JOHNSON TO THE FOUR AS HASSOCKS HIT THE 40 POINT MARK
Four goals from Phil Johnson took Hassocks past the magical 40 point mark as they won a typically entertaining encounter with Crawley Down Gatwick.
Whenever the Robins take on Down, goals tend to flow and that was the case at the Haven once again as Hassocks ran out 5-2 winners.
This may not have been a patch on when the two sides shared 10 in a 6-4 win for the Robins back in November 2016, but it held much more significance for Mark Dalgleish’s side owing to their new-found points tally.
40 has long been considered the mark needed to guarantee Premier Division safety and the Robins have now made it there with six games to spare.
That it was a stunning performance from Johnson that took them onto 42 for the season seems extremely apt. Johnson was the marquee signing in Dalgleish’s overhaul of the side in the summer, the Robins pulling off quite the coup to re-sign their former youth team product from Horsham YMCA.
Hassocks’ activeness in the transfer market was born out of a desire to avoid a repeat of last season’s troubles, when they were only spared the drop into Division One thanks to two sides being promoted into the Bostik League and only one coming down after they’d finished third bottom with just 28 points. And it’s the talismanic Johnson’s goals that have gone a long way to ensuring they’ve done that with 26 to his name.
Dalgleish has built a slick, counter attacking side based around utilising Johnson’s phenomenal pace and finishing and it’s worked a treat.
They’ve troubled some of the top teams in the division and with a little more consistency, would be well on
the cusp of a first top 10 finish since 2014.
Team spirit is also strong and the players had enjoyed a day at Cheltenham Races on Thursday. They took inspiration from goings on at Prestbury Park clearly and flew out of the stalls at the Haven, taking full advantage of having a strong wind behind their back in the opening 45 minutes to race into a 3-0 half time lead.
Johnson opened his account for the afternoon with 15 minutes played although there was more than a hint of offside which left home connections feeling hard done by.
There were no such complaints about the second however, strike partner Liam Benson doubling the advantage just past the 30 minute mark.
That was Benson’s 13th of the season, an impressive return from a player who also returned to the Beacon in the summer and one that has maybe been overlooked given the exploits of Johnson.
Right on cue, it was Johnson who then added the third from the penalty spot less than 120 seconds after Benson had struck.
Despite Hassocks’ sizeable lead at the break, you couldn’t discount Down from the tie given that they’d have the advantage of the gale-force wind for the next 45 minutes.
But their task of wrestling a way back into tie was made that much harder when Johnson completed his hat-trick with the second half just two minutes old.
Ollie Broad made it 4-1 when he pulled one back for Down just before the hour mark but for all the hosts huffing and puffing, they came up against a resolute Hassocks back four. Andy Whittingham in particular was outstanding with Dan Stokes and Lewis Westlake also impressing in midfield.
None could hold a torch to Johnson in the individual stakes however and he duly added his fourth and Hassocks’ fifth with 20 minutes still to go.
Some supporters at that point began mentioning in dispatches the possibility of the 6-4 game being eclipsed given how long was left to play.
Those hoping that would be the case were to be left disappointed with only one more goal forthcoming and that was a late one, Down’s long-serving Nick Sullivan making it 5-2 in injury time.
Hassocks: Josh Green; Bradley Tighe, Will Broomfield, Jordan Badger, Andy Whittingham; Dan Stokes, Lewis Westlake, Harvey Enticknap; Phil Johnson, Liam Benson, Jake Lindsey.
Subs: Joe Bull, George Brown, James Littlejohn (used), Jack Rowe-Hurst, Dan Jacques (unused).
Starman: Phil Johnson.
