From 11th April 1891, when a goal from Arthur Collins was not enough to prevent us losing (4-1) away in a friendly, to our 4-3 league win on 16th August last year (our goals coming from Jack Spong, Temi Babalola, Sam Packham and Sam Beard), our encounters with Horsham have set many records.

They are the club that we have faced most often (223 times) and they are the only ones to have opposed us in six different leagues. They were our first opponents in the FA Amateur Cup and the first side that we defeated in the FA Cup.

Worthing and Horsham were both founder-members of the West Sussex Senior League in 1896.
After we joined the Sussex County League in its first season (1920-21), Horsham played solely in the West Sussex League before joining us in the new competition in 1926.

We also met each other in the War Emergency competition of the County League at the start and end of World War 2.

In 1948, when we moved to the Corinthian League, Horsham remained in the County League then were members of the Metropolitan League from 1951 until joining the Corinthian League six years later.

That competition became part of the Athenian League in 1963. Our opponents were then ahead of us in becoming members of the Isthmian League, doing so in 1973, four years before we made the move.

We were promoted to National League South after being Isthmian League champions in 2022 and the Hornets joined us this season, after winning the Isthmian title last year.

We have played Horsham at several different venues. Away matches have taken place at their home grounds of Hurst Park, Springfield Park, Queen Street, Gorings Mead (when they were sharing with Horsham YMCA) and Hop Oast (their current ground).

They have visited us at Beach House Park, Sports Ground (both pitches), Woodside Road and Culver Road, Lancing (for a pre-season friendly).

Sussex Senior and Sussex (RUR) Charity Cup matches between us have been played at the Goldstone Ground, Hove and the Dripping Pan, Lewes.

Our heaviest defeat in a cup final was inflicted by these opponents at the Goldstone Ground on 9th May 1936, when they beat us 9-0 in the RUR Cup; this is also Horsham’s largest winning margin in these matches. Incidentally, we have twice shared the RUR Cup with them, drawing 1-1 in the 1934 and 1949 finals.

There have been a dozen matches which have produced an aggregate of at least ten goals, all bar two of which have ended in victories for us.

Our one loss also produced the highest aggregate, when the Hornets defeated us 10-3 in the away Sussex County League fixture on 16th November 1935.

The Corinthian League fixture at Queen Street in 1958-59 ended as a 5-5 draw.

Our biggest win in these encounters came on 13th February 1909, when we won the home West Sussex Senior League match 12-0.

We also had an 11-1 victory in the Senior Cup five years later and a 7-5 win in the same competition in 1946.

Our full record against these opponents can be found below:

(1) Southern Counties Combination League Floodlight Cup
(2) Includes Horsham Centenary Tournament and pre-season tournament at Worthing in 2015
(“Sussex Cup”)