Horsham FC still have ‘a lot of work to do’ after four-point week
Dominic Di Paola admitted Horsham FC still have a lot of work to do – despite picking up four precious National League South points this week.
The Hornets left it late to salvage a 1-1 home draw against Salisbury on Saturday, before an excellent all-round midweek display saw Horsham take Sussex bragging rights in a 2-0 home win over beleaguered Eastbourne Borough.
The four points moves the Hornets up to 16th in the National League South, and four points clear of the relegation zone.
Reece Myles-Meekums’ 85th minute rocket saw Horsham share the spoils with Salisbury, who went ahead in the first half courtesy of Michael Atkinson’s stunner.
Di Paola felt the Hornets were good value for three points – but was content with a draw.
He said: “I think we played well. We definitely should have won on Saturday. It was a shame.
“I felt for the boys because we played well - but it’s a tough league. It goes like that.
“You can’t always win, but we’ll take it all day long.”
Horsham secured their second victory of the season on Tuesday night in their Sussex derby with Borough, who are still seeking a first league win.
Captain Jack Brivio’s bullet header on 58 minutes gave the hosts the lead, before Myles-Meekums coolly slotted home the Hornets’ second just four minutes later.
Di Paola said: “We were good on Tuesday night. I thought we were much the better team.
“But it was another where we lacked a cutting edge. We had all the chances, and Lew [Carey] has had a slow header [to keep out], but that’s it.
“They [Borough] are having a bad spell and injuries as well. It’s a good win on its own merit, but we’ve got a long way to go before we can say we’ve established ourselves at this level.
“I think in our last five games we’ve been good. We’ve been competitive and done some good stuff, so in general I’ve been pretty happy with our performances – we’ve just not been picking up the points we’ve needed.
“I think we can compete and do good things in games, but I think we’ve got to do a lot more. There’s lots of things we need to be better at.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do, but it’s nice to get that second win. We’ve not had many local derbies against Eastbourne Borough, but it’s nice to beat one of the bigger clubs in Sussex. We’ve got to be happy.”
Horsham travel to 12th-placed Maidstone United in the National League South this Saturday.
The Hornets will hit the road Saturday week for an FA Cup second qualifying round clash with Isthmian South Central outfit Westfield – who are skippered by Horsham’s Bostik South East play-off final hero Dylan Merchant.
You can read more from Di Paola throughout the rest of the week online at sussexworld.co.uk/sport.