Hassocks have been handed a tough task in the first round of the Sussex Senior Cup with a trip to Chichester City.
The draw was made at the weekend and sends the Robins to the current Southern Combination League leaders on a date and time to be confirmed.
Hassocks and Chichester have met once in the competition, at the third round stage in the 2008-09 season. Dave John’s Robins had already been eliminated in the second round, but conquerors Bognor Regis Town played ineligible player in their 5-2 win and so the tie was awarded to Hassocks.
They took advantage of having a second bite of the cherry by scraping past Chi in one of the stranger games that the Beacon has seen.
The visitors arrived without any form of recognised goalkeeper available and so 58-year-old manager Adie Girdler was forced into deputising.
Despite having a man just seven years away from collecting his pension in between the sticks, Chi were by far the better side and dominated three-quarters of the tie only to go down 1-0 to an own goal.
Anthony Hibbert’s pass got Laing in goal side of the defence and although his poor finish did not look like going in, Ford came sliding in to poke it over his own line.
That was enough to send Hassocks into the quarter finals, equalling their best ever run in the competition. They went down 1-0 to league rivals Shoreham at that stage.
Hassocks and Chichester have already met this season in the second match day of the season when Chi underlined their title credentials with a 6-0 win at the Beacon.
Gicu Iordache scored twice for Miles Rutherford’s side that evening with Scott Jones, David Herbert, Jimmy Wild and Robert Hutchings also on target.
The Robins will have much fonder memories of their last visit to Oaklands Park. That came in April when they effectively ended Chi’s slim championship hopes with a shock 2-1 win courtesy of goals from Michael Death and George Galbraith-Gibbons.
The draw ends a remarkable run of home ties for Hassocks in Sussex FA competitions this season. Prior to being handed Chi away, the first team, under 23s, under 18s and ladies had all been given games at the Beacon in their respective county cups.
