Di Paola happy to rack up points as Horsham FC extend gritty unbeaten run to four matches
Horsham FC manager Dominic Di Paola hailed his players’ exertions after a haul of eight points from their past four games.
The Hornets have picked up another four points in the past week courtesy of a narrow home win over Walton & Hersham and a hard-fought draw at Maidenhead United, which moved them up to 12th in National League South.
Horsham edged out the Swans 1-0 on a wet and windy Saturday afternoon at the Fusion Aviation Community Stadium.
The Hornets bossed proceedings but had to wait until the 57th minute to breach Walton's defence. James Hammond, an early replacement for the injured Ronan Silva, crossed from the left and Jamie Yila was on hand to bundle the ball home at the far post.
Tuesday night saw Horsham draw 1-1 at Maidenhead, which extended their unbeaten run to four games.
Reece Myles-Meekums fired the visitors into a fifth minute lead but the Magpies levelled five minutes later through Alfie Pendlebury.
Di Paola told us: “It’s been a good four games for us. Eight points from four games, you’d take that all day long. There were three away games out of the four, so it’s good we’ve come away with the points we’ve come away with.
“Obviously with the way things are it’s just about getting points on the board, so I’m not too bothered how we do it.
“We seem to play better and not win, which is quite bizarre. Every time we don’t play well we seem to pull a result out of the bag – but I’m not complaining! It was good to get another result on Saturday.”
Of Tuesday’s draw, Di Paola said: “We started really well but they got into it and equalised and then battered us for ten minutes.
“We had to change our shape a little bit because we were struggling to deal with them, and by changing our shape it stopped them causing us any problems – but we stopped causing them problems.
“It turned it into a boring game but, given our exertions and the fatigue among the group, it was the right thing to do to become more cautious.
“We just saw the game out and it became a bit of a war of attrition.”
Myles-Meekums’ goal at Maidenhead capped a great week for the 27-year-old. The fan favourite made his 150th appearance for the club in Saturday’s win over Walton & Hersham.
The wing wizard has been a revelation since joining Horsham permanently in May 2024. Myles-Meekums, who initially joined the club on dual-registration terms from Worthing in September 2023, swept the club’s 2024-25 end-of-season awards, scooping the Hornets’ Supporters’, Manager’s and Players’ Player of the Season gongs.
Di Paola said: “He’s a top guy and he’s been brilliant for us. He’s a really, really good player. Fair play to him.”
The Hornets visit 16th-placed Farnborough this Saturday and go to Pagham in the Sussex Senior Cup on Tuesday.
Di Paola confirmed midfielder Silva will be out for at least a ‘couple of weeks’ after injuring his hamstring against Walton & Hersham. Meanwhile, Harvey Sparks, George Cox and Jake Elliott are all carrying knocks, though none of them are severely injured enough to miss the trip to Farnborough.
Horsham have also been drawn at home to league rivals Torquay United in the FA Trophy second round, due to take place on Saturday, November 14.
Di Paola added: “It’s a poor draw in the sense that you’re playing someone in our league. A lot of the National South teams are playing each other so I don’t know if they sorted the balls properly!
“The fact that we don’t have to travel is a bonus but we couldn’t have had a harder draw really. I would have liked someone not so good early on but it is what it is.”