With no local parks soccer during the festive season, Sentinel made a visit to Woodside Road, home of Worthing FC, for the fixture against Bromley.

Bearing in mind most people were off work, the crowd was very disappointing, despite the fact both sides are doing well in Division One (South) of the Ryman League.

Woodside Road looks very smart at present but that is not much good only a fraction (282 on average) of the town's football-loving population patronises it.

Reading the programme, Sentinel noted The Rebels had recently won over Port Vale fan who has moved to the town.

Sentinel was also delighted to hear the stirring strains of Sussex By The Sea blaring out over the public address system as the home team ran out on to the pitch.

So come on Worthing, let's give the lads some decent support and take the kids for an afternoon out away from the TV.

The standard of soccer is far higher than you might expect.

The next home league games are against Walton and Hersham on Saturday, Tooting and Mitcham on January 25 and a big local derby against Lewes on January 28.

Sentinel does not condone drug-taking in any shape or form but he has to admit the Bongchuffa cannabis cafe saga was a colourful episode in the chequered history of the town.

Later in the century people will look back and wonder at how bizarre it all was.

The characters who popped in for a puff were an interesting bunch and their blatant disregard for the law was strangely refreshing. But looking at the ragged state of some of them, they were hardly a glowing testimonial to the merits of dope smoking.

Sentinel assembled with about 1,000 other spectators at Splash Point on Boxing Day for the annual sea "swim", when about 30 hardy souls ran into the surf for charity.

It was rather chillier than Christmas Day, and rain threatened, but the sands were alive with people waiting to watch the dippers suffer.

Some ran into the shallows and ran straight back out again but a few even got their hair wet, which was way beyond the call of duty.

But after about ten minutes, even the saltiest of seadogs were turning blue with the cold and the slate-grey waves were soon left to crash upon the shore unseen.

Sentinel picked up a fresh-off-the-press copy of Worthing's 2003 holiday guide and thought it was a great improvement on last year's offering.

He especially liked the photograph of the cordeline on the front, which has the potential to become Worthing's official symbol. However, Sentinel was very disappointed that our fine borough crest was not included in the literature.

Sentinel must take issue with a number of minor points, including the statement that Worthing Lido stages bandstand entertainment on most Sundays.

The tattered flags on the Southern Pavilion of the pier also look a little forlorn.

Bearing in mind their condition, there is no mention in the guide of either the Aquarena swimming pool or Peter Pan's Playground, which speaks volumes.

While the cover is perfectly acceptable, Sentinel still believes leisure officers should be more adventurous, using that alluring image of a blonde bombshell on next year's front.

Incidentally, the Casa Ciro restaurant, a fine seafront hostelry, has incorporated a palm design in the illuminated sign on its facade.

Further to the installation of plaque on the pier commemorating seven wartime airmen who sacrificed their lives to save the town from destruction, Sentinel was interested to hear some people believe the crash was filmed by a cine-camera operator who just happened to be on the seafront as the crippled plane flew over.

With photography restrictions in force at the time, Sentinel must admit he thinks this is unlikely but what a fascinating turn of events it would prove to be if the fabled footage was uncovered.

While on the subject of the tragedy, another Worthing historian, the late Colin Clark (killed in the Purley train crash) always wondered why only one crewman's body was recovered from the wreckage.

He suggested the other six airmen bailed out over the Channel prior to the impact and were drowned, which might explain why no trace of them was found. Having said that, surely their bodies would have been washed up at some stage, and identification possible.

Like most right-minded people, Sentinel must commend the Chichester crown court judge for naming and shaming two juvenile misfits who terrorised the town and he sincerely hopes Worthing magistrates will take note and instead of protecting young yobs, such as the so-called Jedi Knights, from identification, will allow the media to publish their personal details, including addresses.

Better still, the Government should change the law to allow identification of all minors who have committed crimes, which is what used to happen before villains were given more respect than their hard-working, law-abiding victims.