From Hassocks to Manchester

Born in Marsden, about 30 mins from Manchester, Bobby Lee had always dreamed of stepping out on the Old Trafford pitch wearing Manchester Red.

However, he was never good enough to make it past Sunday League status and his Footballing career just never kicked off.

After reaching the age of 27 and not getting his big break he decided to hang up his boots for another challenge.

After hanging up his boots, Bobby Lee decided that maybe wearing a suit on the touchline at Old Trafford leading a Manchester United side could be the next best thing. He then became aware of a little club in Hassocks, in the 23rd tier of English football, who were now looking for a new manager to hopefully lead them up the English league system.

Bobby Lee, was unsure about this job however, as it would be a big move as Hassocks is a little over 5 hours away from Marsden. But he decided if he would want to eventually reach his dream job, he would need to start somewhere. So he applied.

After Applying, Bobby was called for a Skype interview and a few days later he got the call.

Going into his new job Bobby did not know what to expect, but the journey would be fun none the less.

So here we go.......

Best of luck!

Good luck mate!

Lots of promotions needed and good luck getting them

Before arriving at his new club, Bobby Lee knew he at a huge task at hand as Keymer and Hassocks were ranked at 5000-1 to get promotion from the Mid Sussex Football League Division 10.

After arriving he saw that the squad would need a complete overhaul if they were to be the slightest bit competitive and between 20 and 30 players were invited to trial with the club during pre-season.

During Pre-season a couple players emerged as early favorites for contracts.
Players like Elliot Turner, who during pre-season scored 3 and created 4 from Central Midfield.


A few more players who impressed were Matt Birley, a right and left winger, 6 goals and 4 assists.


Danny Spendlove, a right winger, 4 goals and 1 assist.


And Matthew Mattis, a striker, 4 goals and 1 assist.

With the new season fast approaching, Bobby Lee knew that he would have to finalize other contracts soon if players were going to be eligible for the first game of the season.

So a further 13 players were signed, meaning the squad now looked like this.

As his first competitive game in football management approached, Bobby Lee felt that with the results they got towards the back end of pre-season, and with the team looking like they have adapted to his style of play and gelling well together, a promotion push might not be that far a stretch.

Game 1
Heading out onto a field with a crowd 20 people in attendance, Bobby Leee felt the anxiety start to hit him. This anxiety grew as Ashurst Wood III, took control of the early stages. Then in the 35th minute, pre-season favorite Matthew Mattis stepped up and slide one past the goalkeeper for a 1-0 lead, and for the rest of the game chances were created for both sides, but neither side could put them away and a 1-0 debut victory for Bobby Lee was secured.

Games 2-6
With the opening victory under his belt, Bobby Lee, had his first taste of cup football next up, in the Testers Challenge Cup, and a 2-1 victory thanks to goals from Right Back, Ben Grant, and Right Winger, Danny Spendlove, allowed progression to the next stage of the cup.

From there on Bobby Lee's side hit their stride. A 4-0 victory against Hartfield II, followed by a 6-0 thrashing of league favorites Ringmer III, really catapulted Keymer and Hassocks to promotion favorites. Those two massive victories were followed by back to back, comfortable 3-0 victories against Stones II and Scyanes Hill II.

Pre-season Favorites, Danny Spendlove, 6 Goals and 1 Assist, Matthew Mattis, 4 Goals and 2 Assists, and Elliot Turner, 4 Goals and 1 Assist, really started to show why they were pre-season favorites. However, other pre-season favorite Matt Birley, did not perform to expected standards and this gave a chance to backup Gary Burrell and he performed wonders, making 8 Assists and scoring 1 Goal in his first 5 appearances.

An otherwise brilliant start was overshadowed by a bad injury to favorite and Vice-Captain, Elliot Turner, in the game against Scyanes Hill. He suffered Torn Knee Ligaments, and will be out for up to 10 months, meaning his season was over, after a really bright start.

This meant Bobby Lee had to go searching for a replacement and Anthony Harris seemed the perfect fit.

Games 7-11
So after that incredible run of fixtures, another couple 3-0 victories against Fairwap II and Rotherfield III was follwed by a 2-0 victory against 2nd place Mid-Sussex League Division 9, Crawley Cobras II, in the second round of the Tester Challenge Cup. The Cup victory was followed by back to back 1-0 victories against Nutley II and Ashurst Woood III.

At this point Bobby Lee's side were still yet to concede a goal in League football and still maintained their 100% record in competitive fixtures.

Bobby Lee was then linked to Vanarama National League South sides, Concord Rangers, Wealdstone, and Basingstoke, however nothing materialized from these links and the job at Keymer and Hassocks continued.

