Under 23s and Ladies in title contention going into April
April is upon us and there remain several chances of silverware ending up in the Beacon trophy cabinet, including both the Under 23s and Ladies winning league titles.
The first team too remain in the Sussex Principal RUR Charity Cup, although no date has as yet been set for the quarter final trip to one of Lancing or Peacehaven & Telscombe.
James Westlake’s side will for now be focussing solely on the battle for a top six finish, with five matches to play.
Four of those are against clubs currently above the Robins in the table, so there is plenty of scope for movement up the standings.
April begins with a trip to Bexhill United on Saturday 1st. Hassocks picked up a memorable point at the Polegrove last season in horrific conditions when Alfie Loversidge scored in a 1-1 draw.
The previous meeting in the current campaign saw the Robins triumph 2-0, again in terrible wind and rain. Liam Benson got both the goals. Fingers crossed for some sunshine on the south coast on this occasion.
Easter weekend kicks off with the visit of title chasing Crawley Down Gatwick to the Beacon on Saturday 9th April.
The Anvils ran out 1-0 winners when the sides met at the Haven in September through an Ollie Leslie goal with seven minutes remaining.
Less than 48 hours later and Hassocks make the short trip to Steyning Town for an 11am kick off on Easter Monday.
It will be the third meeting of the campaign between the teams. The Barrowmen hit a 94th minute winner to come from 2-0 down and win 3-2 at the Beacon on Boxing Day.
Hassocks then gained a measure of revenge, eliminating Steyning from the RUR Cup via nine perfect penalties in a shootout win following a 0-0 draw over 90 minutes.
Last season’s visit to the Birchwood Ground ended in a 1-1 draw on a scorching hot afternoon. Jack Troak scored for Hassocks but the real winner on the day was Bradley Tighe’s father, who walked away with the main prize from the famous Barrowmen meat raffle.
The penultimate game of the campaign takes Hassocks over the Surrey border to face Lingfield at Godstone Road.
A quite incredible own goal from 25 yards scored by Lingers defender Conor Wilford went viral when the sides met at the Beacon in the FA Cup in August. Wilford’s unfortunate moment proved to be the difference between the sides as the Robins progressed 1-0.
Three months later and Lingfield returned to Mid Sussex, drawing 2-2 in the league. Benson and Troak got the Hassocks goals.
The final weekend of the Premier Division season then brings fourth placed Eastbourne Town to the Beacon. Phil Johnson gave the Robins their first win at the Saffrons in 17 years when Hassocks visited the Sunshine Coast on Valentine’s Day.
Town had earlier eliminated Hassocks from the Sussex Senior Cup, Frankie Chappell’s 13th minute strike deciding the second round tie on a freezing night in favour of the visitors.
With the clocks having gone forward, all Saturday first team games at the Beacon will now kick off at 3pm.
The Under 23s have three huge matches to play in April as they chase a first ever Southern Combination League Under 23 North Division title.
Hassocks currently sit 11 points clear at the top having played one game more than nearest rivals Roffey and Horley Town and two more than Broadbridge Heath.
Loxwood will visit the Beacon on Thursday 13th April in a 7:45pm kick off. Goals from Sam Rogers and Will Broomfield secured a tight 2-1 win at the Nest in October.
Thursday 20th April brings bottom of the table Oakwood to the Beacon in what will be the final home game of the campaign for Neil Parker and his players.
Should the championship race go down to the final day, then a potentially pivotal evening lies in store on Thursday 27th when Hassocks travel to the Countryside Stadium to take on Heath. All those matches are due to kick off at 7:45pm.
The Under 18s could yet win a trophy of their own if they can progress past Seaford Town in the quarter finals of the League Cup this Sunday. Kick off is 11am at the Crouch.
They then have five Central Division matches crammed into April including two rare midweek outings. Saltdean United are the visitors on Thursday 6th April at 7:45pm. The Robins then go to Hill Park on Tuesday 18th at 7:30pm.
Sunday matches take place at Steyning Town on the 9th and home to St Francis Rangers and Shoreham on the 16th and 23rd respectively.
The Ladies are level on points at the top of the Sussex Women’s Premier League but with two games in hand on Shoreham.
Their April gets underway at home to Saltdean United on Sunday, kicking off at 2pm. The Tigers eliminated the Robins from the League Cup when inflicting a first defeat of the season in any competition on Sean Perkins’ side in February.
Two weeks later on Sunday 16th and six points will be up for grab in a double header at local rivals Burgess Hill Town.
The Ladies season will then continue into May with Pagham at home on Wednesday 5th, Burgess Hill at the Beacon on Sunday 14th and a double header to complete the campaign away against Bognor Regis Town on Sunday 28th.
The veterans are scheduled to play twice, travelling to Montpelier Villa this Sunday before making the trip to Lewes on Sunday 16th. Both games are 4pm kick offs.
