Saturday, 26 October 2024

Ground #406 - Lower Road

Date: 6th October 2024
Location: Sutton-at-Hone, Kent
Ground: Lower Road

My sixth new ground of 2024 was on Sunday 6th October at Lower Road in Sutton-at-Hone, Kent. The game was Sutton Athletic vs. Tunbridge Wells in the Southern Counties East League Premier Division.

Lower Road is out in the countryside in between towns in west Kent. It is surrounded entirely by fields except for the road, that lends the ground its name, which runs south of the venue. A mile east is the M25 Motorway. Lower Road is 2 miles north of the nearest railway station at Swanley.


The main side of the ground is the southern side. The entrance is on this side and a path leads towards the club building in the south-west corner which houses the clubhouse and the dressing rooms. This side has the two dugouts and a covered standing section set back from the pitch by the halfway line. 


The northern flank has a three-level all-seater stand towards the western end with around 100 seats. The rest of this side is uncovered standing with a grass bank behind. The western and eastern ends are uncovered standing with the western end having a good amount of room, including additional car parking space and the eastern end being rather thinner with an advertising board directly behind the goal.


Sutton Athletic had endured a poor start to the season with just one win in their first ten games leaving them sitting second-bottom of the table. Tunbridge by comparison were sitting in the middle of the table in 11th. The first half produced very little of interest with the best play coming three minutes before the break when Tunbridge's Festos Kamara danced his way past a couple of defenders and drilled a shot just wide of the post. Straight after this Jacob Feasey headed straight at the keeper from close range so a decent couple of chances for the visitors. This continued into the second half with Regan Corke shooting directly at the keeper just after the break. Corke was involved again in the 72nd minute when his cross found Festos Kamara who steered towards the keeper who tipped wide when it was heading in. The resulting corner saw James White's shot cleared off the line as Sutton kept the game goalless. Tunbridge pushed on with Harry Hudson dragging a shot wide from the edge of the box in the 84th minute and Rhys Bartlett having a goal ruled out for offside in the 87th minute. Completely against the run of play the hosts then grabbed the lead a couple of minutes later when Elias Ahmed headed into the corner from a cross from the right. As Tunbridge raced to equalise they left space at the back and in the 93rd minute Sutton snatched a second to wrap up a rare victory.



Result: Sutton Athletic 2-0 Tunbridge Wells
Division: Southern Counties East League Premier Division
Attendance: 327

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