ROBINS HIT FOR SIX IN SECOND HALF BLITZ
It’s one step forwards, two steps back for Hassocks this season. Just three days after giving Premier Division leaders Horsham YMCA a fright before succumbing to a 2-0 defeat, the Robins were well and truly hammered 6-0 at home by Peacehaven & Telscombe.
When these two sides met back in October, the Tye were joint top have surrendered only seven points all season yet the had to rely on an extremely contentious penalty decision to secure the 3-2 win which.
Five months on and they arrived at the Beacon having won only six out of 20 games since as their title challenge has blown up, and it was that sort of form that made this the sort of game Hassocks needed to get something from if they are to avoid relegation.
They were well in it until just before the hour mark, after which followed an alarming capitulation in which Peacehaven were able to score four times in 15 minutes.
That is the risk you take when you are bold enough to attempt to blood so many talented youngsters in one go as the Robins are currently doing. Only Jordan Badger, Spencer Slaughter and Michael Death survived from the last encounter between the two sides.
The latest player to be summoned from the Under 21 squad was their captain Ellis Common, making his first start for the first team since 2014 and one of the 12 players out of 15 involved for Hassocks on the night who were under the age of 25.
Nobody could have predicted the capitulation that was to come in what was an even first half of football. Dean Brown scored the only goal of the opening 45 minutes when he rode two challenges to slot past Haig Kingston with 26 minutes played.
Hassocks had gone close just before that when a rasping Death drive was pushed over the bar by Lawrence Sanded and they were again denied by Sanded after the opener when the Peacehaven goalkeeper did well to turn a Jake Lindsey one-on-one around the post after a good counter attacking move.
Promising stuff then for Hassocks, at least until the second minute of the second half when Peacehaven added their second.
Cam Wiltshire and Josh Marshall stood over a free kick and it looked as though the former would be taking on the responsibilities, only for Marshall to step up and catch out Kingston at his near post.
That rocked the Robins and only a post denied Brown his second of the game after Hassocks surrendered possession from the restart and good work from Curtis Ford teed up the Tye striker.
The post was having a busy evening of it as it then kept out a Ford effort but there was nothing the woodwork could do to prevent Brown making it 3-0 with a smart effort on the turn from 12 yards.
That was on 56 minutes. On 58, Marshall rounded off a sweeping move for his second of the evening and Peacehaven’s fourth; on 68 he completed his hat-trick by slotting home after beating a meek challenge and on 71, the Robins humiliation was completed by Mikey Lloyd with a well taken finish.
Remarkably, the scoreline could have been even worse for Hassocks. In addition to the two times already mentioned when the post came to the Robins rescue, Peacehaven hit the woodwork a further three times through Marshall, Ford and substitute Gus Burton.
Hassocks: Haig Kingston; Ellis Common, Spencer Slaughter, Jordan Badger, Joe Russell; Dan Stokes, Matt Berridge, Harry Mills, Connor Bradley, Jake Lindsey; Michael Death.
Subs: Jack Wilkins, Jake Atherton, Ben O’Leary (used).
