SussexWorld's Matt Pole is joined by Sussex sport duo Mark Dunford and Steve Bone, who will be helping me dissect all the latest goings on at our grassroots football clubs.
Worthing FC were hit by the mother of all bombshells this week as Adam Hinshelwood departed Woodside Road to become the new boss at York City. This week also saw Horsham and Steyning face off in the first Sussex Senior Cup semi-final, while a Sussex club continued their unlikely European adventure.
We pick over all this and more in this week’s Sussex Non-League Podcast.
Worthing FC were hit by the mother of all bombshells this week as Adam Hinshelwood departed Woodside Road to become the new boss at York City. This week also saw Horsham and Steyning face off in the first Sussex Senior Cup semi-final, while a Sussex club continued their unlikely European adventure.
We pick over all this and more in this week’s Sussex Non-League Podcast.
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SportsTranscript
00:00 Welcome to another episode of the Sussex Non-League podcast, where we take a look at all things non-league in Sussex.
00:05 I'm Matt Pohl and I'm joined by Sussex Sport duo Mark Dunford and Steve Bone,
00:09 who will be helping me dissect all the latest goings on at our grassroots football clubs.
00:13 Worthing were hit by the mother of all bombshells this week as Adam Hinshaw had departed Woodside
00:18 Road to become the new boss at York City. This week also saw Horsham and Stenning face off in
00:23 the first Sussex Senior Cup semi-final, while a Sussex club continue their unlikely European
00:28 adventure. We'll pick over all of this and more in this week's Sussex Non-League podcast, but we'll
00:33 start with the news that Adam Hinshaw has ended his six-year spell at Worthing to join a division
00:38 above York City. The ex-Brighton defender has reportedly signed a long-term deal at the
00:43 Minstermen and I think it's safe to say, Steve Bone, that absolutely none of us saw this coming.
00:48 No, not at all. No, I think from talking to people at Worthing this week and I've heard from fans,
00:55 everyone from fans right through to the chairman, they're all sort of saying they kind of expected
01:00 Adam to go at some point because he's been so successful. You don't have that sort of success
01:05 without attracting attention from higher up the pyramid or the ladder, whatever you want to call
01:10 it, but I don't think anybody expected him, A, to go now with Worthing sort of close to the end of a
01:17 potential promotion winning season or playoff season and I think the destination surprised
01:25 people a bit because York is a long way away. It's right up north is York apparently
01:31 and it's a big move for him. It's a big move in terms of his career, but it's also a big
01:38 move for his family and everything. He's uprooting them. So yeah, it was a bit of a surprise.
01:44 I was tipped off about it on Tuesday morning and immediately contacted both or texted both Adam
01:54 and the Worthing chairman, Barry Hunter, and when the day went on without either of them replying to
02:00 me, I thought right, if there was nothing in this, one of them would have replied to me and said no,
02:04 nothing in it. They couldn't say anything. They were sort of swarmed to secrecy until York announced
02:10 it that evening and then we were on to it. But yeah, I mean well done to Adam first of all because
02:16 he wouldn't have got this move to a big famous old club, National League Premier Club, who have got
02:22 big plans and big ambitions. He wouldn't have got that without the success he's had at Worthing.
02:27 Let's not forget he's taken Worthing from the sort of quite a lowly position in the Isthmian
02:32 League when he took over to the top of the National South, not quite top, but the third
02:37 currently in National South, in with a chance of promotion to the National Premier themselves. So
02:42 well done to him. But yeah, I think it's caused a bit of chaos at Worthing, I think it's fair to say.
02:48 It's a big club, isn't it, York City. So I couldn't see the attraction. I was interested by the,
02:53 I think the phrase 'career-changing move' for him. So there must be a fair bit of money in it for him
02:58 in that as well, which obviously is not going to be about that, just that for Adam, just having
03:02 spoken to him before and that. But it's a big old move, but it's a big challenge as well, isn't it,
03:07 I think. The first thing he's got to do is make sure they stay up in the National Premier because
03:13 they are a bit closer to the drop zone at the moment. So that'll be his first challenge
03:17 and then I think if that happens, I think there'll be money there for him to boost the squad
03:22 and they'll be looking at the other end of the National Premier table next season.
