Late goal sinks Truro City as manager Hodges contemplates future

Truro City 1 Sutton Utd 2

By Rhod Mitchell LINK

 

Watched by their biggest crowd of  the season, City suffered late heartbreak as the Surrey visitors grabbed a  winner with just four minutes to go.


Fans turned out in force to back the club, following an appeal by the three local businessmen who stepped in to save the club from the brink of extinction last week, to vote with their feet and  come through the turnstiles.

Unfamiliar turnstile queues yesterday

The crowd of 613 was the second biggest in Blue Square Bet South, but despite a battling performance the home side were unable to reward them with a win.

And the defeat for a City squad, still crippled by  a  transfer embargo   and which  only had  12 fit players.  left despondent manager Lee Hodges contemplating his future.

Lee leaving the pitch after the Sutton game

He said: "My hands  are tied. It is  very frustrating and  it is hard when you take pride in what you do.

"I don't even know if I can get a side together for Tuesday's game at Farnborough. I am going to have a long week of soul searching  to see what happens next.

"It is so frustrating. You cannot fault the players for  their efforts. I am absolutely gutted for  them."

City were without long term injury victim Stewart Yetton and fellow striker Kieffer Moore  appears to have "gone missing" after the midweek game at Staines.

And with Andy Watkins going off with a hamstring problem and Dan Green set to move to Dorchester it will be a real battle to get a squad together for the Farnbrough game.

Dan Green leaving the pitch - strongly rumoured to be linked to Dorchester

  The game started so well for City, with a great finish from a difficult angle by  Watkins, from Joe Broad's quickly taken free-kick, putting them ahead in the fourth  minute.

But the   visitors soon equalised through Simon Downer and   also missed a penalty, with Gareth Gwillim hitting the post from the spot just before half time.

The second half was fairly even and when Sutton had skipper Jamie Stuart red carded 13 minutes from time for hauling back Watkins, who would have been clear on goal,  the odds tilted in the home side's favour.
 

But City, who had already brought on their only substitute Danny Carne for an injured Marcus Martin,  soon lost Watkins to injury to make it 10 v 10.

Watkins nearly capitalises on a sloppy 'keeper clearance.  Andy is also rumoured to be linked to Bath City.

 And worse was to follow in the 86th minute when  a fine low finish from Stefan Payne condemned Truro to defeat, leaving then 14 points from safety at the foot of the table.

  

City: Sandercombe; Hall, Ash, Williams, Green, Broad, Cooke, Martin (Carne 65), Hopkinson, Watkins, Afful. 

Goals: Watkins  4 (1-0), Downber (16) 1-1; Payne (86) 1-2.