Horsham FC must be wary of Salisbury’s ‘attacking threats’
Horsham FC manager Dominic Di Paola says his side must be wary of Salisbury’s ‘attacking threats’ ahead of their first home game of the 2026-27 campaign.
The Whites top the table at this very early stage after thumping Hampton & Richmond Borough – who the Hornets entertain on Tuesday evening – 5-0 at home on the opening day of the season.
Salisbury led 1-0 at half-time through former Worthing and Bognor Regis Town forward Nathan Odokonyero before running rampant in the second half. Jaiden Bartolo bagged a hat-trick before Josh Hedges added gloss in stoppage time.
Horsham, meanwhile, began the new league campaign with a battling 1-1 draw at pre-season title favourites Torquay United.
Di Paola told the County Times ahead of Horsham’s home opener: “Salisbury looked really good [last Saturday]. They’ve got a lot of attacking threats.
“I thought they were really good towards the back-end of last year. They got their act together.
“They’ve got some good technicians in there and one or two who can score goals, which is a good recipe.
“It’s going to be really tough. They’ll have their tails up.
“I watched their game against Hampton and they were comfortable winners. They battered them if I’m being honest so it’s going to be another hard one for us.
“We’ll just have to put some plans in place and go from there really.”
Di Paola also confirmed the Hornets have no fresh injury concerns going into tomorrow’s game.
Meanwhile, Horsham Women have discovered who they will face in the preliminary round of the 2026-27 Women’s FA Cup.
The Hornettes will host Havant & Waterlooville on Sunday, August 23, with kick-off scheduled for 2pm.
Winning sides at the preliminary round stage will pocket £1,000 from the FA’s prize fund, while losing teams will receive £400.
Should Horsham overcome Havant, a trip to Guernsey or Chessington & Hook United awaits in the first qualifying round on Sunday, September 6.