Horsham boss Di Paola hails 'brilliant' squad after remarkable upturn in form

Dominic Di Paola hailed his Horsham side for the remarkable run of form that has seen them shoot up the Isthmian Premier and reach the quarter-finals of the Sussex Senior Cup. Picture by Derek Martin Photography and Art

The Hornets’ meteoric rise up the table continued on Saturday with a 3-1 home win over East Thurrock United.

Horsham languished at the bottom of the division last month - but seven league wins from eight has fired Di Paola’s side up to 12th and 15 points clear of the relegation zone.

The Hornets followed this with another 3-1 home success, this time against division-below Hastings United in the third round of the Senior Cup on Tuesday evening.

Di Paola said: "I think they’re a brilliant group to be honest. They’re a good honest group this year and I like them as a group.

"I think they’ve got good attitudes, they try to implement what we ask them to do and they’re a good team.

"Once we got out of the FA Cup, the group seemed to have focussed really well and now we’re in a far better position.

"But we’ve got a tough run of games over the next six weeks. We’ve got to try and pick up as many points as we can and when we can because we don’t want to get ourselves in a position where we’re struggling again.

"They were a great group when we weren’t doing well. It’s only results that have changed, everything else has been good.

"I’ve enjoyed this season and I’ve enjoyed being amongst them and we’re really happy with what they’ve done. They’ve been great."

Horsham were due to visit Hornchurch this Saturday but the game has been postponed following a Covid outbreak among the Hornets’ first team squad.

Horsham hope to return to action on Monday, December 27 when they host old foes Lewes.