So bright sun brought me to Gorings Mead, the home of Horsham YM FC for my first league game of the season. The two sides today, including the visitors, AFC Varndeanians were both members of the Southern Combination Football League (SCFL) Premier Division.
Horsham YM FC, also known as the YM, had a good season in 2025-26, finishing 4th in the SCFL Premier Division and manager Liam Giles will have wanted his team to go one step closer to promotion in 2026-27. Over the summer the side has been strengthened with the addition of Ryan Hall, ex of Leeds United, to bolster the attack, as well as experienced ex-international Montserrat keeper, Nic Taylor.
AFC Varndeanians, whose club nickname is the V’s, narrowly survived relegation from the SCFL premier division last season, finishing eighteenth from twenty teams. Manager Bradley Bant has added strength to his squad over the summer, signing Alex McLean from Newhaven FC to shore up the midfield, as well as Aiden Eckford up front, from Shoreham FC.
– courtesy of club’s X account.
– Image Courtesy of club’s x account.
Just five minutes in the visitors went one up after a long free kick into the opposition penalty area, met the head of Kian Nandhra, who planted the ball neatly into the net to break the deadlock.
With 40 minutes gone the V’s were two ahead. This time a break and a simple pass from James Lyons-Monk found Julian Durand free to fashion a goal and make it 0-2.
On the stroke of half time the home team had a goal back, when their centre half, Connor Wilford, headed home from a corner to make it 1-2 at the break.
As the half progressed the home team began to exert some heavy pressure and put the AFC Varndeanians’ goal under siege.
With 65 minutes on the clock the scores were tied when Jordan Maguire-Drew fired home for Horsham YM FC, after a series of chances were cleared off the line.
Then when the game began to look as if it had turned AFC Varndeanians went 2-3 ahead. Julian Durand bravely heading in from a corner kick to put the V’s back into the lead.
Horsham YM FC threw everything at the away side’s defence but at fulltime this exciting fixture ended with AFC Varndeanians securing three points with a 2-3 win.
Tea, Cake and Football - Grounds of the UK 
I assume Horsham YM are a successor team to Horsham YMCA? And it looks like they play on the same ground Horsham YMCA used to play on. Before Horsham FC left Queen St (ground subsequently became housing area) you could go behind the stand behind the goal at Queen St and there was a gate to the YMCA ground.
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I assume that this is the successor team to Horsham YMCA? And it looks like they play at the same ground.
When Horsham FC used to play at Queen St (before the ground was turned into an housing area) you could go behind the covered terracing at one end of the Queen St ground and see the ground where YMCA played (there was a fence, hedgerow and a gate between the two grounds).
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It is Cliff. Maybe we can meet for a game somewhere soon?
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