FIVE STAR NEWHAVEN SEND HASSOCKS TO A SIXTH DEFEAT IN A ROW
These are worrying times for Hassocks as they slipped to a sixth consecutive defeat after a 5-0 hammering away at Newhaven.
Not since the 1998-99 season have the Robins had such a poor sequence of results. Back then, they lost eight times in a row although with four of those coming in cup competitions, it perhaps wasn’t the disaster that it first appeared on paper.
Not compared to now anyway. Since winning 8-0 away at Hailsham Town on August Bank Holiday Monday, Hassocks have lost five times in the league conceding 14 goals along the way and scoring just three.
It may be far too early in the season to call the situation perilous, but there will be nervous glances over the shoulders towards the relegation zone which sits just a Littlehampton Town victory away currently.
Even the most optimistic of Hassocks fans would have been struggling to believe this barren run would end at the Trafalgar Ground, a venue where the Robins have never managed to win a competitive game in senior football.
They probably would have been hoping for a slightly better start than they got however, with the Dockers going ahead with just two minutes on the clock.
That was thanks to the divisions top goalscorer Lee Robinson, who showed great strength after being played in by Joe Dryer to hold off Jordan Badger and finish across James Broadbent.
Robinson was an absolute menace all afternoon, giving Badger a torrid time and with a little more composure and against a goalkeeper of lesser ilk than Broadbent, he could easily have had a hat-trick inside the opening half hour.
That he didn’t helped Hassocks make it to the break just one goal behind and they were indebted to Broadbent again early on in the second 45 for an absolutely stunning one handed save from point blank range to deny that man Robinson.
Hassocks at least looked a little more of a threat going forward after that with Phil Gault having the visitors best chance bur he failed to test Jake Buss in the Dockers goal with a free header.
At the other end, Broadbent pulled off two more quality stops when denying Dave Altendorff and foiling Robinson once again.
Two goals inside two minutes just before the hour mark killed the game off as a contest. The first came from Altendorff who volleyed home after Scott Taylor did well to keep an attack alive out by the corner flag.
Virtually straight from the restart Robinson added his second of the afternoon, a corner causing chaos and confusion in the Hassocks box with Robinson reacting quickest to fire home after a game of pinball.
Adam Kneller made it four with a fine free kick from the edge of the box after Badger had hauled down Robinson and Callum Connor rounded things off with the fifth six minutes before the end, latching onto Dryer’s ball to race clear of the Hassocks defence and lob over the onrushing Broadbent.
Hassocks: James Broadbent; Tom Barnes, Ashley Marsh, Jordan Badger, Harry Mills; Josh Hawkes; James Westlake, Bradley Bant; Phil Gault; Ben Bacon, Nathan Miles.
Subs: Michael Death, Liam Benson, Lewis Westlake (used), Mark Price, Phil Wickwar (unused).
Starman: James Broadbent.
