Horsham boss 'can't fault the effort' after heavy defeat

The Hornets went behind after just two minutes when Christie Pattison got in behind Harvey Sparks to finish off a quick break.

Ernold Haxhiu then doubled Carshalton’s lead on the half-hour mark.

Horsham came out fighting after the break but conceded a third midway through the second half as Kershaney Samuels beat George Bentley with a superb long-range strike.

Di Paola’s side were then caught on the counter attack as Ricky Korboa swept home the fourth with four minutes remaining to inflict the Hornets’ with their heaviest defeat of the season.

The result leaves Horsham five points adrift from the Robins, who hold the final play-off place, although Horsham still have two games in hand.

Di Paola felt the scoreline didn’t reflect his side’s work-rate. He said: “Everything that could have gone wrong did go wrong on Saturday.

“We let in a really cheap goal early on and Carshalton are one of the sides who, if you go behind and try to go at them a bit, they can hurt you, so we were a bit naive in that respect.”

“Not a great day at the office, but I can’t fault the boys’ work-rate or effort. We just didn’t manage situations particularly well as a group and a few things went against us.”

The home side were in front after just 72 seconds when Lewis White crossed into an unmarked Pattisson who calmly prodded past Bentley.

Robins striker Omar Koroma was then knocked unconscious after being struck by the ball at close-range with the striker stretchered off and taken to hospital after a lengthy stoppage.

Korboa hit the bar with a strong header before the hosts grabbed their second when Bobby Price’s cross was turned in by Koroma’s replacement, Haxhiu.

Play then virtually came to a standstill as Storm Jorge arrived with both sets of players grateful for the half-time whistle.

Lee Harding had a goal ruled out for an apparent foul on ‘keeper Kleton Perntreou before the Robins added a super third.

Samuels made full use of the space on the edge of the area and unleashed an unstoppable effort into the top corner.

Athletic completed the rout on 86 minutes when they broke up the pitch from a Horsham corner, with Korboa left to bury a shot at the back post.

Di Paola said: “That wind in the first half was so hard to deal with and we were just really struggling to get a foothold in it.

“I didn’t think it was a 4-0 but they were clinical. They’re one of the best sides in the league so it was always going to be a tough game, made even harder by our poor start.”

Horsham: Bentley, Mills, Sparks, Kelly, Shelley, Miles, Clark (Charman 72’), Dawson (Brivio 82’), Smith, Cundle (Harris 45’), Harding. Unused: Metcalf