Horsham slip gives Billericay hope, whilst the Urchins suffer their biggest defeat of the season

We start with a Sussex derby, the most important match of our Tuesday Premier fixtures because it was the only one which had real jeopardy! Horsham were occupying fifth place at kick off, three points ahead of their closest challengers- Billericay Town- with two games in hand; but the Hornets faced a tricky trip to Lewes, the Rooks likely to be unwilling to do one of their local rivals any favours whatsoever.

Horsham had won five of their previous six- only regular bogey side Folkestone Invicta getting in the way of their winning streak- whilst Lewes had won their last two, and were hoping to swat the Hornets for the second time this season. The Rooks went ahead eight minutes before the break, Chris Whelpdale with his twelfth of the season, and they will have delighted the denizens of New Lodge when they added a second eleven minutes into the second half, Olu Ogunwamide also delighting the home faithful. Horsham then got going, and fifteen minutes from time Jack Mazzone got a goal back, but it was too little, too late- and one of those Horsham games in hand has gone with nothing to show for it.

We’ve run out of superlatives to describe the work of our champions, Hornchurch, who travelled to Canvey Island six points away from one hundred and with three matches left to achieve that milestone. Canvey came into this one with only one win from their previous ten matches, but they did defeat the Urchins both home and away last season, and perhaps they were channelling those memories as Bradley Sach put them ahead on twenty four minutes. The Urchins levelled thirteen minutes later, Tommie Hoban with the equaliser, but five minutes into the second half it was advantage Gulls once more, Emmanuel Adebiyi making it two-one. Just after the hour the hosts were awarded a penalty, and Conor Hubble made no mistake, making it three-one, and it got worse for the Urchins when their former hero Sam Higgins made it four-one with twenty one minutes left. That was how it ended- undoubtedly the most positive result of the season for the Gulls, and the worst league defeat of the campaign for the Urchins.

Folkestone Invicta had slipped up a little of late, losing two of their previous three, and the Stripes hoped to get back to winning ways as they welcomed relegated Concord Rangers, the Beachboys looking to do a rather rare double. The visitors looked rather liberated as they won at Hashtag United at the weekend, and they went ahead in this one eight minutes after half time, Harrison Day with his seventeenth goal of the season. Seidou Sanogo has been in fine form for the hosts, and he levelled with fourteen minutes to go, his seventh of the season- and that was that.

Potters Bar Town were back at their own Lantern Stadium after playing two home matches at Haringey Borough last week, and, rather appropriately, their visitors were…Haringey Borough. The Scholars had lost five in a row and wanted to end the season on a high, and they were ahead just after the quarter hour mark, Jordan Watson opening the scoring. The second goal of the match arrived just after the hour, and again it went to the hosts, Valckx Fernandes making it two-nil, and a late, late Borough goal from Stephane Mgbanda was just a consolation.

Whitehawk welcomed Kingstonian, having defeated the already relegated K’s three times this season- and they were ahead after just seven minutes, Charlie Walker getting his twenty second of the season, this one from the spot. Walker added another nine minutes into the second half, and with nineteen minutes left the hosts had another penalty, and- of course- Walker stepped up to get his hat trick. That was how it ended, a fourth win- and a fourth clean sheet- in a row for the Hawks.

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