Striker returns for his third spell as a Robin
Hassocks have completed their second new signing of the summer with Ben Bacon returning to the Beacon from Horsham YMCA.
Bacon has previously made 47 appearances for the Robins and scored 17 goals over two separate spells, the first of which began in the 2016-17 season.
Mark Dalgleish and Phil Wickwar brought the striker in from Haywards Heath Town, where he found first team opportunities limited despite averaging over a goal a game for the Bluebells reserves side.
Bacon scored nine times from 24 matches in his first campaign with the Robins, the highlight being a hat-trick in a 5-0 win away at Worthing United in October 2016 which helped end a club record run of seven consecutive defeats.
He left for Steyning Town in the summer of 2017 before moving onto Saltdean United for the 2018-19 season. Whilst with Saltdean, he scored all four goals in his first game as an opponent of Hassocks to give the Tigers a 4-1 August Bank Holiday victory at the Beacon.
Bacon also turned out in the 2018-19 season for Lingfield and Steyning again, with whom he won the Southern Combination League Division One Cup and promotion to the Premier Division.
One month into the 2019-20 campaign and Mark Dalgleish re-signed Bacon for Hassocks. He scored in the first appearance of his second spell, rescuing a 2-2 draw at Horsham YMCA with an equaliser from the bench.
That was one of eight goals Bacon notched from 22 appearances. Despite the fact Bacon left for Three Bridges a couple of months before Covid brought the season to an early conclusion, his total was still enough to see him finish joint top scorer alongside James Littlejohn.
Bacon was prolific when he made the step up the Isthmian League with Bridges, scoring five times in his first 10 appearances prior to the March 2020 lockdown.
His overall record over three seasons at Jubilee Field read nine goals in 39 appearances. Having dual-registered with Horsham YMCA during his time with Bridges, Bacon made the move permanent for the 2022-23 season.
He scored three times in 14 appearances for YM in the recently completed campaign, including against Hassocks once again when the Robins won 4-2 at the Herbert Direct Stadium in September.
Given his penchant for scoring past the Robins, Bacon pulling on a red shirt does at least guarantee that will not be happening again.
Hassocks fans know only too well what Bacon is capable of when playing for the Robins. Here is to a third spell as goal laden as the previous two.
