Hopefully junior mascots look upon their pre match appearance as a memorable experience , helped perhaps by keeping some photographs,  an autographed programme, a replica shirt and even the referee’s coin after the toss up. The experience primarily is for personal enjoyment, perhaps to mark a birthday or special occasion.  Some Premiership clubs charge several hundred pounds for proud parents to pay for this one day privilege.
Contrast this with regular team mascots, usually adults and often in bizarre costumes.  A review of  the history of senior Hastings football shows that there have been only  a few examples of this nature. Since 1948 it would seem that there have only been three full time mascots. Two of these will be familiar to long standing Hastings supporters but the identity of the third might be a good Pub Quiz tiebreaker.
Gus Hunneman was the first United mascot and fulfilled the role for many years. A distinguished bearded gentleman, resembling Colonel Sanders of KFC, he ran onto the pitch dressed in a claret and blue jacket, bow tie and top hat carrying a bell and claret and blue walking stick. The pre match ritual would involve tapping the posts and bar of each goal frame with the walking stick and a blessing of each penalty spot before joining the captains and referee for the toss up. Perhaps one of the last appearances was at Bobby Drake’s testimonial in the 1970s when he joined England Captain Bobby Moore, Hastings United captain John Jefferson and referee Howard Withers for the toss up. Arthritis reduced the frequency and activity of appearances made by Gus prior to his retirement. I am sure that Gus would have described his role as a motivational cheer leader as well as helping the more superstitious supporters who believed that United would not convert penalty kicks unless the penalty spot had been blessed.
The 1967/68 season saw United back in the Southern League Premier Division and United chairman James Humphreys introduced the idea of jousting events before home matches. United now had their own armoured knight on horseback and away teams had the option  of bringing their own armoured knight and horse to respond to the pre match challenge. The opening match of the season saw Weymouth visit the Pilot Field and heavy rain both prior to the game and during the match prevented the horse from galloping on the pitch. Weymouth, who incidentally won 4-2, surprisingly did not bring an armoured knight and horse in the travelling party so the new Hastings mascot sat on his horse on the running track with rain pouring off his chainmail. He was never seen at the ground again. Rust in peace!
The third mascot seen at the Pilot Field is of course Leonard the Seagull. Research on the internet reveals the following information “The mascot of Hastings United is the wise bird Leonard the Seagull, who is majestic.”   His background is aptly summarised by the Hastings Borough Council press release. “ Leonard the Seagull, Hastings Borough Council's feathered mascot, has been looking for a new home after being abandoned by the department that first adopted him. But luckily for Leonard, Hastings United football club took pity on the bird and offered him the prestigious position of official team mascot.  He will attend all home matches, parading the pitch and greeting the crowd before kick-off.  The team had been looking for a mascot for some time and thought Hastings’ most famous seagull would be a perfect companion for a seaside club.
Leonard headed up the Passport to Leisure scheme for more than five years and did a great job promoting the leisure discount scheme.  The time came, however, to drop Leonard and move on with the scheme, which has now transferred to Freedom Leisure (the Council’s leisure contractor).  Since his early retirement, Leonard has been waiting for a new job to come along and this one is just perfect.” 
Leonard made an immediate impact at the Pilot Field with his yellow prominent beak, light blue base ball hat and claret shirt and seemed to strike up a rapport with the Hotshots.
The Supporters club website confirms that Leonard is out and about and that courtesy of Fancy Pants of Bexhill  “he is improved this season having had a good clean, but the womanising and chip stealing continues unfortunately.” There remain a number of unanswered questions in relation to Leonard if he is to compete with the memory of Gus Hunneman. Certainly scavenging behaviour is excusable as Seagulls are renowned for this but they are also able to fly over a thousand miles, so why is he absent from away matches? He is also not an ever present for home matches, so what is it that he does that keeps him from the Pilot Field? Has he found another team? I think that we need to be told.