Sutton boss Matt Gray saluted match-winner Tope Fadahunsi after his late goal earned a 2-1 victory over Mansfield.

Fadahunsi’s second goal of the season eight minutes from time handed the hosts their second win of the campaign.

The substitute pounced just minutes after coming on, nodding home from close range, and Gray was happy to see him grab his chance.

“I’m delighted for the lad, he deserves that goal,” said Gray.

“Tope has worked so hard on his game this season, and he’s really coming on. There’s real genuine promise there – he’s player that can make a difference for us.

“His goal capped a terrific overall performance from the lads. We knew it wouldn’t be easy against a really good Mansfield side, but we’ve dug in and showed plenty of character.

“Some teams might have gone into their shells after they equalised quite late in the game, but huge credit to my players for the way they battled and earned the three points.

“It gives us a bit of platform to build on. This is a big win for us against a top team in this division, and this will give huge confidence to everyone. We’ve shown good quality when needed, and earned our reward.”

Sutton went close in the early stages when Donovan Wilson was superbly denied by ‘keeper Christy Pym’s terrific low save. They almost struck when Harry Beautyman slid in before seeing a low strike hit a post.

Josh Neufville broke the deadlock for the hosts just before the interval when he fired low into the corner. Ollie Hawkins levelled it for the Stags in the 75th minute, before Fadahunsi’s header seven minutes later secured the win for Sutton.

Mansfield boss Nigel Clough cut a disappointed figure after the Stags’ third loss of the campaign.

He said: “For 30 minutes I thought we played well, but apart from that, there wasn’t much else to be positive about.

“That was highlighted by the two goals of theirs, which were both poor ones to concede.

“We have to show a stronger mentality, and we have to have players who can show more desire to keep the ball out of our net.

“Things are not necessarily breaking for us in and around the penalty area, but whether we’re actually doing enough to earn that bit of luck is another question. We should have scored more goals with the chances we had.”

“We had problems against Sutton last year. They’re a very difficult and awkward team to play against. They’ve kept the way they play in the Conference and are difficult to break down. It’s not just us, lots of other teams have found that, especially at their place.

“We were hoping for better fortunes this time, but it just wasn’t to be again today.”