03:25 Well, you've mentioned it there that Hinshawood has been immensely successful at the Reds,
03:30 amongst his many honours, have been winning the Ismian Premier titles,
03:33 Sussex Senior Cup win as well. He's also guided the club to the upper echelons of the National
03:37 League South table. When you look at the cold, hard stats there, Mark, is he arguably the greatest
03:42 manager in the club's history? I know it might be quite a strong statement, but you look at those
03:47 honours and he's certainly up there, surely. He's got to be because this is the highest they've
03:51 ever been and I'm sure Steve will correct me if I'm wrong with that, but it's the highest they've
03:55 ever been and the first season they got in the Nationals, they got in the playoffs and then
04:00 they're replicating it again today and they've got to be one of the favourites to go up through
04:04 the playoffs. I know Yogle are walking away with it, aren't they? But I think, yeah, I think he
04:11 probably is the greatest manager ever, but I've had a look through the stats and that and there's
04:15 a chap called Barry Lloyd who managed them between 1981 and 1986 and in that time they won the
04:21 Ishmere League, Division 1, Division 2. They had their best ever FA Cup run, getting into the second
04:28 round during his tenure as well. So, yeah, that Barry Lloyd will be putting his hand up if he's
04:34 around, I don't know, saying, "Yeah, what about me? What do you think about me?" But I mean, they've had some great
04:39 names down the years. You've got Gary Alfick, obviously, Simon Colborne, Brian Donnelly, Gerry
04:44 Armstrong, Alan Poogle, all quite famous names within Sussex football. But his achievements, I
04:50 mean, I know he got to the FA Cup first round again this year. That was the fifth time I think
04:56 they'd ever got there. So, yeah, I think it's a hard case if you're going to say he's not
05:03 Worthing's greatest ever manager because they've done so well and it's just that, and I was reading
05:08 a lot of the comments when York City announced it and there were a few working brands went on
05:14 York City's Facebook account and there or Twitter and replied saying, "You've got such a good manager
05:18 here." Not just the fact that he plays great football, but he's just a lovely bloke and he is.
05:23 I mean, we had him on our other podcast, didn't we? He just seems so level-headed, down to earth.
05:32 I mean, his son is smashing it in the Premier League at the moment as well. So, he's, yeah,
05:38 he's got to be their best ever manager, I think. I'm sure Ian Hart would tell me otherwise if he's
05:44 not. Well, it will certainly be a tough act to follow. Worthing, our third currently in the
05:50 National League South Table as they look to get a promotion to the National League Premier. But
05:53 in the interim, Steve, who has followed on from Hinch since his departure and do we have any
05:59 indication as to who could potentially be a permanent successor to him? Yeah, so they were
06:04 very quick to name the interim team as they've called it. Aaron Racine, very experienced former
06:12 player, very popular former Worthing player, centre-half, captain, retired not all that long
06:19 ago really because he's had some injury problems, decided to hang up his boots. He has been installed
06:24 as interim manager and he'll be assisted by Darren Budd, who's another, you know, he's Mr.
06:30 Sussex football, isn't he, Darren Budd? He's been everywhere, he's played everywhere, he's coached
06:34 and he's got some good, a lot of praise for some of his coaching he's done more recently. So, he's
06:41 in there as well along with Dean Hammond, ex-pro player, he was at Southampton for a while and I
06:47 think he's known to Aaron. So, they are the trio to oversee the rest of the season. I asked Barry
06:54 Hunt, the Worthing chairman, what happens beyond that and at the moment they don't know. They've
06:58 kind of separated the rest of this season to the longer term at the moment. They're not thinking
07:06 beyond just getting through this season, seeing where they end up. They should get in the playoffs
07:10 from the position they're in and they should get a good slot in the playoffs. You know, at the
07:13 moment they're on course for a home playoff semi-final. So, you know, you have to say that
07:19 if Aaron, Darren and Dean do well, maybe they'll be putting their hats into the ring for the job
07:26 on a longer term basis. But Barry Hunt did tell me they'd already had interest from others who
07:31 were eyeing up that job. You would imagine there's a lot of people at national,
07:36 south and north level and maybe one or two that have vanished at higher levels looking to get in
07:41 there because it's a progressive club, got a good set-up, good infrastructure, good youth system with
07:46 some good young players coming through. So, that's a good job for somebody else to come into.
