Horsham hit for six

Henley’s fourth league game of the season was a top of the league clash against Horsham, with only goal difference settings the two teams apart before the match. The sun was shining on Jubilee Park and Horsham came out fast, playing with high intensity. A defensive mistake from Henley let Horsham get the upper hand and a fortuitous goal put the visitors in the lead, as a follow-up attempt on goal was duly converted. Following this, Henley looked more composed on the ball and came out fighting. After 15 minutes they equalised with a powerful short corner strike from Tony Gaze. The home side then looked more confident on the ball, and a slick move down the left wing from Ed Foster and Jonny Taylor, produced a brilliant second goal for Henley after 17 minutes. Despite some high pressing from Horsham and some sporadic attempts on the Henley goal, Roy Cox looked sharp in the Henley goal and kept the danger at bay. This allowed the home side to power forward, scoring twice more before the half time break, with David Ralph and Jonny Taylor again on target. The half time score, an impressive 4-1 lead for Henley.

The game restarted with good intensity from both teams. Horsham got themselves back in the game with a powerful flick past Cox to make the score 4-2. However, this was cancelled out almost immediately, as Tony Gaze converted his second goal of the day from another short corner to make it 5-2. Again this was followed with another Henley goal, as Luke Gupta smashed in a reverse stick shot to make it 6-2. With both teams now looking slightly weary with 10 minutes left to play, Horsham threatened a comeback, scoring two goals in quick succession from short-corners. This reduced the deficit to two goals, and only some goal-line heroics from Henley captain Ed Foster kept the away-side at bay again, as he brilliantly saved a powerful drag-flick on the Henley goal line after Roy Cox was beaten with 3 minutes to play. Following a scrappy final 2 minutes, Henley eventually ended up winners of what was a very entertaining match. Final score: Henley 6 – 4 Horsham.