10 player Robins well beaten by title hopefuls Bromley
In yet another match in which they had several players unavailable, Hassocks Ladies again battled with only 10 against top class opposition.
This time, the Robins headed to Hayes Lane to take on a Bromley side who had lost only two London & South East Regional League Division One games so far this season.
The result was a 7-0 defeat, but once again Hassocks deserve a lot of credit for their efforts in the circumstances.
Bromley very much started on the front foot, forcing Sarah Chappell into an early save when pushing a shot around the post inside of 60 seconds.
Unfortunately, the resulting corner eventually led to the opening goal scored by Charlotte Lee. Chappell could consider herself a little unlucky to concede, having made what initially looked like an excellent save.
Bromley continued to press and central defenders Claire Stevens and Emma Flin both cleared dangerous looking situations.
There was not much the Robins could do when Bromley added their second on nine minutes, Frankie Mardon finishing from 25 yards with an unstoppable shot.
The Hassocks backline were kept busy by the hosts as Katie Read and Emma Flin both cut out dangerous through balls.
Chappell made another good block and more impressive defending from Flin with a strong tackle averted further danger.
The 16th minute brought Bromley their third goal of the afternoon. Kirsten Mair won a towering clearance header, only for Beth Hull to collect the loose ball and run back towards goal before beating Chappell.
3-0 behind with a little over a quarter hour played looked ominous. The Robins though refused to give up and began to come into the game more despite their player disadvantage.
A rare Hassocks attack saw Mair force home goalkeeper Megan Taylor into a smart save. Bromley responded to that by upping their game again.
Tallie Bright had to hack off the line and Chappell was again called into action, saving in the middle of a goalmouth scramble.
The Robins mini-resistance was ended in the 34th minute when another powerful drive found the top corner, this time from Bryony Hart.
A fifth goal followed five minutes later, Sarah White notching on her Bromley debut with a lob over Chappell after Hassocks were dispossessed inside their own area.
The final five minutes of the first half brought two chances for the Robins, who suddenly found a little bit of space into which they could break forward.
A last ditch block was needed to deny Katherine Chappell and Jess Gray shot narrowly over before the whistle blew and the sides headed in with Bromley leading the 5-0.
The second half could not have started in much worse fashion for Hassocks as the home side scored immediately from the kick off.
A bouncing ball on the edge of the box was brought down expertly by substitute Lucy Rix, who twisted her way into a shooting position and picked out the top corner from 10 yards out.
The Robins though were much improved from that point on and conceded only once more in the remaining 44 minutes.
Chappell was certainly earning her keep, producing a brilliant save from point blank range and then pushing another Bromley effort around the post for a corner.
There was a worrying moment on the hour mark when Flin needed treatment and Hassocks wondered if they might be about to go down to nine players. Fortunately, Flin was able to continue.
The hosts were showing no let up in their search for more goals. Read headed away a dangerous cross and Chappell repeated her stop from point blank range of 10 minutes earlier with a virtually identical save.
Hassocks came close to getting on the scoresheet around the 70 minute mark when Gray stung the palms of Taylor, who looked in determined mood to preserve a clean sheet.
A fine team goal provided Bromley with their seventh on 74 minutes. It started with the ball at the feet of goalkeeper Taylor and ended with Maddie Bone sweeping past Chappell from close range.
Chappell would go onto make two more magnificent saves to stop the score at seven, keeping out a one-on-one and then finger tipping a distance drive onto the bar.
Come the full time whistle and the 10 Hassocks players could hold their heads high. Bromley were able to bring on several subs, whereas the Robins had to battle on without any fresh legs being available.
Defenders Bright, Flin, Stevens and Read were under severe pressure throughout with the hosts’ extra player making a big difference.
Lola Moon battled hard up front but it was a thankless task without much support. And a special mention has to go to goalkeeper Chappell, who made so many top class saves and was not at fault for any of the goals.
Hassocks: Sarah Chappell, Tallie Bright, Emma Flin, Claire Stevens, Katie Read, Mandy Morgan, Kirstin Mair, Jess Gray, Katherine Chappell, Lola Moon.