07:53 Is there a danger, finally on the subject of whether, there's a danger that a decision like
07:56 this could potentially derail Worthing's season a little bit? I know that they're third, but I
08:00 must admit I don't know. Are they well ensconced in the playoff places at the moment?
08:04 Yes, they're quite a way ahead of the teams who are not in the playoffs. It can go both ways though,
08:13 can't it? If a manager has been at a club that long, he's built that team and built that squad,
08:18 he knows the players inside out. To lose that manager, if the new management team lost their
08:25 first couple of games, that could be a problem, couldn't it? Actually, Worthing have lost their
08:30 last two with Adam still in charge. So, they do need to get back to winning ways pretty quickly
08:35 to make sure they stay in that top three. I think they've got enough in the bag to get in the
08:41 playoffs. I think they'll get over the line. They've got Ollie Pearce scoring goals for fun still.
08:46 Whether they can win the playoffs, that's a different matter altogether, isn't it? You need
08:50 a bit of luck as well. So, I think they'll be in the playoffs. Whether they'll win them,
08:55 I wouldn't like to say. So, I think we'll be having a discussion at the end of the season about what
09:00 do Worthing do now? Absolutely, we'll have to wait and see. Meanwhile, Horsham met Stenningtown
09:06 in the first Senior Cup semi-final at Lansing Tuesday evening. Who ran out victorious in that,
09:11 Steve Bowden? Yes, Horsham are into their first Sussex Senior Cup final. You'll correct me if I'm
09:18 wrong here because you've got the stats on this. Is it the first one for 18 years? Yes, the first
09:22 one since 2006. Well done to Dom and the team for getting there. They had a great season in the
09:28 Cups, didn't they? FA Cup headlines all over the place. FA Trophy, they had a good run in up to the
09:33 last 32 and now into the Cup final. Beats Stenning 4-1. Stenning felt a bit hard done by because they
09:40 scored first. They then had centre-half Nathan Cooper booked for time-wasting when, in Stenning's
09:48 view, he should never have been booked. He apparently was going to take a free kick,
09:54 decided to leave it to the goalkeeper, sort of indicated to the goalkeeper to come and
09:58 take it, jogged forward and was booked for time-wasting very early in the game as well.
10:03 He then picked up a second yellow card for a foul and was off. A Step 5 team playing against a Step
10:11 3 team with only 10 men is always going to struggle. That's one of the reasons why Horsham
10:16 won 4-1. They may have won anyway, we don't know. So, a bit unlucky for Stenning but well done to
10:23 Horsham. They can look forward to the final against Littlehampton or Hastings who play
10:27 the other semi-final in a couple of weeks' time. It's so nice to have different teams in the Cup
10:38 final. Whoever wins out of Hastings and Littlehampton. We've covered it so many times,
10:43 Crawley, Brighton Under-21s, Bogner, Worthing. It's great to see those teams in it but it's all
10:49 been very similar over the last few years. It'll be great to see whoever gets there.
10:56 I think there might be quite a big crowd. We've touched on Horsham's achievements. You've
11:02 mentioned they've reached the second round of the FA Cup but not only that, they've reached the last
11:06 32 of the FA Trophy this season for the first time ever. They're also very much in contention
11:11 for the Isthmian Premier League playoffs. Horsham and manager Dominic de Paule have just done a
11:17 superb job this season, haven't they? Normally when you go on these FA Cup runs you think teams
11:22 aren't able to catch up with league games but they're very much in contention, aren't they?