Game 12
Bobby Lee's side conceded their first League goal here with a 3-1 victory over Hartfield II. This win meant they were only one win away from securing promotion to Mid-Sussex League Division 9.

Game 13
THEY DID IT! With five games to spare, Bobby Lee has led Keymer and Hassocks to an unexpected promotion, with a 2-0 victory against Stones II. But with the League title just one win away, fans expect the players and manager alike to bring the title home to Hassocks.

Game 14
A comfortable 2-0 victory against Mid-Sussex League Division 9, relegation favorites, West Hoathly II in the Quarter-finals of the Tester Challenge Cup meant a spot in the Semi-Final awaited Bobby Lee's team.

After Game 14, a new crop of youngsters arrived at Keymer and Hassocks and a couple of exciting prospects arrived.

Carl Webber
Has some good Physical and Mental traits for a winger at his age, at this level. Although his technical attributes could use alot of work. Bobby Lee's assistant rated him as a 4.5 star potential player, but know he has since dropped to 3.5 star potential, however with him being a bit quick, with some flair and ok crossing ability, Bobby Lee believes he could still do a job for his side.




Sam Silk
Although most of his attributes underwhelms, his teamwork, stamina, and work rate really jumps out. With his Work Rate Bobby Lee believes he could develop into a good player for Keymer.




Game 15
With the league title on the line nerves hit Bobby Lee's side early on, as they were 2-0 down within the first 26 minutes, against Ringmer III. However, after being down for the first team this season, Bobby Lee's side showed that they had resolve as well and came away with a 3-2 victory to secure the league title and maintain their 100% record.

Game 16
With the League title now secured, a few lapses in defence, meant Bobby Lee's side conceded 2 more goals against Scaynes Hill II, but Keymer came out victorious in the end with a 4-2 victory, hoping to keep the 100% record till the end.

Game 17
A cup Semi-final awaited against Mid-Sussex Division 9 team, AFC Bolnore. After taking an early 2 goal lead things seemed comfortable for Bobby Lee's side, but a goal from Bolnore, set up a tense final 30 minutes, but Keymer held on for the win.

Games 18
Bobby Lee's side continued their leaky defensive nature of late conceding 3 goals against Fairwarp II. However a Matthew Mattis goal rescued a 3-3 draw, and the 100% record was now gone.

Games 19 and 20
Bobby Lee set out to sturdy up his defense again before the Tester Challenge Cup Final, as recent times have seen them concede 7 goals in 3 league matches.
Back to Back clean sheets, with a 4-0 win over Nutley II and a 2-0 victory over Rotherfield III meant his teams defense were back on track.



[uGame 21 - Cup Final
Bobby Lee's first taste at Cup Final football in front of a bumper crowd of 60, looked like it could be a close one for Keymer, against Mid-Sussex League Division 9 Champions Buxted III. Keymer, looked in complete control for most of the match, amassing 12 shots, with 5 clear cut opportunities, but they could not find a way pass Buxted III's goalkeeper. Then in extra time a Danny Spendlove goal secured victory for Keymer and Hassocks and meant they completed an unexpected and fantastic double.



With an impressive season under his belt, Keymer fans and board alike look forward to their future under boss Bobby Evans. Although Bobby Evans is not sure where is future lies as bigger teams might be in for his signiture.

Impressive Performers

Danny Spendlove - 21 goals and 4 assists from Right Winger.
Matthew Mattis - 11 goals and 7 assists
Garry Burrell - 6 goals and 13 assists

With the players on amateur contracts, Bobby Evans feels worried that he might lose his top players to clubs who can offer contracts to their players, so if Bobby Evans is to stay at Keymer and Hassocks, a rebuilding job could be at his hands again this season.

At the end of his first season, Bobby Lee, had every intention of staying with his Keymer and Hassocks side. However when Hellenic Premier Division side, Holyport called, Bobby Lee just could not turn down the opportunity to manage a team 12 divisions above his current side. So he jumped into his car and made the hour trip up to Holyport. After walking out of the interview Bobby Lee felt really good about his chances, but an even bigger phonecall came through.

It was the chairman of Southern League Premier Division side Chesham. So, seeing that the drive was only 40 minutes from where he was Bobby Lee decided to make the short drive. The interview went really well, and Bobby Lee believed he had the job in the bag.

About a week after his interviews Holyport came back with an offer, because of the Chesham job Bobby Lee decided to delay the Holyport offer. Another week passed and Bobby Lee still had not heard back from Chesham, and Holyport wanted an answer right then. So Bobby Lee decided to turn them down as he felt he had the Chesham job for sure. A couple days later Bobby Lee received the e-mail he had been waiting for unfortunately it was bad news as Chesham decided to go in another direction.