TOP TWO INSEPARABLE IN BEACON SCORE DRAW
It was the top of the table clash everyone had been looking forward to but in the end, nothing could separate Hassocks Under 23s and Horsham YMCA as their meeting at the Beacon ended in a 1-1 draw.
YM arrived in Mid Sussex three points clear of their hosts at the top of the Southern Combination League Under 23 West Division but having played two games more.
And that is how it remains after a goal apiece ensured that an entertaining clash finished level at the end of 90 pulsating minutes.
Hassocks will probably just about be the happier of the two given the circumstances. They had to shake off an element of ring rust having not played since hammering East Division outfit Peacehaven & Telscombe 6-0 in the League Cup a fortnight ago, one of only two matches in the past five weeks thanks to a lack of fixtures being scheduled and we weather.
This was also their first league game since a 3-2 win over Lancing back in October and they had to cope with the unavailability of strikers Max Willcox and George Galbraith-Gibbons, who have plundered 14 goals between them so far this season.
In Willcox’s absence, 17-year-old Under 18’s striker Tristan Hayes was promoted to the starting line up, a richly deserved reward for scoring twice against the Tye from the substitutes bench in that last outing 14 days ago.
Nigel Pearce made one further change as Matt Berridge came in for Martin Ratcliffe, giving the first team midfielder some much needed minutes after his availability for Mark Dalgleish’s front side had been severely restricted throughout November.
It looked as though the sides would head into the break locked at 0-0 until YM scored with virtually the finally kick of the first half through Chris Maxted.
Conceding just before the break can often prove to be a severe psychological blow to some teams so Pearce would no doubt have been pleased with his sides response to that setback once they’d digested their half time oranges.
Hassocks came flying out the blocks in the second half and within 11 minutes of the restart they had their equaliser, Connor Bradley notching his fifth goal of the campaign from midfield to level things up.
Both sides created chances after that but neither Mark Pavlovic in the YM goal nor his opposite number Josh Green conceded again as the spoils were shared.
The Robins play their final game of 2018 next week away at third placed East Preston. That tough looking clash at the Lashmar kicks off at the slightly earlier time of 7.30pm.
Hassocks: Josh Green, Ellis Common, Kieran Wells, Ben Jonas, James Oliver, Matt Berridge, Connor Bradley, Harvey Enticknap, Will Glenn, Tristan Hayes, James Littlejohn.
Subs: Joe Russell (used).