11:27 And they've almost timed their best league form just at the right time. Although they lost to
11:32 Lewis last weekend. That was a fast defeat for a while. A fast defeat since Christmas, I think.
11:36 You would have thought by now that the backlog of games would have caught up with them but it
11:41 doesn't seem to have, does it? He hasn't got a massive squad, has he? But he's rotated where
11:46 he can. He's used the squad very well. He's got quite an experienced squad. He's got players who
11:50 have been around a bit and know what needs to be done. A real setback losing home to Lewis last
11:56 weekend. A couple of our teams have lost the derby against Lewis because Hastings had the same result
12:00 against them a couple of weeks back. But you look at the Isthmian League table, the top half of it,
12:06 Horsham are very well placed. They don't need to be brilliant between now and the end of the season
12:12 to get in the playoffs. They just need to be reasonably consistent, win their home games and
12:17 they'll be in that top five at the end of the season. They've done well. I don't know how many
12:20 games they will have played by the end of the season. They must be getting on for 70, I would
12:24 think. It takes its toll. Absolutely. But also, let's not forget Stirling Town. For a while,
12:34 it did look very much like the upset was on. They went 1-0 up and should have gone 2-0 up.
12:38 But they can look back on a fabulous senior cup run that saw them knock out Brighton and
12:43 Burgess Hill. But although their senior cup adventure may be over, Mark Dunford,
12:47 they still have a lot to play for, don't they, between now and the end of the season?
12:51 They really do. I know we're going to come on to the Southern Combination Football League
12:55 title race later, but a little spoiler, there's three points separating the top four
13:01 in that Premier Division. And Stanning are in second place currently, one point behind
13:07 New Haven. But New Haven do have a game in hand. But they're a point ahead of Kroger,
13:12 who have got two games in hand. But they're well in that title race. And they're also still in the,
13:16 they've got Heyward-Teeth in the semi-final of the Peter Bendy Challenge Cup as well.
13:20 And they had a great FA Cup run as well, didn't they?
13:23 Yes.
13:23 I know you mentioned Nathan Cooper there, but he's a very experienced defender. I think they
13:31 brought in some really good signings this year. Nathan Cooper, he was part of the Whitehawk team,
13:36 has had a lot of success. He's played for Burgess Hill Town when they had a lot of success. He's
13:41 played for Heyward-Teeth. I mean, I think it's mainly where Sean Saunders went, Nathan Cooper
13:45 went, kind of thing. And he's a very big hitter in the cricket scene as well. But I mean, they
13:52 scored, I think it's them and New Haven, but have both scored 87 goals so far this season in 30
13:58 games. I mean, it's incredible. And just, yeah, it's incredible, isn't it? I was just looking at
14:05 the Thomas Chollet, I hope I'm saying his name right, scored 22 in 21 games. Charlie Meehan
14:12 scored 16 goals. Harry Schuman, 16 goals. Mark Goldson, 15 goals. I mean, they've obviously
14:19 got goals all over the pitch. But they've had a great season. And I say, yeah, they could be
14:25 still lifting more than one trophy at the end of the season, whether it be the title,
14:29 Premier Division title or the Peter Bendy Challenge Cup. So, yeah, great season for Stenley.
14:34 Absolutely. And in the second Sydney Cup semi-final, we've kind of touched upon it,
14:38 but Ismian Premier outfit Hastings United will take on Cup Kings Little Hampton Town
14:43 on the 12th of March. How do we see this one going, chaps? I must admit, I'm finding this
14:48 one a little bit difficult to call, considering the goals passed, exports in knockout cup
14:52 competitions. Yeah, you can never write Little Hampton off in a cup tie, can you?
15:01 After they beat Bognor 6-1, I asked Mitch Hand, their joint manager, about it and he said,
15:07 this quote was, "We're not normal. We're a strange club. Strange things happen at this club."
