Knaphill won 1-0 at Sutton Common Rovers in the Combined Counties Premier Division South.

The Knappers produced a determined performance to claim all three points, as captain Dale Burnham’s second-half header proved decisive in a closely-contested encounter at Carshalton’s War Memorial Sports Ground.

Rami Halloufi saw plenty of the ball down the right-hand side early on, causing problems for the hosts, but clear chances were hard to come by for the Knappers.

Just before half-time, Sutton Common Rovers’ Tom Collins was sent to the sin bin after a heated exchange, giving Knaphill a brief numerical advantage.

Knaphill were quick out of the blocks at the start of the second half and lifted the tempo.

Ben Mitchell went close with a low strike that skimmed just wide of the post as the visitors began to dictate play. Moments later, Ross Cheek saw a curling free kick from just outside the box superbly tipped onto the bar by Sutton Common Rovers keeper Adam Longman, with no Knaphill shirt able to turn in the rebound.

Olly Woolgar then tried his luck from distance with a well-struck effort that drifted narrowly wide as Knaphill continued to press.

The breakthrough arrived on 70 minutes. Burnham, who had stayed forward after a corner, showed superb awareness to turn and win a free kick on the left-hand side. From it, Cheek delivered a fine ball into the danger zone, and Burnham rose highest to power his header home.

As the game moved into stoppage time, Knaphill almost doubled their lead. Longman came out of his area but failed to clear convincingly, and the ball fell kindly to Cheek about 35 yards out. His first-time strike was well hit and looked to be sneaking under the bar, but it cannoned off the woodwork and back out.

By James Carpenter