Hassocks return to Premier Division action at the Beacon this Saturday against a club who have become the model when it comes to steadily building year-by-year from finishing in the bottom three to challenging for the top six.
AFC Uckfield Town were only spared the drop into Division One at the end of the 2016-17 season because Little Common were unable to come up due to the ground grading. Ever since then, the Oakmen have been slowly climbing the Premier Division table.
Last season they finished in seventh spot – which represents their highest ever placing – reached the final of the Peter Bentley League Cup and were the last Southern Combination League team standing in the FA Vase, going as far as the fourth round.
In every sense, it was a record-breaking campaign under Anthony Storey. That led them to be labelled as potential dark horses for a tilt at the title this time around, providing they held onto the majority of their talented squad.
Storey managed to not only do that, but he also added a few additional bits of quality to make them an even bigger threat this time around.
They don’t come much more quality than striker Liam Baitup. The experienced hitman made the move to the Oaks and has been in sparkling form so far, scoring nine times in 16 games and forming a dangerous striker partnership with Bailo Camara, a man who always seems to score against Hassocks.
Camara has eight himself and those goals have helped fire Uckfield to 11th spot in the table at the time of writing, although they do have a game in hand against Crawley Down Gatwick – victory against the Anvils would lift them into eighth.
They’ll no doubt arrive at the Beacon full of confidence given their recent record here in Mid Sussex. The Oakmen have won on three of their last four visits in all competitions and last season they completed a double over the Robins, triumphing 4-0 at the Oaks in the final game of the campaign to go with a 2-1 success at the Beacon earlier in the season.
Remarkably, there has never been a draw in the 16 previous meetings between the two with eight wins apiece and plenty of entertainment as the last 10 fixtures have all featured three goals or more.
There could be a few familiar faces on show for each side too. Mark Dalgleish could name two former Oakmen in his side with Harry Mills and Andy Whittingham both integral part of the squad at the Beacon.
Mills moved to the Robins in the summer of 2016 from Hailsham Town having previously represented Uckfield and has since gone onto establish himself as a first team regular for Hassocks. He’s racked up 114 appearances with his versatility making him a valuable asset.
To date, Mills has played in both full back positions, centre back, central midfield and he even had an ill-fated couple of games on the right wing at one point.
Whittingham meanwhile is in his second spell with Hassocks having re-signed for the club last December. The defender originally joined in 2010 from Steyning Town, playing over 50 games before going onto enjoy spells with Seaford Town and the Oakmen. He has established himself as first choice left back this season and now sits on 78 games in Hassocks colours.
Uckfield meanwhile have former Hassocks goalkeeper Alex Harris on their books, although he is yet to play so far this season. Harris had four different spells with the Robins, making 60 appearances in that time and he’s now into his second spell with the Oakmen.
Kick off is at 3pm and entrance is priced at £6 adults, £3 concessions and Under 16s go free. The Robins Bar will be open and serving alcohol throughout the afternoon and the T Bar will have hot food and drink for sale.
Our award-winning matchday programmes are priced at £1 and we’ll also be running the traditional raffle with tickets available at £1 per strip.