15:13 And he was talking about beating Bognor 6-1 and he was probably talking about,
15:17 that's probably also a reference to when they got to Wembley in the FA Vars final,
15:21 despite getting knocked out halfway through the run and then reinstated. So, you know,
15:26 Little Hampton against Hastings on a neutral ground, as it will be, it will be at Culver Road
15:31 on the 12th of March. I think, you know, if you were putting money on it, you'd probably put it
15:37 on Hastings. I think if the game was at Little Hampton, I'd fancy Little Hampton to win that,
15:42 because they can cause teams a lot of problems down there at home. I think on the neutral ground
15:48 and on the 3G, that'll level things out a bit. You'd have to say Hastings are favourites,
15:53 because Hastings have had a good season as well. They're also challenging for the
15:56 Isthmian Premier Playoffs. And Chris Agatha very much wants to get to that cup final as well.
16:02 But Little Hampton will have something to say about that, I'm sure.
16:06 Can you see Little Hampton upsetting the Applecart mark and continuing their excellent
16:11 run in the cups? Yeah, I think so. It wouldn't be, like you say, it wouldn't be a surprise if
16:16 they did. I think, yeah, like you say, Hastings probably are the favourites. Sorry, I'm just
16:21 socialising the fact that Crawley Town's game off against Barrow is off tomorrow.
16:24 So, there's been breaking news.
16:27 Breaking news in the podcast, there we go.
16:28 In 15, 20 minutes.
16:30 So, yeah.
16:31 I should also say, I know we're talking Friday afternoon here, we should also say,
16:35 likely to be a lot of non-league games off again this weekend because of the amount of rain we've
16:39 had. Will the wet winter ever end? I'm not sure it will. Football season has lasted until June.
16:44 But, yeah, going back to Little Hampton, I mean, Little Hampton hold one of that
16:50 rare thing that one of the teams that I've covered at Wembley. So, it'd be good to cover
16:55 them at the Amex as well. You can see Hastings getting as well. Chris Hackett's doing a great
16:59 job there. Yeah, so, yeah, no, I think it's sort of, yeah, like you say, it's a leveller
17:05 where they're playing as well. So, it's going to be a very interesting one and whatever happens,
17:10 it's going to be a really good final thing. And like you say, big crowd as well.
17:13 Absolutely. Best of luck to both teams on March 12th. Meanwhile, Mark's mentioned the Amex,
17:19 but Brighton aren't the only Sussex club who are enjoying a fine European adventure this season.
17:23 Steve Bone, can you tell us a little bit about the other team who is firing the flag
17:26 for Sussex on the continent this season? Yeah, this is Lewis and this is the Phoenix Trophy,
17:33 a new competition which is an invite-only competition and basically clubs, a small
17:41 number of clubs, I think there's a dozen in total, clubs around Europe were invited to take part in
17:46 this and they were invited because of their, not just the sort of football they play, but what
17:53 type of club they are. And Lewis do a lot of work on equality, diversity, inclusion, that sort of
17:59 thing. They've had some really innovative schemes there. They've also got a very unusual set up with
18:05 being fan-owned, you know, they've got a big group of fan owners and I think that probably helped
18:10 them as well. So, they were invited into the Phoenix Trophy and they've smashed it basically.
18:14 They've qualified for finals weekend with a game to spare. Two wins and a draw, I think,
18:20 from three games so far, so they can't be caught at the top of their little table.
