Defeat to Rangers ends season but Robins should still finish second
The curtain came down on Hassocks Under 23s’ Southern Combination League North Division season with a defeat not really in keeping with what has been a memorable campaign for the Robins.
St Francis Rangers triumphed 2-1 in the final Mid Sussex Derby of 2021-22 despite surrendering home advantage, the game being switched to the Beacon because of work taking place on the floodlights at Colwell Road.
Rangers had won only once in 11 league games prior to this one, but the result does not look like it will have much bearing on Hassocks’ final league position barring an unlikely run of form from Roffey.
The Boars are the only club who can now overtake Hassocks and claim runners up spot behind runaway champions Broabridge Heath, but to do so they need to win all four of their remaining matches to draw level on points at the same time as making up 10 goals on the Robins.
Hassocks should therefore have second spot sewn up, their third runners up finish in the past five seasons.
There is further football to be played in the League Cup, where the Robins will host Arundel in the third round of the competition in a fortnight’s time.
The prospect also remains that the league will introduce some form of Supplementary Shield competition in March and April due to the surprisingly early completion of the season after what has been a mild winter weather-wise.
Hassocks made four changes from the side who had come from 2-0 down to beat Horsham YMCA in their last outing a week earlier.
Harvey Parker returned in goal in place of Ryan West, Arthur Rawlingson missed out against his former club with Kobe Derseley taking over in the back line and Josh Short came in for Marshall Smith.
The fourth change saw Jack Gardner make his first start since November following injury. The return of the teenager who has made the first team’s right back slot his own in recent seasons is sure to be a big boost, both for the Under 23s in their Cup adventures and the senior side as the Premier Division relegation battle begins to reach its business end.
Normally, these derby games have an air of familiarity about them with Rangers featuring a number of players who previously played for Hassocks.
On this occasion however, there were only two – Josh Paton and Jack Tobias having spent a season each at the Beacon when Rangers boss Del Tobias was in charge of Hassocks Under 23s during the 2015-16 campaign.
It was Rangers who took the lead with 25 minutes on the clock through William Gilbert, a goal which looked like it would be enough to get the visitors into the break ahead until Luke Marshall struck with seconds of the first half remaining.
That was Marshall’s second goal of the season to go with the important header he notched in a 3-1 win over Steyning Town back in November.
Hassocks’ Rawlingson may have been absent but that name still made it onto the scoresheet, Hugo Rawlingson scoring what proved to be the winner on the hour mark for Rangers.
The Robins had a strong bench, including top scorer Jay Hudson but even his introduction alongside Sean McSwiney and Jack Baden – who has been in outstanding form for the first team over the past two months – could not help Hassocks find an equaliser.
Although a disappointing result, there was one positive to be had as Archie Hill was rewarded for a strong season in the Under 18s with his Under 23s debut as a second half substitute.
Hassocks: Harvey Parker, Jack Gardner, Luke Marshall, Kobe Derseley, Harvey Ransome, Jack Smith, Jude Wallis, Jamie Douglass, Josh Short, Charlie Broad, Archie Russell.
Subs: Jay Hudson, Jack Baden, Archie Hill, Sean McSwiney (used).
