Southwick old boy Michael Hunter spared Horsham’s blushes with two saves in a dramatic penalty shoot-out after 110 minutes of football had failed to separate the sides in this Brighton Charity Cup 1st round tie. The goalkeeper, on as a first half substitute for the injured Ken Westoby, kept out efforts from Idi Adedoja and Alain Multini and, when Josh Hewitt sent the decisive spot-kick against the crossbar, Horsham were finally able to celebrate a victory and send their small band of supporters away in to the cold night air contented, if not exactly signing from the rooftops.

“Full credit to Michael for the saves but it shouldn’t have got to that stage” said boss Hugo Langton. “We let ourselves down with some poor finishing but also Southwick’s refusal to lie down. There will be some tired legs among their players after that because they kept going but the longer it went on,apart from a brief spell in the second half, the stronger we became and if it was a boxing match it would have been stopped. I wasn’t happy with the lads at half-time because we’d spoken about how we felt we’d have too much quality for them if we played short, snappy passes and got round them. But, for some reason, we ignored all that and decided to play the long ball which is not how I like the game to be played and I let them know I wasn’t happy.

Perhaps it’s an over-reliance on the pace we have up front but we started to see the difference in the second half when we got the ball down and started to play. I was delighted by the younger players, though. Dean O’Keefe was outstanding up front and has all the attributes to become an outstanding striker. He showed good movement, held the ball up and linked up well with the others and I was really pleased with him. The two lads we brought off the bench, Jack Surlis and Toto, also did very well so we’ll take some positives from their performances as well.”

With the far greater issue of a vital league match against Hendon to come at the weekend, Langton elected to rest several key personnel including George Landais, Callum Dunne and Ian Varley, the latter pairing showing their support by cheering on their team-mates from the sidelines. In their place came O’Keefe, Gareth Sanashee, Adam Hutchings and Ahmed Jahar. The hosts, lowest scorers in County League Division Two, were able to welcome back striker Sam Blundell for his first start since picking up a serious knee injury in pre-season.

The Hornets had a decent early chance to open the scoring when Williams Peauroux’s free-kick fell invitingly for Tommy Murphy but the winger lost his bearings and was unable to steer the ball past goalkeeper Callum Fidler. In reply, Multini dragged a shot wide of the post but Southwick’s fallibility at set plays would cost them dear when Kery Kedze’s 12th minute corner was turned in at the far post by Calum McGeehan. A curling free-kick by Jordan Saunders was all that either side could offer in the next quarter of an hour before the home side drew level with a corner of their own when the ball was helped on by Multini and Blundell hooked it home from close range.

Westoby had been fairly untroubled until that point but his evening would take a further turn for the worst, 6 minutes later, when he fell awkwardly following a clearance and was taken off to Worthing Hospital for precautionary checks on a damaged knee, paving the way for Hunter’s return on his old stomping ground. But the substitute ‘keeper wasn’t troubled in the minutes that remained with Horsham creating the best chances, Peauroux’s shot fumbled by Fidler and then Kedze blasting a free-kick high over the crossbar after O’Keefe had been fouled on the edge of the area

H/T Southwick 1 Horsham 1

Clearly unimpressed by what he’d seen during the opening 45 minutes, Langton read his side the riot act at half-time and sent them back out on to the pitch some 10 minutes before the Southwick players returned for the second half, minus McGeehan whose place was taken by U18s full-back Surlis.

Southwick made a change of their own, with Adedoja on for Blundell, in the only notable action of an uneventful opening 20 minutes but the tie kicked back in to life when Sanashee got caught out by a hopeful ball over the top, leaving the dangerous Multini and Saunders in on goal but Hunter stood up well to save the latter’s low shot. A spectacular save by Fidler prevented Murphy from scoring with a well struck free-kick, 20 minutes from time, as the visitors finally began to assert themselves and Fidler again came to his side’s rescue when a well constructed move involving Peauroux and Jahar ended with the goalkeeper saving Murphy’s first time shot at the foot of his post.

Kedze was withdrawn, giving Sean Wright-Phillips look-a-like Moyo ‘Toto’ Mthokozisis his chance to shine and the youngster, like Surlis, displayed some encouraging signs with a confidence to take on his marker with a good turn of pace. The Hornets should have settled the result in normal time with a couple of late chances, the first after Liam Flanighan had sent Murphy clear to hit a rising shot that just cleared the crossbar before the ex-Farnborough man repeated the trick after being set up by Jahar.

The visitors dominated the first of two periods of 10 minutes of extra-time but O’Keefe’s fine turn and shot deserved better than to see the ball clear the angle of post and upright after a patient Horsham build up. Yinka Salami’s 25 yarder was deflected narrowly wide and then Fidler showed good reactions to save O’Keefe’s close range header as Horsham cranked up the pressure.

Yet it was the County Leaguers who might have sealed the victory, two minutes in to the second period, when Adedoja showed quick feet to get away from three opponents and, when his pass was met by Multini’s clever back heel, Hunter had to race quickly from his line to bravely block at the feet of George Turrell. Murphy then sent a snapshot just wide at the other end and The Wickers will have been grateful that he’d left his shooting boots at home after an incisive break down the left wing ended in disappointment when another shot ended in the trees.

Murphy’s luck was well and truly out when another good move saw the 19 year old put clear in the area only for him to be sent crashing to the ground under Jay Tidey’s rash challenge for what looked a clear foul. Referee Ian Moore thought otherwise and the penalty drama would have to wait. One final chance would fall the way of the hosts but substitute Chris Bowyer’s header was put wide and Horsham had the lottery of a 12 yard shoot-out to avoid a first ever 1st round exit from the competition.

Southwick, though, were unable to become the second County League club to claim Horsham’s scalp this season when Hunter produced fine stops from Adedoja and Miltini and, although Bowyer managed to put his shot beyond the ‘keeper’s diving frame, successful conversions by Adam Hutchings, Murphy and Flanighan meant sub Josh Hewitt had to score to keep the home side in the contest. Cruelly, his shot cannoned back off the crossbar and Horsham were through with their first, albeit rather hollow, victory since 25th October.