FA Cup: History counts for nothing as Horsham FC and Dorking meet again

The two sides met last season in the fourth qualifying round and goals from Dan Ajakaiye and Shamir Fenelon saw Horsham run out 2-0 winners that day.

But Di Paola admitted their previous meeting would have no bearing on this weekend’s Cup clash.

He said: “It’s a tough one because it's not a great draw for us, really. You’d like someone easier at this stage of the competition. There’s a lot of easier teams in it, but it’s just the way it goes sometimes.

“We’re looking forward to it. I don’t know what the attendance is going to be. It might be a couple of thousand, so that will be good. Hopefully the boys can put on a good performance.

“It’s a big game for both teams. It’s not an ideal draw, by a long stretch, so we’ll have to see how we go.

“They’re the favourites without a shadow of a doubt. They’re a really good side, and they’re one of the favourites for the league above.

“It’s not a free hit in the sense that we just have to turn up, but we’re looking at it as a really tough draw.

“You can’t look at anything in the past. They’ve got different players, we’ve got different players, we play a different formation now, they do different things. History doesn’t dictate a lot in football.”

The Hornets warmed up for their Cup clash with an Isthmian Premier trip to Cray Wanderers on Saturday.

Horsham dominated the first half but failed to find a breakthrough. Charlie Hester-Cook was sent off late in the second half – and will miss Saturday’s game against Dorking – as the Hornets were held to a goalless draw.

Di Paola said: “We played well in the first half but without being able to finish the game off. In the second half, it kind of degenerated.

“I thought the officiating was appalling, for both sides, and it created a game where it was so stop-start. There was never really a situation where there was any chance to play any football - and that’s not good for anyone who comes to watch.

“There were 25 minutes in the second half where we didn’t do anything and they didn’t do anything. Then we got a foothold again but then the referee took the view to send Cookie off for a second booking.

“Cray didn’t really create anything after that. It was a bit of a nothing second half, really. I think the chance to win the game was in the first half. If we’d taken it, it would have been a good 1-0 away win.”

Meanwhile, the Hornets have confirmed that summer recruit Joe Paxman has left the club.

A vital part of Canvey Island's run to the Isthmian Premier play-off semi-finals in 2022-23, the versatile midfielder became Horsham’s fourth summer signing on June 23.

Di Paola said: “He lives in Essex, so it’s a long way to travel. From our side, we’ve not got him enough game time - even in pre-season.

“When we brought him in we weren’t sure on one or two staying, and then they did an about-turn and stayed which pushed him down the pecking order.

“He’s a good player in his own right and he deserves to be playing. This isn’t professional football where they’re earning a fortune and they can sit on a contract, they need to be playing.

“It’s never nice to see anyone go but that’s the nature of it when boys don’t play.”