This was the first game in charge for new AFC Manager Jamie Godbold and he was a happy man at the end of ninety minutes after seeing his young side earn three points in a hard working display.

Credit to Groundsman Danny Crosbie who had got the pitch in a playable state after a week of very wet and changeable weather. It was always going to be heavy going, but the Sudbury side battled away to the very end and thoroughly deserved their victory.

There were several changes to the side, with both Craig Pope, incidentally a player Godbold played with at Cambridge City, and Lee Flynn suspended, plus striker James Baker was away working abroad. In came full back Tyler Kemp to start a game for the first time with his twin brother Scott, with Jordan Blackwell recalled after his suspension. Lawrence Yiga was employed in the centre of the defence, with Terry Rymer, who was not well in the previous twenty-four hours playing up front.

The AFC players were joined by Dave Walton's AFC Under 10 Lions side acting as the match mascots, the game being sponsored by MBR Plumbing.

Maldon and Tiptree had the first chance of the game but Marcus Garnham was alive to the situation when he saved from Andrews. With ten minutes gone Yiga went in hard on Lette-Jallow, way out on the right hand side and was booked for it.

On sixteen minutes the only goal of the game came. A free kick on the left hand side taken by Kris Newby went right to far post and there stealing in was Ryan Henshaw (pictured) to put the ball into the back of the net.

Yiga went through and had a shot but it was very high and very wide. Behcet in the Maldon goal and making his debut for them produced a poor kick and the ball fell to Newby who shot wide of the open goal.

From another Newby free kick Yiga headed over the visitors bar, then Newby had a shot parried by Behcet from fully twenty-five yards. Newby in the action most of the time took a long throw that Ollie Berquez, playing against his former club, headed on but there was nobody there to finish it off as the ball ran across the Maldon goalmouth.

Two minutes before the break came the Essex sides best chance. Jette-Jallow went on a run through the middle of the AFC defence and shot across goal, Garnham got his finger tips to it to divert it wide, however the referee failed to spot the save and gave a goal kick.

Half-Time; AFC Sudbury 1 Maldon and Tiptree 0

The second forty-five minutes was full of endevour with both side finding it hard going on the energy-sapping surface.

On fifty-five minutes there was a bursting run through the middle by Tyler Kemp who got his shot away from around twenty yards and Behcet could only parry it. The rebound fell to Rymer who could not capitalise with ball ending safely in the goalkeepers’ arms.
Ben Robinson the AFC right back who has shown great improvement since arriving from Haverhill Rovers, got in a shot that seem harmless but it was spilt by the visiting keeper at the expense of a corner. From the corner Blackwell did well getting a good cross.

Garnham in the AFC goal nearly presented the visitors with a goal as his poor clearance, after slipping on the tricky surface fell to Bloomfield but he did not make the most of the chance and AFC remained in front.

Josh Kerridge came on for Blackwell with twenty-four minutes left, the latter having put in a good shift.

Bloomfield had a long range shot for Maldon go wide, before Henshaw who had performed solidly at the back headed away a cross from Korangten. Hunter was yellow carded for a foul on Newby, only the second of the game in a fixture the normally attracts a lot more.

Sudbury saw out the remainder of the game to take the three points and climb back to fifth place in the table and give the new manager the start he was looking for.