18:24 So, they had a big crowd and a good win against a team from Belgium, Beveren,
18:29 forgive me if that's not the right pronunciation, that was on Tuesday night, which means they're
18:34 off to Italy in May, finals weekend. I believe four clubs are involved. They don't yet know
18:41 where that will be. The competition has been held at a decent stadium or two in the past,
18:48 so they'll be hoping it's in quite a grand arena. And they've also got a trip to Oslo. They've got
18:54 their final group game away to FC Oslo to play as well. So, real adventures for Lewis and their
19:00 fans this season and they've enjoyed it, they've made the most of it. And Tony Russell, the manager,
19:05 was saying to... we had a reporter at the game, Will Hugel, was there covering. And Tony Russell
19:12 was saying afterwards that it hasn't... it could have been a distraction from the league, but
19:16 actually it's kind of brought everyone at the club together. It's brought a new sense of togetherness
19:23 there. They've gone away together and travelled across Europe. And so, they really feel they've
19:29 benefited from it. So, yeah, well done to Lewis for that and we'll be watching to see who they
19:34 play and where in Italy. I don't know if I'm going to get an expenses paid trip to Italy.
19:38 I might have to cover it. I'll ask Lewis.
19:41 You'll have to ask Gary. You'll have to price it up as well as Sam Morton did. Yeah.
19:45 I was just going to say on Lewis, and that was quite big news, was it yesterday or the day before,
19:52 Maggie Murphy stepping down as well? Stepping down at the end of the season, isn't she?
19:55 And she's done an incredible job there. So, she's been a major part of what they are all about,
20:00 isn't she?
20:01 She will be missed, actually. She's overseen a lot of the sort of changes and a lot of the
20:08 new schemes they've brought in there. So, yeah, she has done very well.
20:12 Oh, absolutely. And best of luck as well, we must say to Lewis in their continuing European adventure.
20:18 Moving on to the Istvan South East, there was a pair of West Sussex Derbies over the weekend,
20:22 with both games having huge ramifications at both ends of the table. Steve Boan,
20:26 who came out on top of them and how does that affect the standings?
20:30 Yeah, Lansing lost at Three Bridges, which was a bit of a surprise really, because Three Bridges
20:37 started the season really well and have slipped out of the playoff zone since then. They've been
20:43 a bit up and down, whereas Lansing have gone in the other direction, didn't start the season
20:47 particularly well, but have had a great run since and are now fourth, and I think they still are
20:52 fourth. But on Saturday, it was 4-1, I think, to Three Bridges. So, a bit of a surprise in a way,
21:00 Lansing were two down within 11 minutes, including a back pass that the goalkeeper
21:04 sort of helped into the net. So, I think they knew quite early on it was going to be one of those days.
21:08 Near the other end of the table, the other game you mentioned there, Little Hampton
21:15 went to Broadbridge Heath and Broadbridge Heath beat them 2-0. Broadbridge Heath are another team
21:20 who have really, they took a little while to find their feet at this level, step four, first season
21:25 step four for them after winning the SCFL last year, but they've really got some, had some good
21:30 results recently, up to about 14th I think in the table now, whereas Little Hampton, they've had an
21:36 inconsistent league season, still need some wins from somewhere to make sure they don't go down.
21:42 But, you know, there are seven Sussex teams in that division, so it's almost every week there's
21:48 a Sussex derby and they are always very hard to predict. You try to predict the outcome of,
21:53 you know, if Chichester played Burgess Hill tomorrow, you know, it's just anybody's game.
21:59 It's that sort of division really, very dog-eat-dog.
22:02 Absolutely. Speaking of hotly contested divisions, Mark's already kind of touched upon it,
22:08 but the SCFL Premier, the title race looks set to be the most exciting and tightest in years.
22:14 How is that shaping up? And kind of mentioned there, how fine are these margins that we're
22:18 talking about? Yeah, they're very fine. Like we said, yeah, three points separating
22:22 Newhaven at the top to Hassox in fourth. So Newhaven has 65 points, Hassox on 62,
22:29 with Stenning on 64 and Kroger on 63 in the middle of them. Like we said, Kroger have got a couple of
22:34 games in hand. So actually at the moment it's in Kroger's hands if they win their two games in hand.
22:39 But it's incredibly exciting for us. Yeah, I mean, we don't really cover Kroger,
22:48 so we don't want Kroger to win, but I'm not going to say that out loud publicly, outrageous.
22:51 Yeah, it's better for newspaper sales than paycheese if it doesn't.
