KEEPERLESS ROBINS BATTLE TO ANOTHER SCORE DRAW
If the Football Pools covered the South East Counties Women’s League Premier Division, then Hassocks Ladies would be the side everyone would want on their coupon.
For the third time in seven league games, the Robins were involved in a score draw as they played out an entertaining 3-3 draw at home to Eastbourne United.
Given that United are yet to win this season and Hassocks came into the game on a high after becoming the first side to take a point off leaders Lewes last week, on paper this might look like a poor result.
But given the upheaval that Martin Lee and his side went through in the run up to the game, they’d probably have settled for a point before hand – even if blowing a two-goal lead wasn’t ideal.
After all, the Robins nearly had to play without a recognised goalkeeper. Number one Sarah Chappell was ruled out with illness and normal backup Ellie Moquet was also unavailable, which meant Emma Young answering the call to come out of retirement and step into the breach.
Young had little to do for the first 15 minutes as it was all Hassocks. Bethany Purse was looking a real live wire up front, drawing an early foul in a dangerous position and then seeing an indirect free kick inside the box blocked after the United keeper had been harshly deemed to have deliberately handled a back pass.
Purse drew a magnificent save from the visiting custodian on 10 minutes and on 12, Liz King played in Jodie Johanson but she was denied by a sliding block from the United number one.
It was completely against the run of play when United took the lead just past the quarter of an hour mark and it wasn’t even really an effort on target that put them ahead.
Shantelle Omar was out wide when she hit a hopeful ball into the box which turned into a cross-shot and despite Young getting a hand to it, she was unable to keep it out.
The lead lasted just four minutes as Hassocks responded impressively to that setback. Sam Newman was the architect of the equaliser, playing a perfectly weighted through pass that put Purse in and she calmly beat the advancing United goalkeeper to notch her first goal in Hassocks colours.
Young had to be alert to produce a diving save to maintain parity before Hassocks took the lead on the 29 minute mark, a game of head tennis breaking out in the United box as Jess Craig headed to King who nodded home.
There was a long delay after that as play was held up for 13 minutes following an injury to a United player. That seemed to disrupt Hassocks’ momentum a little and they needed some excellent defending from firstly Chloe John and then a fine clearing header from Claire Stevens to prevent United levelling things up.
Those interventions looked even more important as right on the stroke of half time, the Robins managed to fashion one last chance of the half with Purse producing an excellent finish for her second and Hassocks’ third of the afternoon.
Lee introduced Katherine Chappell at the interval having decided not to risk her from the start as she wasn’t 100% fit. It was a decision that turned out be a prudent one as Chappell was straight into the thick of the action, earning a throw from which Kirsten Mair’s dangerous cross was nearly turned in.
Gemma Craig’s excellent run and cross then created an opportunity for Purse but she shot wide and Mair saw another shot blocked.
It wasn’t all one-way traffic though and United nearly pulled one back in an almighty goalmouth scramble. When Hassocks eventually managed to clear the ball, they broke quickly up the other end to win two corners in succession as Gemma Craig and King both went close.
Tallie Bright and Emily Brocklehurst entered the game for the final 20 minutes and Purse again went close with a shot that flashed across goal.
Then, with 13 minutes left to play the entire complexion of the game changed as two wonder goals in less than 120 seconds hauled United back into it.
The first came out of nowhere, a spectacular 35 yard strike leaving Young with no chance as the ball flew into the top corner from Ellis Rabey.
Clearly buoyed by this, Omar then went and repeated the trick with an equally brilliant distance strike for her second of the game, levelling things up in the process. Suddenly, Hassocks were hanging on.
That led to some desperate defending in the final 10 minutes as substitute Hollie Lamar had to make a good block, Emma Flin threw herself into two goal-saving tackles and Stevens managed to do just enough to turn away a couple of dangerous crosses before one final chance for the United in the final seconds flew harmlessly wide.
Hassocks: Emma Young, Chloe John, Emma Flin, Claire Stevens, Sam Newman, Kirsten Mair, Gemma Craig, Liz King, Jodie Johanson, Bethany Purse, Jess Craig.
Subs: Tallie Bright, Katherine Chappell, Emily Brocklehurst, Hollie Larmar (used).
