Hassocks host Haywards Heath Town with quarter final spot up for grabs
The third round draw for the Peter Bentley League Cup has thrown up a treat by pairing Hassocks and Haywards Heath Town together.
It will be the first Mid Sussex Derby between the clubs since the 2018-19 campaign and with both sides flying high in the top seven of the Southern Combination Premier Division table, it looks set to be a cracker.
Haywards Heath Town this season
Heath are seeking an immediate return to the Isthmian League following their surprise relegation at the end of last season. They current sit seventh in the table with seven wins, two draws and four defeats from 13 league matches.
Manager Jay Lovett departed Hanbury Park earlier in the month having accepted a full time position with National League South outfit Eastbourne Borough. The Bluebells were quick to appoint a replacement, bringing in their former player Naim Rouane.
Already a popular figure around Hanbury Park having previously captained Heath to the Southern Combination League title, Rouane last managed at this level when having Lancing top of the Premier Division before lockdown curtailed the 2019-20 campaign.
If he can repeat the success he enjoyed at Culver Road with the Bluebells, then expect Heath to be in the thick of the promotion race come the end of the campaign.
Hassocks v Haywards Heath head-to-head
Hassocks and Haywards Heath have only met on nine previous occasions and the head-to-head does not make for particularly good reading for the Robins.
Only once have a Hassocks side beaten the Bluebells, way back in the 1992-93 season when the clubs were in Southern Combination Division One. It finished 2-0 at the Beacon on that occasion.
Heath have won the five most recent clashes, racking up 18 goals in that time. One other Heath victory from the 1985-86 campaign gives the Bluebells a total of six successes, leaving two draws.
Last time Hassocks played Haywards Heath Town
The Bluebells visited the Beacon in the quarter finals of the Sussex Principal RUR Charity Cup back in December 2018.
Hassocks competed reasonably well throughout the opening hour, only for Heath to show their Isthmian League quality in the final 30 minutes.
Byron Napper, Melford Simpson and Max Miller were all on the scoresheet to give Shaun Saunders’ side a convincing 3-0 win. Heath would go onto make the final that season.
Matchday information
Kick off is at 7:45pm and admission is £8 adults, £4 concessions and free for under 16s. Both card and cash payments are accepted on the turnstiles and in the Clubhouse.
The T Bar will be open serving hot food and drink and the Robins Bar has a wide selection of craft beer from local breweries, along with other alcohol. Dogs are welcome and a 48 page printed programme will be on sale for £1.
If using Google Maps to walk from Hassocks Station or the village, please do not take the footpath into Butcher’s Wood. There is no crossing point over the railway line or way of entering the Beacon.
Instead, follow Keymer Road towards Hurstpierpoint, turn left at Stonepound crossroads and walk down London Road towards the ground.
