ashford but Amber replaced Elisa in goal and the bench included new signing Amina Hanif and the very welcome return of Dom.

The dominance of Actonians in the first 20 minutes was a clear indication of how the game was going to pan out. It included no less than four efforts from Tori, two from Ale, one from Molly, a Mara header going just wide and Naomi probably going the closest with the keeper tipping her shot away. The only thing missing was a goal but that changed in the 25th minute. When the Sutton keeper tried playing out from the back Jas was quick to intercept the ball and after a couple of touches slotted the ball home to give Actonians a much deserved lead.
A deflected header from Shakes 3 minutes later hit the bar, then Mara had another header saved before further efforts from Shakes and Tori were off target. Tori got her goal in the 36th minute when Amber’s cross bounced off a defender into her path to volley home. Molly, Ale and Jas all had shots saved towards the end of the first half but on the whistle the score remained 2-0.

Three minutes into the second half Molly ran through and hammered the ball into the back of the net for Actonians third. On 50 minutes a solo run and finish from Tori, for her second, pretty much put the game out of sight for Sutton. Actonians found the net again in the 52nd minute but as Shakes headed home she was flagged offside. The fifth goal was only round the corner though and it was a hat trick for Tori on 55 minutes rounding the keeper and slotting home after Shakes sent her through. A triple change in the 57th minute saw Keishia, Camila and Dom replace Naomi, Olivia and Amber.

A few minutes later Shakes shot wide and Tori had another effort saved. In the 63rd minute Shakes finally got the goal her performance deserved when she rounded the keeper and finished to make it 6-0. In the 68th minute Camila had a shot go over the bar but almost immediately after the restart Tori smashed home her 4th and the team’s 7th goal. Ikraam replaced Tori in the 73rd minute. Five minutes later it was 8-0 when Jas squared the ball to Shakes for her to tap home.
As the game went into the last ten minutes Ikraam and Molly had shots saved and Shakes had a header go wide before the final substitution was made. Amina coming on for Molly to make her debut. Dom fired a shot over the bar in the 90th minute and in added time Ikraam twice went close to getting her first goal for the club. Hitting the bar with a header and just not being able to get the final touch in a goalmouth scramble prior to the final whistle being blown. Full time 8-0.

One-way traffic for most of the game saw Actonians ease through to the next round of the competition. Excellent individual performances across the pitch from the starting eleven. Glimpses already of what great assets Ikraam and Amina will be to the club in the time they were on and a very happy crowd to see the return of Dom. Special mentions to Amber Dredge who looked very dangerous offensively in the first half and Shakes who was unlucky not to get a hat trick but player of the match for the second week running, and not least for her four-goal contribution was Tori.
The winning start to 2024 continues but Actonians will be expecting a tougher test next weekend as they look for a 4th win of the year when they visit high-flying Norwich. However in a league where anyone can beat anyone Actonians will make that journey with lots of confidence and there is no reason why they can’t come away with a positive result.

Photo and report by Neil Hayward