'Completely dominant' - Sutton United boss Matt Gray had this to say about his side's win over Hartlepool United
Pools slipped to their third successive away defeat of the League Two season – all three of which by the odd goal – after defender Ben Goodliffe bundled home the only goal of the game in the first half.
The result sees Pools drop to fifth in the table and the Sutton manager believes his side got exactly what they deserved against Dave Challinor’s men.
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Hide Ad“I thought we were outstanding,” beamed Gray. “We were absolutely brilliant. We were completely dominant first half.
“It was a little bit like the Oldham game where we dominated large spells and we didn’t get the second goal that day either. It would have been good to settle down my nerves a bit.
“I’m disappointed we haven’t added to the goal that we’ve scored but hopefully that will come.
“Our set-piece delivery was excellent. We were a real threat from set-pieces and could have had three or four from them alone.”
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Hide AdDespite Gray’s reflection Pools did threaten an equaliser, particularly in the second half, when both David Ferguson and Olofela Olomola forced excellent saves from the U’s number one Dean Bouzanis before Jamie Sterry also came close with a header in the closing stages.
“Deano has made a brilliant save in the second half. They’ve piled loads of bodies forward. They’ve thrown absolutely everything at us in the final stages, but we’ve stood strong and got another thoroughly deserved three points,” said Gray.