A first half goal from Claude Seanla got Horsham’s temporary residence of Gorings Mead off to the perfect start, with victory over highly fancied Sutton United. The striker adroitly converted a 38th minute free-kick from Lee Carney to send the majority of an encouraging 441 crowd away happy but the Hornets' evening was tainted with the likelihood of a heavy fine after collecting seven bookings from an often over-zealous referee who also banished Mark Hawthorne to the stands during a fractious second half. While it is customary to send a good luck card to those moving in to a new home, Mr Brook took this to extremes by dishing out yellows to Jack Page, Lee Carney, Alex Haddow, Anthony Acheampong, Ben Andrews, Claude Seanla and Rob Tolfrey along with the visitors’ Jason Goodliffe, Sonny Cobb, Steve McKimm and Sam Gargan and, while Seanla could argue that he was hard done by, there could be no excuses for the show of dissent that saw Page and Carney booked for the second successive match.

Quite what the late Sir Bobby Robson might have thought of the players' ill-disciplined show is anyone’s guess but, after a minute’s silence in his memory, it took the hosts almost as long to settle in to this match as it did the supporters who struggled to find the best viewing position in their unfamiliar surroundings. Both sides fielded an unchanged starting XI from the weekend and it was Sutton, hoping to build on their 4-0 win against Margate, who created the game’s first chance when a slip from Sam Page enabled Sam Gargan to get on the end of a pass from Bentley Graham and bring the best out of Tolfrey at his near post with just four minutes on the clock.

The Us looked full of confidence, pace and energy in the opening stages and Stefan Payne might have given the visitors a deserved lead but put his header wide from a Karim El-Sahali cross. Andrews had Horsham’s first glimpse of goal, midway through the half, when determined work from Gary Charman saw the ball fall for the big forward who screwed his shot wide of Kevin Scriven’s goal from 25 yards but, moments later, the former Worthing man became the first of three players to enter Mr Brook’s notebook in a five minute spell for a foul on his marker and he was quickly followed by Page and Carney.

Having weathered the early storm, it was the home side who were to make the breakthrough when a free-kick from Carney was headed in to the air and dropped perfectly for the watchful Seanla who clinically despatched the ball in to the net from ten yards, giving Scriven no chance. The same two players then combined again, shortly after, when a well crafted move down the right saw Seanla deliver a superb cross to the back post where Charman’s header was deflected behind off Billy Hawes to deny Horsham what would have been an excellent team goal.

The final chance of the half also came Horsham’s way, not that Andrews knew much about it, as a free-kick from Russell Eldridge hit the striker on the backside inside a crowded penalty area and Scriven was smartly off his line to gather the loose ball before anyone in an amber and green shirt could convert.

H/T Horsham 1 Sutton United 0

The pattern of the second half was set just three minutes after the restart when Goodliffe was booked for a heavy challenge on Charman but an equally committed, yet fair, tackle by Mark Knee opened the way for Eldridge to test the ‘keeper from distance but Scriven got down well to save the midfielder’s curling left foot shot. Sutton made an early double substitution, replacing Graham and Matt Hann with McKimm and Bradley Woods-Garness, and the latter was quickly into the action sending in a perfect cross to the far post but Gargan could only send his header straight in to Tolfrey’s arms, wasting what was to be arguably the visitors' best chance of the half.

The Horsham ‘keeper stood firm again when he gathered a powerful shot from Woods-Garness and Sutton’s frustrations grew when Cobb was shown a yellow for a late challenge on Eldridge. Seanla was denied by Scriven’s legs, and the offside flag, after finding himself one on one with the Us goalkeeper and a sharp turn from Andrews saw his shot deflected behind after being picked out by Jack Page on the edge of the box.

Having just cautioned Alex Haddow for dissent, Mr Brook enraged the home fans further by choosing to lecture Goodliffe after a clear case of verbals from the former AFC Wimbledon skipper and Hawthorne was sent to the stands for making his opinions known to the man in the middle. The match was slipping in to a steady decline as Gargan, the unfortunate Seanla, and Anthony Acheampong went in to the book although Acheampong could have few complaints after a two footed challenge that left Cobb writhing in pain on the halfway line.

The diminutive Danny Phillips, on for Payne, delivered a dangerous ball across the face of the Horsham goal, inches ahead of Gargan, as the visitors tried in vain for an equaliser and the substitute forced an uncomfortable save out of Tolfrey with a low drive five minutes from the end. McKimm’s tackle on Knee earned the player/coach his side’s fourth caution and Tolfrey made it an unlucky seven for the Hornets for taking too long with a free-kick. The closing moments found Horsham looking to extend their advantage and a clever dummy from Andrews enabled Seanla to run on to Charman’s pass and hit a first time shot that was saved well by Scriven. However, the referee’s evening wasn’t over yet as Carney and El-Sahali grappled on the floor but Mr Brook elected to ignore the Horsham man, instead calling over El-Sahali and Acheampong for a dressing down to the obvious bemusement of the crowd.

There was to be one final attack and it came the way of the hosts when Charman's clearing header fell for Seanla, who played a defence-splitting pass in to the path of Carney, and only a last-ditch tackle denied Haddow as he was put through on goal.

NEXT MATCH: v Harrow Borough (h) Saturday 22nd August ko 3pm