If there was any doubt Dave John would sort things out at Hassocks after a disastrous start to the season, then the last two results will have answered that. Saturday's 4-0 home win against Chichester, their fourth in five matches, may have been a shade flattering as far as the scoreline is concerned but there was no doubt the Robins always looked the winners after Laurence Robinson headed them into a seventh minute lead.

Robinson was the player who answered the call when Johnsy took over the reins again after the departure of John Suter, returning from college in Canterbury at weekends in order to help out the former boss. And there is no doubting the improvement in Robinson's game. The goal he scored on Saturday would probably not have come last season or in the early part of the current one when his emerging talents were clearly not highly regarded.

A hopeful punt into the box should have been Chi keeper Andy Ewen's ball but he was beaten in the air by Robinson as the pair went up with visiting defender Dave Goldring, who took a knock for his pains. Robins had been lively from the outset and with Anthony Hibbert and Sam Fisk striking up an old partnership in midfield, they should really have added to their lead long before they did just that with a stunning second successive senior goal by Jamie Buckett.

His first in the previous 3-2 win at home to Pagham meant the manager was persuaded to keep faith with the same players and Buckett repaid that in full when a long clearance by keeper Jack Simpson on 39 minutes had the visiting defence struggling. Defender Barry McCoy could only head the ball upwards and Buckett returned it with interest as he tried an improbable volley from just inside the box with his least favoured left foot.

Before that Ewen had looked less than convincing but he did pull off one excellent save to deny the returning Hibbert after a delightful turn and forceful break down the right by Robinson, who had an excellent first half. Buckett had another chance three minutes after his goal and from the resulting corner Stuart Faith headed over. But at the other end there was also a half chance for Mike O'Neill and earlier in the half impressive No 11 James Temple had tricked his way to the byeline and sent over a low cross that keeper Simpson completely missed but was grateful to see pass harmlessly across the face of the goal.

Hassocks knew all they needed to do was to weather any Chi storm at the start of the second half to be assured of victory and they did just that before sealing the win by scoring with their first serious raid of the half on 57 minutes. Fisk, back from Australia and dual-signed with Lewes, was involved with wing back Richard Thompson before Hibbert scored with a superb strike on the turn.

The visitors were unlucky not to get on the scoresheet when Temple cracked a shot against the underside of the bar after starting and finishing a neat move with Russell Hardwell but inside the last nine minutes Hassocks scored again and then immediately enjoyed another fortunate let-off.

With £36 sponsorship for every goal scored this season, the fourth was a real bonus and came courtesy of two subs, which particularly pleased Johnsy, not known for his overuse of the bench. Ian Dawson had been on less than a minute when he broke down the right and sent over a long cross from which Matt Amos outjumped Ewen to end the game for the keeper as it had started.

But the final action of note was at the other end when a quickly taken free kick caught Hassocks napping and Adrian Brockwell struck the inside of Simpson's lefthand post with a crisp drive. Brockwell was one of only two Chi subs as they struggled to fulfil their fixtures with the return to duty for several of their naval players. They no doubt deserved a consolation goal but it was an early Christmas present for Johnsy & Co to pocket three more valuable points and record only their fourth clean sheet of the season in the league.

Hassocks: Simpson; Jacques, Marsh, Faith, Bowra, Thompson; Slaughter; Fisk, Hibbert; Buckett, Robinson.

Subs: Amos (Buckett, 75), Dawson (Hibbert, 82), Williams (Slaughter, 83).

Middy Starman: Plenty of candidates but it goes to Laurence Robinson on the strength of his first-half performance.