The Hawks Men’s 1st XI travelled to East Grinstead for a top of the table clash that ended in a narrow defeat for the visitors. A strong club that boasts internationals throughout their performance section, a journey to EGSC was always going to be a tough day in the office.

The Hawks were put under pressure early on by the home side, but held firm throughout the early exchanges, and kept the East Grinstead forwards and the crowd in the stands quiet for the first 10. Despite the concerted pressure they were under, it was the Hawks who struck first, scoring on a breakaway with their first opportunity. Joseph Jones picked up the ball from Mark Collins on the edge of the D, turned his defender, and struck hard on the reverse, for Centre Forward Matt Chappell to deflect past the keeper from a tight angle.

While the home side dominated possession, The Hawks were resolute in defence, and shut the opposition out for the rest of the half.
Unfortunately the second half was a different story, with East Grinstead starting strong, and then continuing to amp up the pressure. The Hawks gave away a cheap short corner, and paid the price for it, with the flicker beating Baco at his right post for their first. Minutes later, a long ball down the line cut The Hawks apart, and the home side found their centre forward at the top of the D, who was afforded time to turn and strike for their second. They got their third through another short corner, and despite The Hawk’s late rally and reply, it was too little too late. The game finished 3-2, and The Hawk’s registered their second loss of the season.

We spoke to Man of the Match, Rob Stevenson, after the game, and his disappointment was evident. “It was our concentration that let us down today. We talked through the week about staying switched on throughout, because we knew this team would punish us if our standards dropped, even for a second. But that was our downfall today. Just a few small errors. It’s gutting, as we showed some really positive signs in large spells. And it was a marked improvement on some of our recent performances. It just wasn’t our day today.”

The Hawks will be looking to put things right in their next fixture, a home clash against Guildford.