PIRATES SINK ROBINS TO END PETER BENTLEY CUP DREAM
August hasn’t even reached its conclusion yet and already Hassocks have been eliminated from three of the five knockout competitions they are entered in following Tuesday night’s 1-0 defeat at home to Bexhill United.
The extra time defeat to their Division One opponents ended their Peter Bentley League Cup dreams just three days after another loss over 120 minutes to AFC Uckfield Town.
Both of those games were eminently winnable, certainly more so than the tie that resulted in their elimination from the FA Cup against Hollands and Blair on the opening weekend.
Seasoned Hassocks watchers approach any game with lower division opposition with a sense of trepidation. In the last nine seasons, the Robins have gone out of various competitions nine times to teams plying their trade in Division One at the time – Rustington, East Preston, Seaford Town, Southwick, Little Common, Littlehampton Town and Steyning Town.
Bexhill are now on the list twice having knocked Hassocks out of the Sussex Senior Cup as well when these two last met. Much like on that cold October eve three seasons ago at the Polegrove, Hassocks had the majority of the ball with the Pirates content to pillaging on the counter attack.
They were rather effective at this, earning a free kick early on which struck the chin of Josh Hawkes in the Hassocks wall.
Hawkes was making his first start of the season and along with the returning Spencer Slaughter and Bradley Bant, gave Hassocks a much more experienced look in midfield to the side that threw away a two goal lead on Saturday.
That showed as unlike in recent weeks, the Robins had more shape, kept the ball better and largely avoided making the silly little mistakes that have undermined their progress so far.
Were it not for visiting goalkeeper Dan Rose they could easily have progressed. Rose was in inspired form and he produced two excellent first half saves to keep out efforts from the Robins front pairing of Nathan Miles and Michael Death.
Rose also denied Spencer Slaughter and Dan Stokes but in spite of all that the best bit of goalkeeping of the half came at the other end, where Nathan Stroomberg marked his home debut for Hassocks with a brilliant penalty stop, diving full length to his right to push away Craig Ottley’s spot kick right on the stroke of half time.
The chances continued to flow in the second half. Kyle Holden denied Miles a sight of Rose’s goal with a last ditch tackle, Stroomberg produced another excellent stop from a Wayne Giles header and then Slaughter saw a header of his own cleared off the line by Craig McFarlane.
That represented the last chance of the 90 and so for the second time in a week, Hassocks were forced into playing an additional 30 minutes.
They had plenty of options from the bench with Lewis Westlake, Harry Mills and Liam Benson all being introduced. Those fresh legs didn’t matter though as the Robins were caught alarmingly cold at the start of extra time with Corey Wheeler finding it far too easy to finish off a fine individual effort which gave Bexhill the lead.
The Pirates were all too happy to sit back after that and although Hassocks had plenty of the ball they couldn’t find anyway of parting the white sea that stood between them and an equaliser.
The closest they got was when Benson met an excellent cross with a thumping header that rattled the bar rather than the back of the net as the Pirates closed the game out to sail into round three.
Hassocks: Nathan Stroomberg; Luke Akehurst, Tom Barnes, Jordan Badger, Ashley Marsh; Dan Stokes, Spencer Slaughter, Josh Hawkes, Bradley Bant; Nathan Miles, Michael Death.
Subs: Liam Benson, Lewis Westlake, Harry Mills, (used), Joe Maskell, Alex Harris (unused).
Starman: Spencer Slaughter
