A minute’s applause was held before kick off with wreaths from both teams laid in the centre circle alongside Billy’s No9 shirt.
Billy sadly didn’t recover five days after a collision with a wall in the league fixture at Wingate & Finchley barely 10 minutes into the game.
Miles Rutherford, Dabba, Danny Potter & Co’s starting XI featured Lewis Rustell up top in front of holding midfielder Joe Moore together with Lloyd Rowlatt, Joe Clarke, Isaac Bello and Ethan Prichard. Skipper Rob Hutchings and Ryan Davidson lined up either side of centre backs Ben Pashley and Curtis Da Costa with Kieran Magee in goal.
In a match that swung this way and that, the hosts started brightly.
The second minute saw Hutchings and Prichard combine for a Davidson cross that got cut out.
And then at the Tennis Club end Da Costa had to head clear Brandon Mason’s cross when Ogo Obi and Darryl Sanders hooked up.
Next, Moore won Chi a throw on the College Lane flank which Bello launched and Moore tried his luck with an audacious overhead kick that narrowly went over the crossbar.
The visitors pressed once more although the Sussex side’s backline intercepted six minutes in.
Obi, who finished last season just behind Isthmian Premier Division top-scorer Jimmy Wild, pulled one wide before being flagged offside; Clarke found Bello although a Town defender shepherded the ball back to his keeper Zaki Oualah; and Bello got flattened – no free kick strangely enough.
A cheeky Clarke backheel didn’t quite come off before Prichard bagged the opener at the second time of asking on 14 minutes, beating the Farnham No1 at his near post.
It might have been 2-0 to the home side 120 seconds later when Prichard’s shot flew inches over the left-hand stick.
Rustell then won Chichester a throw and a drive was deflected for another one which Bello unsurprisingly launched.
Davidson saw his header saved and Mason’s cross was cut out and the game ebbed back and forth.
Hutchings’ misplaced back-header was capitalised on by Obi who tucked the ball beyond Magee for the equaliser on 19.
The Chi captain took a corner moments later that Town smuggled away before winning a throw-in after a decent delivery from Sanders.
Next, Harry Cooksley’s cut back was cleared by the Lillywhites and Davidson got subsequently fouled by Mason.
Obi drove in again only for Hutchings to smartly intervene and the hosts won another corner following a slick Moore-Rowlatt exchange.
The away side broke from this and it needed Bello to make a well-timed tackle on Obi and concede a throw.
Owen Dean then drove down the right wing but the move fizzled out before he pulled a shot wide of Magee.
A dangerous move orchestrated by the home side also came to nothing and Clarke soon challenged effectively to snuff things out.
Chichester won a corner after neat stuff from Bello which Hutchings, as usual, delivered but to no avail however, and Pashley had to have his wits about him and head away Mason’s threatening cross.
And on the stroke of half time Mason got his team’s second goal as he cut inside and found the back of the net with a firm hit from distance.
Farnham’s keeper collected Davidson’s long ball easily enough in the additional minute before the break and gathered a deflection without any trouble when Clarke had a go.
Bello was brought down on the edge of the box two minutes into the second period and Prichard stepped up and curled an amazing set-piece to the keeper’s left and made it all square.
Bello then almost got to a sloppy Farnham back pass and Davidson tidied up as the visitors pressed through Jordan Stepney and Obi.
Prichard on a hat-trick dragged one wide on 52 and Mason hit a cross beyond everyone at the Archery End.
Next, Davidson headed safely back to Magee when Town probed and teammates cleared as Dean and Obi threatened.
A free header from Sanders went narrowly wide in the 57th minute and an attempt from Chichester following good work from Rowlatt, Rustell and Moore was similarly off target.
Obi, at it again, pulled one close as well on the hour mark and Magee denied the Farnham striker moments later.
Three subs came on for the Surrey side on 63 and Dean had a go with a speculative lob that almost caught Magee out after Davidson picked up the game’s first booking.
Mo Jammeh came off the bench for Rustell as Chi rejigged and a Bello bomb was cleared before Prichard struck a shot high over the woodwork.
And then Town went 3-2 up with 17 minutes of normal time remaining when Obi grabbed his second with a neat finish into the right-hand corner.
It might have been three-all though seconds later but Jammeh somehow missed a header from close range.
Obi shrugged Da Costa off the ball on 77, although lost possession.
The visitors had appeals for a penalty waved away soon after but Hutchings was deemed to have made a fair tackle in the area and another opportunity was denied.
Sub Imran Uche wasn’t far off in the 82nd minute and at the other end Bello teed Prichard up but he couldn’t find a telling finish.
Ben Purcell then hacked away and Prichard had another shot blocked before Cooksley wrapped things up from close range to make it 4-2.
Theo Bennetts came on for Davidson late on before Obi won a penalty but Magee went the right way and pulled off a super save.
The ref added five minutes of additional time where Jammeh hooked clear; Magee claimed a cross from the right; and after a couple more scares Bello ballooned one over with practically the last kick of the game.
Chi are back in league action next Saturday October 11th at Oaklands against Lewes (Kick Off 3pm).
Chichester – Magee, Davidson, Hutchings, Moore, Da Costa, Pashley, Bello, Clarke, Rustell, Rowlatt, Prichard (Bennetts, Horncastle, Jammeh, Cahusac, Maguire-Drew).
