Brighton Rocks

Haywards Heath Town  2  Whitehawk  2

Isthmian Football League – Division One South East

We do like a trip away between Christmas and New Year do Mrs H and I.

Last year we ended up in Southampton, but over the years we’ve been to Canterbury, London, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Brighton to name but a few.

It gets a little bit harder each year though as we do like to combine it around football and as I’ve managed to tick off a vast number of grounds over the last few years, finding a location that is both a decent place to have a break, and carries with it a bit of new ground action, is a challenge.

I did initially look at Edinburgh again this year as games were staggered over the Saturday and Sunday, but Mrs H was not happy with that as she felt the drive was too long. Consequently we took a punt on Brighton again, and if the weather was obliging, then we could get to a game in Sussex on the Saturday, and then head up to London on the Sunday for either the one and only game in non-league football in Dartford, or a professional game somewhere in the capital.

As it turned out, the weather was the best it had been for several weeks, so as we made the 7am departure from Belper on the Saturday morning, I had no major concerns about our first choice game at Haywards Heath Town taking place.

Brighton was reached by 10.30am and that gave us time to have a wander round the Lanes and get some lunch. An incident occurred as we left the car park and a small child bolted out in front of us from between stationery vehicles. Thankfully the child was pushed out of the way by his alert Father, but it was to be Dad who took the brunt of the front of my car. Fortunately, other than being somewhat shaken and distressed, everyone was in one piece, so a relatively lucky escape all round.

We took the back route to Haywards Heath and pulled into the car park around twenty past two. The game in question was to be against Brighton based neighbours Whitehawk, a club we have visited in the past, and indeed a club who have supporters who are connected to yourleague.tv, an online TV channel that interviewed me last season when I was at Billericay Town.

Haywards Heath Town have historically been a Sussex County League side (until it was re-named the Southern Combination), and looked to have been promoted at the end of the 2016-17 season, but they were deducted nine points for fielding an ineligible player and that meant Shoreham took the promotion place instead.

No such problems in 2017-18 though, they came through as champions and were in the Isthmian League for the first time. Last season almost saw them promoted again, but they lost a play-off semi final to neighbours Horsham.

They have a very nice ground when it comes to the Hanbury Park Stadium. Located to the East of the town centre, it sits on the back of a residential area, and as you drive in behind the goal and turn left a car park extends all the way down one side of the ground and half way behind the opposite goal.

At the end where you enter in your car are the turnstiles plus a small area of sheltered standing running from the side of the goal down to the corner flag. The business side of the ground is where it’s all at though. A superb old stand with a tall pitched roof is the focal point, and while showing it’s age in many ways, it does have some new blue seats bolted onto the benches. The clubhouse and dressing rooms are underneath the stand, and only when you walk down the steps to the clubhouse do you realise the scale of the structure, it really is an iconic non-league stand and one I hope remains for many more years.

The pitch was a bit heavy but certainly playable, and in front of a crowd of 337, which included a good number from East Brighton who it appeared had got the noon train, a very entertaining game unfolded.

HHT were the better team in the first half and the unfortunate Trevor McCreadie (no relation to Edie from Balamory) will want to forget the moment he rounded the Whitehawk goalkeeper and then with an open net in front of him and less than six yards out, he somehow managed to sky the ball over the bar! The less said about that the better, for Trevor’s sake at least!

HHT could count themselves unfortunate not to be in the lead at half time having created chances and had the bulk of possession, but as often happens, on the hour mark the visitors took the lead through Ahmed Abdulla who netted from close range with a neat flick.

However, within ten minutes of Whitehawk taking the lead, HHT were level when Ryan Warwick found the roof of the net, also from close range.

Whitehawk were soon back in front when Henry Muggeridge found the net, from guess what, close range, only for the hosts to score the leveller and the final goal of the game just three minutes later when Callum Saunders slotted home.

HHT did look the most likely to score as the game moved towards its closing stages, but in all fairness, on balance, the draw was perhaps the right result. HHT sit just below half way in the table while Whitehawk remain in play-off contention.

We made an easy escape from the ground and indeed Haywards Heath, and that gave us the chance to enjoy a night of drinkies and food in the Lanes back in Brighton. It was busy, it always is, but then Brighton is such a fabulous place I wouldn’t expect it any other way.

The peace was shattered when at 3.45am our neighbours decided to return from their night out with a noisy and musical announcement. Revenge was ours though, as we left at 10am, the ‘Please Clean Our Room’ sign was removed from our door and placed on there’s as they slept, I’m sure when the cleaner burst into the room they got a nice shock!

It was time to head to Dartford……..