22:56 Sorry, Kroger. But it's just nice to see a four-horse race in one of these divisions,
23:06 because I mean, I've been covering County League football on and off for about 25 years now. And I
23:13 remember the very, very first season I properly covered, it was when Langley Sports won it. And
23:18 Langley Sports, obviously now Eastbourne Borough, back in 1999. And they walked the league under
23:24 Gary Wilson back then, Nick Greenwood as assistant. Gary Wilson, I think he had
23:28 successor Hastings as well, didn't he, as manager. But yeah, and over the years you've seen so many
23:36 teams just walk with the league. I remember the year Haverty won it, Barrington. I mean,
23:40 actually, I think they won it two years on the trot because one year they got deducted points for
23:43 Littlehampton when they won it. I think they walked it. And it's sort of been a bit uninteresting
23:50 as to see some come to the end. But this looks like it's going to go right down to the wire.
23:56 But the only issue is, I suppose, is weather. I know a couple of these have got 3G pictures. I
24:01 know Stenning have, haven't they? New Haven have as well. New Haven have as well. Littlehampton,
24:06 yeah, I don't know. Probably should have done my research on that.
24:11 But if they're a game, obviously they'll have away games on grass pitches, which could be
24:16 called off. And then there could be that backlog of pictures where they're playing two or three
24:20 games a week, sort of Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, Thursday, Tuesday kind of thing, which
24:27 could hamper one team if they have got more games to play. Kroger, as we've said,
24:31 have got two games at hand on the others at the moment. But it's incredibly exciting. And
24:36 a different winner to what we've had in recent years. I know, obviously, teams get promoted
24:42 with some. But it looks like Kroger won it back in 2007. So, yeah, it's got to be really
24:50 interesting. But great to just have that much interest going into the business end of the
24:55 season. And the other factor that is interesting in the SFL Premier, I didn't realise this until
25:00 quite recently, but there is a different playoff system this year. So everyone from second to
25:05 fifth will be in a playoff and one other team will be, as long as they've got the ground and so on,
25:11 the winners of those playoffs will be eligible for promotion to step four. So potentially,
25:16 you could have two teams going up to the Ismin South East. So even the top four, the sides are
25:22 a fifth, sixth and seventh at the moment. They're all quite close to each other. They could sneak
25:26 into those playoffs and still have a go themselves. People like Eastbourne, Haywards Heath.
25:31 Yeah. And yeah, Eastbourne United are in there as well. Yeah. So you could have a big Eastbourne
25:36 derby to go up.
25:37 There's a few clubs there that would probably fancy a go at the Ismin League, I would think.
25:41 Yeah, absolutely.
25:43 Well, go on then. Who's your money on then, Mark? Who are you tipping to go up?
25:48 Automatically, should I say?
25:51 I've already put, I can't say Kroger now, but I want to say Kroger. Now,
25:57 it'd be great to see Stenning do well because of the success they've had all season and how far
26:02 they've got in the senior cup, with the run they had in the FA Cup. So yeah, like that. But I quite
26:08 like James Westlake as well. I've known him and I've known his dad for years. So it'd be great
26:12 to see Hassox have some success because they've been a team that's just been sort of not making
26:17 up the numbers as such, but they've always been sort of mid-table, win as many games as they lose,
26:21 but this year they've really stepped up. So it'd be great to see Hassox have a little bit of success.
26:26 Go on, Steve, putting you on the spot. Who do you see going up as winners?
26:29 I think New Haven are going to, New Haven have been top most of the season. They've only lost
26:34 a couple of games, I think they've only lost two. They've had a few draws in games where you think
26:38 they should have won. Score, as we said earlier, score lots of goals. I think they're going to
26:43 hold on to top spot and get that place. They've been close to it before. They, one year, a couple
26:48 of years ago, they finished second and played Lansing in one of those Step 4 v 5 playoffs
26:53 and lost to Lansing. So I think it'd be New Haven's year and the rest of them fighting
26:58 out in the playoffs. And finally, before we end the podcast, we pick our Sussex non-league game
27:04 of the week. Mark Dunford starting with you. Which fixture has caught your eye this coming week?
