Sutton United moved into a Ryman Premier League play-off position with a 2-0 win at leaders Dartford on Saturday.

And, while manager Paul Doswell claimed afterwards that Dartford remain nailed-on certainties for the title, Kingstonian - this weekend’s only other winners in the top six - have now reduced their lead at the top to seven points.

With Steve Watts starting a game for the first time since joining Sutton at the start of last season in a lone role at front with Charlie Taylor and James Norwood providing good support from wide, United dominated the first half.

It was Watts who set up Taylor for Sutton’s opener six minutes before half-time.

And, when Watts departed after an hour struggling with a sickness bug, Sam Gargan took over the reins up front and sealed victory with the second goal 11 minutes from time.

Sutton played as well as at any time this season in the first half, but didn’t have the goals to show for it.

A good game was also in danger of subsiding into a bad tempered affair as referee Steve Child struggled to keep a lid on events.

Having rightly booked Alan Bray for a foul, the official didn’t help himself by failing to punish Danny Dafter for an elbow-led challenge on James Norwood soon after.

Even had he taken action against the Dartford player he would probably wouldn’t have avoided the inevitable flare-up that occurred minutes later following a challenge by James White on Alan Pouton, which saw the Dartford midfielder booked along with Watts.

It was easy o feel sympathy for David Obaze, booked minutes later for a foul that under normal conditions would have merited no more than a free kick.

Happily, apart from a brief clash in the second half after Billy Burgess’s crude challenge on Norwood, things calmed down and Sutton were able to put right the concern of the lack of a goal six minutes before half time.

Before that their best efforts had been a Steve Perkins header just too high from Pouton’s corner, and a free kick from Pouton, a huge influence in the first half, that also flew over the bar.

Dartford had threatened little, apart from one good break halted by a well judged challenge from the excellent Francis Quarm.

Six minutes before half time, Watts received the ball 30 yards out, created some space for himself and slipped a pass through to Norwood, who shot superbly across goalkeeper Andrew Young and in to the far corner of the net.

It was no more than Sutton deserved, but they found themselves under more pressure in the second half as Dartford’s performance improved.

They could have equalised within 30 seconds of the restart when Elliott Bradbrook sliced a shot wide from 12 yards after the ball had ricocheted to him on the edge of the penalty area.

Just after the hour, they came even closer as Cobbs lost possession deep in the Dartford half and a long through pass sent Lee Burns away clear of Bray.

However, Kevin Scriven came off his line well and Dartford’s leading scorer saw his shot loop wide off the keeper’s body.

Burns also missed the target from closer range after another goalmouth scramble, and substitute Ryan Hayes almost fluked an equaliser with a cross from the right that evaded everyone and went past the post.

Otherwise, United defended well, with Perkins and Obaze winning everything in the air to restrict the home side’s opportunities.

It was a huge relief, though, when, not for the first time, Dartford got themselves in to trouble trying to clear the ball through from the back.

After Norwood’s pressure had caused the initial uncertainty between Burgess and Jamie Coyle, it was Cobbs who gained possession, broke in to the penalty area, and squared the ball for Gargan to slot in to the corner of the net despite Young getting a hand to the shot.

It took a good double save by Scriven, helped on the second occasion by Obaze, to prevent Hayes setting up a nerve-jangling finale, but in the end Sutton should have reversed the 3-0 scoreline of September’s meeting at Gander Green Lane when, in the last move of the game, Norwood shot against the advancing Young after being put clear through the middle.

Dartford: A Young, B Burgess, A Gross, A Flanagan, J Coyle, D Dafter (sub L Noble 73), D Harris 9sub R Hayes 63), J White, R Haworth (sub C Rook 62), L Burns, E Bradbrook. Subs n/u R Johnson, J Beales. Booked: White (31-foul), Burgess (67-dissent), Bradbrook (77-dissent).

Sutton: K Scriven, K El-Salahi, A Bray, S Cobbs, D Obaze, SPerkins, F Quarm, A Pouton (sub S McKimm 49), S Watts (sub S Gargan 58), J Norwood, C Taylor (sub M Hann 77). Subs n/u B Hawes, D Phillips. Goals: Norwood (39), Gargan (79). Booked: Bray (19-foul), Watts (31- unsporting behaviour), Obaze (34-foul).

Referee: M O’Keefe (Sundridge)