Six weeks ago the Old
Harrovian football team were in the middle of a glorious winning streak and
looking to overhaul Lancing for a second-placed finish in the Arthurian League
Premier Division. Five straight defeats later, the team arrived at Cobham for
their final fixture of the 2002/3 season knowing that only a win would
guarantee their continued top division status for next year. To add further
spice to the day’s events, the opponents were the hitherto undefeated league
leaders and nigh on certainties to win the championship, Old Foresters.
Harrow were forced to field
a changed lineup from the previous week’s defeat against Brentwood. Paul Molloy
suffered a badly gashed foot in that game that meant veteran Charlie Feather
playing the holding role in midfield. At the back, Obi Umenliyora made a
welcome return to the team after six weeks out with a hernia and Charlie
‘Hop-a-long’ Tweddle recovered sufficiently from his dead leg (apparently inflicted
by Molloy over two years ago) to take his place at left-back. Other than that,
the team was at full strength and took to the field determined to finish the
season on a high note.
The first half was a scrappy
affair, the hard pitch and strong breeze prevented many prolonged spells of
accurate passing. However it became clear that the Forest side was not one to
be feared – apart from a very useful center forward in Dave Pratt, the team
from Essex possessed few players of genuine quality. As the half wore on,
Harrow gradually came out of their shell and began to produce the flowing,
attacking football that had seen the team score more than 50 goals in their
previous 17 games. Harry Hoffen dragged a shot wide when well-placed, Quentin
Baker couldn’t quite gather a Lederman through-ball, and then Lederman himself
went close when attempting to chip the keeper from 30 yards. The breakthrough
was not long in coming: a measured Piers Bourke pass sent Harry ‘the greyhound’
Hoffen sprinting down the inside left channel, leaving several defenders in his
wake. ‘HH’ or ‘H’ (depending on how close you are to the weasel-faced assassin)
calmly stroked the ball past the Forest keeper to open the scoring.
A 1-0 half-time lead was a
cause for consternation rather than celebration for the Harrovian players and
supporters however, given the team’s alarming ability to regularly lose matches
when they have been at least a goal or two up. Indeed, club statistician and
travel critic Nick Warner had, rather interestingly, calculated before the game
that had the team won all the games it had led in, it would have been well
placed to win the league. After a few seconds pause to digest this fascinating
titbit, the team re-focused on the job in hand – playing out the final 45
minutes of the season.
The second half thankfully
showcased the Harrow team at it’s best. The passing and movement off the ball
continued, but instead of the usual feeble attempts to prevent the opposition
from scoring, there came heroic heading from the under-nourished Tim Dalton;
articulate anticipation from a rock-like Obi Umenliyora;
decisive-decision-making from goalkeeper James Harper; and the steadying
influence of Charlie Feather, arriving in the tackle with metronomic
regularity. Oh, and the two full-backs both ran around a bit as well.
Two more goals arrived in
the first twenty minutes of the half, both originating from the Harrow right
wing. A swift break saw Lederman collect the ball near the corner flag. Cutting
inside, he delivered a left-foot cross to the near post where captain Baker
arrived to glance home from six yards out. Ten minutes later and Lederman was
at it again. Outstripping the Forest left side, he cut the ball back from the
byline to Harry Hoffen, who saw his blocked shot rebound perfectly to the
unmarked Piers Bourke to slam home into the bottom corner.
Forest heads bowed with
their undefeated season now under serious threat, they resorted to what can
only be described as an ‘aural assault’ on the referee. Every decision was
greeted with a cacophony of screeches and wails – reports that local residents
were querying why they had not been informed that a new zoo had opened in the
area were unconfirmed. The team did claw one goal back with a little over
fifteen minutes left. A cross from the left was headed home at the back post,
the only time during the game the Harrovian goal looked like being breeched.
And so the OHAFC 1st
XI live on for another season in the Premier Division of the Arthurian League.
The atmosphere in the dressing room after the match told the true story of the
season however: rather than any real celebration there was an air of disbelief
and puzzlement that such a well-balanced, talented group of footballers (and
such a close-knit group of friends) had once again left it until the conclusion
of the final match to assure themselves of safety and a mid-table position in
the league. The squad is undoubtedly good enough to challenge for the League
and make a serious attempt at winning the Arthur Dunn Cup for the first time in
the club’s distinguished history.
The final match proved that
on their day, the Harrow squad can defeat anyone if they put their minds to it.
The challenge for the team next season will be to prove that they want to do
this for 18 league fixtures and four cup games. It would be a travesty to see
the current group of players end their Old Harrovian first team football
careers with only a Division One Championship to its name. Next season there
can be no excuses…
Harrow (4-4-2): James ‘The Cat’ Harper; Nick ‘Webmaster’ Warner,
Tim ‘Dairylea Lunchables’ Dalton, Obi ‘Sol Cambpell’ Umenliyora’, Charles
‘Hop-a-long’ Tweddle; David ‘Guti’ Lederman, Charlie ‘Old Man’ Feather, Quentin
‘QB’ Baker, Piers ‘The Artist’ Bourke; Harry ‘H’ or ‘HH’ Hoffen, Rupert ‘Kevin’
Hoffen
Subs: Jamie ‘Strap-On’ Waugh, Paul ‘Deep Gash’ Molloy
Next fixture: Wednesday April 30th, Copacabana Beach,
Rio. KO. 7pm, local time. Tickets available on the day.