27:09 Well, I've sort of gone for two. I've gone for both of Worthington's matches because they're
27:13 playing Monday. I don't know if there's any reason why they're playing Monday, Steve. Do you know why?
27:17 I think it's just that it's Chelmsford they're playing, isn't it? I think Chelmsford often
27:21 play on Mondays rather than Tuesdays. Oh, fair enough. So they've got, obviously,
27:26 tomorrow they've, oh actually I haven't picked tomorrow. I have actually picked that Chelmsford
27:31 Worthing game. Who's Worthing got tomorrow, Steve? Sorry. Dartford. Dartford, that's it.
27:36 Yes. I didn't write that down. So, I mean, because of... You should have just picked
27:39 Crobra, your favourite team. Yeah, absolutely. So, yeah, the Dartford tomorrow and Chelmsford,
27:46 they're both the first games without Adam Hinshelwood. I picked mainly the Chelmsford one
27:52 because of the fact that Chelmsford and them, I think they're second and third.
27:56 So, it's a huge game and over those two games, we'll see what effects Mr Hinshelwood leaving is.
28:04 Like Steve said, they lost the last two games with him anyway, but we could see whether we could see
28:10 a big sea change in Worthing's season or not, or whether they carry on doing what they've been
28:13 doing most of the season. So, yeah, it's looking at those two games with great interest.
28:18 Steve, I know you've kind of mentioned that several games might be at peril, but if they do
28:23 miraculously go ahead this week, which one has caught your eye?
28:28 Well, I've cleverly chosen one that will be on however much it rains because it's on 3G.
28:34 I'm going Lansing v Beckenham in the Ismyn South East. If anyone else other than Lansing fans has
28:41 got their game called off tomorrow, I'd recommend that as a good one to go down to. Lansing are
28:46 fourth, Beckenham are bottom. Lansing really should win that and if they do, they could be as many as
28:52 nine points clear of the teams who are outside the playoff zone, so they can start to think about
28:58 getting over the line and getting themselves a playoff place. I think it would be a massive
29:02 step up if Lansing were to win the playoffs and get promoted to Ismyn Premier. It'd be hard for
29:08 them, but not beyond them with the way they've done this season. They've got a good infrastructure
29:13 there at Colville Road. But yeah, Lansing v Beckenham tomorrow, I'm predicting a big home win for them.
29:18 Quite a lot of Sussex teams are in contention, aren't they, in the South East AF picture, I think,
29:24 when I last looked?
29:25 Yes, well, Chichester City are just outside the playoffs. Three Bridges are still, you know,
29:30 they haven't, they're not completely out of it. Burgess Hill, if they had a really good run
29:36 between now and the end of the season, could sneak their way into it as well. So they won't all get
29:40 in it, but Lansing are the ones who you'd think at the moment are, they're not nailed on to do it,
29:45 but they've got a very good chance of doing so.
29:48 Well, best of luck to all those West Sussex teams. I've gone for Wingate and Finchley at home to
29:54 Hastings on Saturday. It's fourth v seventh in the Ismyn Premier, very congested playoff place,
30:00 playoff race, sorry. So I think a win for Hastings will do their playoff bid a world of good. So best
30:05 of luck to them. Thank you very much for joining us.
30:08 Breaking news, Matt didn't pick Horsham. Wow.
30:10 Well, I've basically said how amazing they've been this season, so I thought I should probably.
30:14 If people are interested, they're away at fourth from Bottom Margate on Sunday and at home to
30:19 bottom of the table, Kingston on Tuesday. Six points would be ideal if they're going to keep
30:25 up their push for the playoffs, but we shall see. Thank you very much for joining us, chaps, as ever.
30:29 Yeah, we'll basically see you when we see you next. Thank you very much for joining us.
30:34 - Cheers. - See you later.