WOKINGHAM & EMMBROOK earned a hard-earned point as they held league leaders Hanworth Villa to a goalless draw at Lowther Road.
The Sumas are in 16th position in the Combined Counties Premier North, while their opponents lost their lead at the top of the table and dropped a place into second.
Sumas manager Eliot Whitehouse had the luxury of naming some new faces in the Wokingham squad as Zach Tull came in for his first start, while Sam Durham and Sam McDermaid were named on the bench.
The hosts created the first big chance of the match as Callum Eagle nodded the ball down to Jake White who was found unmarked in the penalty area, but he couldn’t power his header past the goalkeeper.
Hanworth created their first shot on goal in the 16th minute but Sumas keeper Aron Kanyai gathered the shot comfortably.
Kanyai was called into action just a few moments later as he made a terrific stop before Charley Tuttle threw his body in front of the ball to prevent the visitors from scoring the rebound.
The Sumas continued to look bright throughout the half as Nathan Mindomba had a chance as he spun in the six-yard box to get a shot away but his effort was blocked.
The sides were deadlocked thanks to some strong defending from both sides as the Hanworth keeper made an important save to prevent White from getting a chance in the box.
The away side applied some late pressure but the Sumas stayed resilient to earn a well-deserved point.
Sumas manager Whitehouse said: “In general it was really good, we followed the game plan we set out which is something we are stringent on every week.
“We try and execute it and we fulfilled that today which we were pleased about.
“You could see the dominance of the game, they created more chances than we did particularly at the end of the game where we were on the back foot a bit.
“But generally we followed the game plan and got what we wanted out of it and got a point against top of the league so we’re delighted.
“It’s something that we discussed last week that conceded three goals and that’s something we wanted to come away from and be really difficult to play against.
“We feel in that aspect that we are gradually making strides.
This week we got the balance pretty good, created the better opportunities and defended our goal really well and kept a clean sheet so there is progression
The Sumas now turn their attentions to cup action as they face Blackfield & Langley in the FA Vase next weekend.
Whitehouse continued: “We’re really excited for that one. In the dressing room there is a lot of excitement, the guys really want to get a run going and progress so we’re really looking forward to the game.
Wokingham & Emmbrook: Kanyai, Carter, Eagle, Cummuskey, Tuttle, Tull, Mullan, Mindomba, Noyes, Scope, White ©
Subs: Robson, Connor, Durham, McDermaid
