The overhaul of United's playing squad under new boss Dom Di Paola has continued this week with the addition of two further signings from his former club East Preston in the guise of Charlie Farmer and Joe Shelley.
Farmer is a versatile defender, who can play anywhere across the back line, and also provides a genuine goalscoring threat from set pieces, having reached double figures in his first full season at East Preston last year.
The twenty-four year old has plenty of Ryman League experience under his belt as well, starting his career at Worthing, before moving on to enjoy spells with Eastbourne Town, Redhill and Horsham.
Shelley is a free scoring, box-to-box, central midfielder, who contributed more than eighty goals in three highly successful seasons at The Lashmar, during which time he was also a regular member of the Sussex Representative XI.
Now thirty-two, his previous clubs include Worthing United and Clymping, and that list would have included Lewes, for whom he agreed to sign last season, although family commitments were such that he was ultimately not able to make the step up to Ryman Premier level.
"Both players will give us more energy and more options", commented a delighted Di Paola. "Joe should have been playing at this level for years now, and United supporters will love his approach to the game. He will score goals and will allow us to implement more of the things that we have been trying to get into the side during our first three games.
Di Paola added, "Charlie is improving all of the time and is going to be a great player as he gains further experience. He is two footed, can play from the back, and is also a very good 1 v 1 defender. He was much sought after at Ryman level over the summer and we were lucky to have kept him at East Preston, but he can hopefully now flourish in this league."
Both players are expected to be part of the U's squad that visits third placed Whyteleafe on Saturday, where United have already won in the FA Cup this season. Four of the side that started at Church Road last month have since left the Club though, including midfielder Olalekan Bankole, who has departed in search of more regular first team football elsewhere.
Last weekend's FA Trophy defeat at Cray Wanderers has left the Club without a fixture on Saturday, November 1, as scheduled opponents South Park will be in first qualifying round action that day. The Sussex Senior Cup second round clash away to AFC Uckfield Town has now been penned in though, for Tuesday, November 4.
-- Edited by Dan on Wednesday 22nd of October 2014 08:53:42 AM
Can't make it Saturday. I am looking forward to seeing the team at the next game. Good luck on Saturday lads. We've done it once there, let's make it twice.
Good news! look forward to seeing them both at Whyteleafe on Saturday. Cant begin to understand what it must feel like to be an East Preston fan at the moment. To lose your manager and 5 players after years of success must be heart breaking. See they lost for the first time last night as well.
Good news! look forward to seeing them both at Whyteleafe on Saturday. Cant begin to understand what it must feel like to be an East Preston fan at the moment. To lose your manager and 5 players after years of success must be heart breaking. See they lost for the first time last night as well.
That's probably similar to how Southampton felt at the start of the season , now look at them !
Be interesting to see if Shelley goes straight in the side on Sat. The team is getting harder to pick which is a very good thing! Farmer sounds usefull as cover ( initially ) for all of the back four.
Defiantly still need a new option up front though to give Ken & Ade some respite as required.
First of all welcome to the club !
We have now 4 players from EP and Hand as left back.
I think want we still need is a extra striker.
For me it is the maximum; we have decent players enough. Task for Dom is only - speaking with JohnW his words - to let the team Gel !
Inevitably some players will feel out of favour and may start looking around for somewhere they will get a game. Think we have to accept that.
I sincerely HOPE all these EP signings are for the best (I guess they've all had a decent pay rise to travel here) but have niggling doubts about the wisdom of this approach.
A lot of the EP players are based in Brighton like Dom. As Chris has stated in a previous thread let's not forget if it wasn't for ground grading then they would all be playing in this league this season.
Joe Shelley has been one of the best players in the County League for a few years. Surprised he didn't stay at Lewes last season. Hopefully both will do well for Hastings United FC
Suggest we send a supporters coach to EP each week to collect players families and supporters and bring them to Hastings matches. Could be cost neutral if properly managed
good signings by look of it need to get blend of best local players and strengthen with players that not live in area. hope we dont end up with a foreign side. but look at the under 18 and under 21 table cant see any other option.
coach to east preston, bet none of them live there either
I'm with Peter on this. These players look useful by reputation. Dom has to balance various factors. Yes, we pretty much all agreed at the start of the season that Terry had made some good signings; but it simply didn't work out. It is pointless now to go into speculation about the reasons for that. Terry went and Dom came and he has to do things his way. So it was inevitable that some players Terry signed would leave.
Consequently, Dom first has to shore up the side so that we don't get ourselves into a situation before Christmas where the playoffs are unattainable. It seems to me to be entirely sensible that he would look first to players he knows well - either from EP or elsewhere in the County league. Certainly some of those will live in Brighton or further west. The A259 / A27 is a monumental pain but it is not an impossibility to travel along it to get to us to train or play. Presumably those players who have joined us had some idea of what they were letting themselves in for!
I hope Dom has success and stays with us to get us into higher levels of football. If so, as things develop, some of the players he has signed to do a job in the current situation may no longer suit. His longer term strategy will likely require him to have a mix of local (Hastings) players, others from further afield in Sussex and some from yet further in Kent and London.
A259 A27? Di Paolo thinks of everything - Brighton area based players and others with access to the beach will be making their way to training by sea and will be in super fit condition on arrival at the Pilot Field. A trireme will be considerably quicker than the A259/27 as well - benefits all round......
