Norwich United came into this game having accumulated four consecutive victories in all competitions, with the previous two matches requiring considerable determination and focus to yield late away winners. Planters returned home to Plantation Park for this tie against Mildenhall Town where both sides started the day with unbeaten league records.

Steve Eastaugh made four personnel changes to his side from Tuesday night’s battle with Swaffham, where most of the match was played with ten men. Here, Andy Wilton returned in goal, Dillon Alexander and Haydn Davis slotted back into midfield berths, while Jack Hurrell offered significant aerial presence in attack, as Planters continued the regular rotation of the starting line-up we have seen throughout the season to date.

Norwich United started the match with a solid base. Shaun Wones and Dillion Alexander, in central midfield, broke up play and won several headers, adding a protective shield to the defence. It was therefore some surprise when Mildenhall managed to take the lead inside the opening ten minutes, James Hall shot at goal and it seemed Wilton had it covered in the Planters goal but the ball managed to squirm out of his grasp and the goalkeeper will have been disappointed to see the ball bobble from his hands onto the post and over the goal line to put Norwich United 1-0 down early on.

Planters didn’t allow this set back to detract from the game plan and they got their reward on 25 minutes when Jordan Forbes scored his first goal of the season to make it 1-1. Natty Stewart made the goal, cutting in from the left corner, with a surging run towards goal, which terrified the visiting defence, Stewart unselfishly cut it back to Forbes, who calmly side-footed home to put the Planters level at the break.

HALF TIME – NORWICH UNITED 1 – 1 MILDENHALL TOWN

Norwich United started the second half strongly and while Mildenhall managed some promising moments on the flanks there was little danger to the Planters defence and Wilton was rarely troubled in goal. Planters made the breakthrough in the 56th minute when a corner kick from the in-form Matty Daniels was finished by long serving player-assistant manager Andy Eastaugh.

The Planters could, on another day, have scored more, with Dillon Alexander going very close on at least one occasion but there were to be no more goals in the last half an hour of the match. This period wasn’t without incident though as Alexander, running at full pelt, towards the penalty area, was clumsily wiped out by the Mildenhall keeper, Daniel Crump, whose participation in the match was immediately ended as the referee understandably issued a straight red card.

The ten men of Mildenhall didn’t rest and kept pushing for an equaliser meaning Planters had to be careful and limit their attacking ambitions to an extent, in order to protect their lead. The Planters boss introduced the calm and collected defensive instincts of Harry Barker from the bench for the last twenty minutes and there were no major scares as Norwich United confirmed a 2-1 victory. Remarkably the third consecutive game the Planters have gone 1-0 down and turned it round to win 2-1.

Reporter’s Man of the Match: Dillon Alexander