RotherhamRotherham United4Sutton UnitedSutton United2
Rotherham boss Paul Warne said he was ready to congratulate Sutton United counterpart Matt Gray before his side staged a dramatic comeback to seal a 4-2 victory after extra time in the Papa Johns Trophy final.
League Two Sutton led 2-1 and looked to have sealed an unlikely win over the League One leaders before Jordi Osei-Tutu equalised in the sixth minute of added time at the end of the second half at Wembley.
Donovan Wilson fired the U's into a first-half lead before Ben Wiles' stunning strike levelled for Rotherham before half-time.
Sutton captain Craig Eastmond's cool finish again gave the south London side the lead early in the second half, only for Osei-Tutu's strike to make it 2-2 right at the end.
Goals in extra time courtesy of Chiedozie Ogbene's long-range effort and Michael Ihiekwe's header sent the Millers fans into a frenzy and ensured the trophy would be heading back up north to South Yorkshire.
"I'd considered with about two minutes to go to shake Matt's hand and say well done," said Warne. "I just didn't think it was going to be our day to get that equalising goal.
"When it went into extra time I just felt a bit more comfortable that we looked a little bit fitter. I'm not being disrespectful to the opposition but I just felt like we looked like we had healthier players on the pitch.
"Fair play to Sutton, I thought they were really good, they were brave with their shape."
A final of quality goals
Underdogs Sutton, who were promoted to the English Football League for the first time last summer, made a bright start and pressed Rotherham into mistakes.
And it was the U's who took the lead through Wilson when Rotherham striker Michael Smith failed to deal with a floated ball into the box.
Will Randall took it down before laying off to Wilson, who calmly finished in the bottom corner from 15 yards.
The goal sparked Rotherham into life and they were soon level with a sublime long-range effort from Wiles.
The midfielder sent a curling, dipping strike from 20 yards in via the crossbar to level the score at half-time.
Sutton skipper Eastmond made it 2-1 at the start of the second half, turning home at the second attempt with a cute finish with the outside of his right boot after his initial effort was blocked.
The League Two side looked like they had done enough to claim the trophy when the fourth official signalled for seven minutes of added time, but substitute Osei-Tutu had other ideas as he whipped the ball into the top corner one minute from the end.
The goal sucked the life out of Sutton's players and Rotherham's class shone through in extra time as they peppered the Sutton goal, with Ogbene's fierce strike from range and Ihiekwe's powerful header completing the turnaround for the Yorkshire club.
So close yet so far for Sutton
Sutton's fans were dreaming of a fairytale win when their captain Eastmond, who has been with the club since 2015, put them 2-1 ahead.
They looked to have done enough as the match ticked deep into added time but the equaliser was as deflating for them as it was inspiring for Rotherham.
Extra time looked to be a step too far as they struggled to keep up with the fitness of the higher-league side but boss Gray and the Sutton supporters will be proud of the performance of their team today and this season.
Last season the club were playing in the National League on a 3G pitch and faced a monumental challenge in their first season in League Two, yet they find themselves in 11th place with seven games to play and a chance of securing a play-off place.
Sutton boss Gray 'gutted' by Millers fight back
Sutton boss Matt Gray: "I am gutted because we're whiskers away from a great performance and walking up those steps as winners.
"Unfortunately we just couldn't see it out for those last few moments.
"I'm gutted for everyone, the players more than anybody, for the shifts and hard work they put in and obviously for the supporters and the board for being that close.
"I felt extra time was just a little step too far for us. Full credit to Rotherham and Paul Warne and I congratulate them all.
"It's been a great experience for us in the build-up and coming here but I could tell the focus in the group [was there], knowing exactly what we had to do to try and get the job done.
"That's why I'm gutted for them more than anybody because they were so close."
Line-ups
Rotherham
Formation 3-1-4-2
- 1Johansson
- 20Ihiekwe
- 6Wood
- 3MattockSubstituted forFergusonat 80'minutes
- 4BarlaserSubstituted forLindsayat 90+4'minutes
- 11Ogbene
- 18RathboneSubstituted forHardingat 61'minutes
- 8WilesBooked at 15mins
- 14MillerSubstituted forOsei-Tutuat 80'minutes
- 24Smith
- 19KayodeSubstituted forLadapoat 60'minutes
Substitutes
- 2Harding
- 7Osei-Tutu
- 10Ladapo
- 16Lindsay
- 17Ferguson
- 23Edmonds-Green
- 30Chapman
Sutton United
Formation 4-4-2
- 1Bouzanis
- 22KizziBooked at 92mins
- 5GoodliffeSubstituted forRoweat 73'minutes
- 6JohnBooked at 86mins
- 24MilsomSubstituted forWyattat 82'minutes
- 7Ajiboye
- 15EastmondSubstituted forDavisat 82'minutes
- 10Beautyman
- 11Randall-Hurren
- 9BugielSubstituted forBennettat 82'minutes
- 25WilsonSubstituted forOlaofeat 67'minutes
Substitutes
- 3Wyatt
- 4Rowe
- 8Davis
- 12Nelson
- 16Olaofe
- 20Boldewijn
- 26Bennett
- Referee:
- Seb Stockbridge
- Attendance:
- 30,688
Match Stats
Home TeamRotherhamAway TeamSutton United
- Possession
- Home60%
- Away40%
- Shots
- Home25
- Away14
- Shots on Target
- Home12
- Away2
- Corners
- Home10
- Away6
- Fouls
- Home19
- Away19
Comments
Join the conversation