Robins go looking for their first points of the season with Premier Division newcomers Midhurst the visitors
New-look Hassocks play their first Southern Combination League Premier Division game under James Westlake at the Beacon with Midhurst & Easebourne providing the opposition.
The Stags are embarking on their first top flight campaign in almost 30 years. They won promotion back in May after defeating Shoreham in the Division One playoff season, rounding off a memorable campaign in which they also won the Division One Cup.
Midhurst hosted Bexhill United on the opening day, picking up an impressive 1-1 draw against a Pirates outfit who finished fourth last time out.
That shows the Stags mean business, providing more tough opposition for Hassocks off the back of a 3-0 defeat at Peacehaven & Telscombe on Saturday.
Midhurst & Easebourne last season
Nobody could say that Midhurst & Easebourne did not deserve their promotion from Division One. They had been one of the best sides in the league during the two Covid-19 hit seasons, including when winning the Supplementary Shield in May 2021.
The Stags then spent most of last season in a thrilling battle with Roffey for the title. The Boars eventually secured first place, leaving Midhurst to finish second and negotiate the playoffs.
They saw off Epsom & Ewell in the semi finals followed by Shoreham in the final, sparking wild scenes of celebration at the Rotherfield.
Hassocks v Midhurst & Easebourne head-to-head
Hassocks and Midhurst have only shared a division once before. That was in the 1993-94 season, when Midhurst were relegated from Division One at the same time as the Robins won promotion to the Premier.
Both of the league meetings that year went the way of the Robins, and quite handsomely too. A 6-0 at the Beacon was followed by a 6-1 victory away at the Rotherfield.
In total, there have been eight games between Hassocks and the Stags including those two. The Robins lead the overall head-to-head with five wins to Midhurst’s three.
Last time Hassocks played Midhurst & Easebourne
Dave John took the Robins to the Rotherfield in October 2020 for a Sussex Senior Cup first round tie. The competition was clearly far down Hassocks’ priority list as they left seven first choice players out.
That helped Midhurst on their way to a very comfortable 3-0 win. All the goals arrived in the opening 34 minutes and all were pretty soft, a point hammered home by assistant manager Mark Enticknap in a spectacularly scathing half time team talk delivered on the pitch due to Covid protocols.
Harry Giles put Midhurst ahead with a free header from a corner after only four minutes. Lewis Hyde doubled the advantage with an identical second and Giles added the third with a shot from distance caught by the wind to deceive Hassocks’ debutant teenage goalkeeper Jayden Dunkley.
Matchday information
Kick off is at 7:45pm and admission is £7 adults, £3 concessions and free for under 16s. 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 and other alcohol.
Dogs are welcome and printed matchday programmes will be on sale for £1.
