Hassocks exorcise East Preston demons
Three precious points and the ghost of their worst performance of the season exorcised represented a good afternoon for Has socks as they ran out 5-2 winners over East Preston.
The last time these sides met in November had been ghastly beyond belief from a Robins point of view. Brad Sweetman’s side were hammered 4-1 at the Lashmar in what remains EP’s only Southern Combination League win of the season.
A long, hard winter looked ahead with the spectre of relegation from the Premier Division looming large.
Not so much now. Victory over EP lifted Hassocks above Steyning Town and into 16th place in the table. The Robins are 13 points clear of secondbottom AFC Varndeanians, who have eight games left to play. A 28 th consecutive season of top flight football is within touching distance.
Hassocks were far from their best against a limited East Preston outfit, who named only manager Chris Pettitt and backup goalkeeper Kurt Jenner-Swayne on the bench.
Dave H aid er was the first EP player to take advantage, giving the visitors a 21st minute lead which shocked home fans. Were EP on their way to their second win of the season, both over Hassocks?
Jack Troak was unwilling to let that be the case. It was the Hassocks captain who pulled his side level 11 minutes after Haider’s opener.
Parity lasted for all of one minute. Dan Turner decided that the best way to celebrate his winning of the Hassocks Player of the Month Award for February was by scoring an own goal to put EP 2-1 ahead.
The Robins equalised for the second time five minutes before the break. Captain Jack was again the man on the scoresheet, beating Poda to a Lewis Westlake corner to head home.
Hassocks went ahead for the first time on 57 minutes when Alfie Loversidge squeezed the ball past Poda. 10 minutes later and Hassocks won a free kick in a promising position and Lewis Westlake scored a beauty.
Hassocks though had no problems and once Westlake made it 4-2, the three points were as good as in the bag.
Sub Joe Bull found the time to get a goal, rounding off the scoring in the final minute of the 90 after more enterprising wing play on the left.