I think most supporters were expecting a close match between the two Horsham District Clubs when Steyning Town came to the Air Engineering Stadium home of Broadbridge Heath Football Club for this Sussex Transport Senior Challenge Cup match but the Bears had other ideas scoring seven without reply.

Heath manager Chris Simmons said he would be utilising his squad for the match and that’s exactly what he did making seven changes to his squad from the game on Saturday and Steyning manager Brannon O’Neill did likewise making six changes to his 16 man squad.

The Barrowmen started brightly playing on the front foot and created the first opening of the match when Leo Ginger advanced down the left flank and played a low left foot cross from the goal-line towards Jarad Rance at the far post but Lewis Hyde was on-hand to clear the danger.
But it was the Bears who took the lead against the run of play on 14 minutes when Ben Royall launched a long throw from the left touch-line into the Steyning danger area where it was headed on by Lewis Hyde at the near post to Mason Doughty to prod home with his left foot from close range.

At the other end on 23 minutes Steyning were awarded a free kick some 22 yards from goal, Billy Clark stepped up and fired a low right foot shot which flew just inches wide of the post.

Heath made it 2-0 on 27 minutes and what a goal it was, worth the admittance fee alone, starting with Ben Royall wide on the left and 21 passes later the ball was drilled under the advancing Alfie Mansell from an almost impossible acute angle by Sam Hards.

A minute later and it was 3-0 and another cracking goal for the Bears when Josh Solecki won the ball in the centre-circle, nine passes later it was played out wide to Ben Royall on the left who ran at the defence, took the ball to the goal-line before playing it inside where it was met by a horizontal Jack Church diving in to power a header past Mansell for his first goal for the club in his first start for the club.

Broadbridge Heath were flying now with wave after wave of attacking football and it was no surprise when they added a fourth on 32 minutes. A cross-field ball was intercepted by Zac Jeanes and immediately played forward to Zac Young who looked up and then placed a fierce left foot shot wide of Mansell to make it 4-0 at the break.

Broadbridge Heath started the second half where they had left off the first on the attack and winning a throw-in wide on the left and once again Royall stepped up to launch a long throw into the heart of the Steyning penalty area, the ball pinged around the area before eventually falling kindly into the path of Church who smashed a low right foot shot into the back of the net.

The attacks were relentless and Heath added sixth goal on 51 minutes following another flowing move down the left flank and ended with Ben Royall taking the ball to the goal-line before firing a left foot shot across the goal which deflected off the back of Sam Hards and into the net for Hards second of the match, not that he knew too much about it.

Doughty made it 7-0 on the hour mark when Lewis Hyde played the ball down the left channel to Zac Young who in-turn played it first time into the path of Doughty who drove into the box before striking a low right foot shot past Mansell for his eighth goal in eleven appearances this season.

The Barrowmen were awarded a penalty on 74 minutes when Lewis Hyde, in an attempt to win the ball brought down former Heath striker Charlie Pitcher but the eagle eyed Assistant Referee quite righty pointed out that the infringement occurred outside the penalty area and so a free kick 2 yards outside the penalty area was awarded instead which came to nothing.

In the closing minutes a quick counter attack by Broadbridge Heath following a Steyning corner saw Zac Jeanes sprint away with the ball down the right flank before playing a forward pass for Yuvi Mann to run onto and the Heath winger, making his first start of the season, fired a right foot shot across the goalmouth and narrowly wide of the post and it remained 7-0 at the final whistle.

Next up for the Bears is an Isthmian League Division One South East match against Deal Town and on Saturday 10th October.

Team: Williamson, Jeanes, Royall, Solecki (Thiselton 56), Hyde (Peters 80), Richardson, Hards (Collyer 65), Connell (Mann 56), Doughty (Bejashvili 60), Church, Young.