Match Report: October 9^th 2004: Old Harrovians 0 – 4 Old Brentwoods

Two wins, eight goals scored and only two conceded. The 2004/5 season had begun unusually well for the Old Harrovians, a team notoriously slow to get into full gear. The team arrived on Saturday lunchtime at Fortress Philathletic – the ground where the side has remained unbeaten since it opened for business a year ago – for the visit of Brentwood, whom they had despatched twice last season, the latter victory being especially memorable for the six goals scored and some stunning football played.

For the third consecutive game however, the OH’s were forced to make several changes to their usual starting XI. Bert Worthy, having played splendidly in the opening two fixtures, was abroad so John Frederick made a welcome return between the sticks. Charlie Tweddle returned from his ankle injury and slotted in at left-back whilst, ahead of him, Piers Bourke regained his place in the side following his absence the previous week. Up front Harry Hoffen was back which meant Jamie Waugh dropping to the bench, whilst Tim Dalton had to serve his one match suspension for his harsh sending off in an earlier Greenland Cup match – this allowed Obi Umenyilora to make his first appearance of the season. Perhaps most tellingly of all, skipper Quentin Baker was absent (running the Chicago Marathon) allowing Ben Hypolite the chance to shine in central midfield.

With a strong wind blowing the length of the pitch, the Harrovians decided to play against it in the first half, the idea being to weather any Brentwood storm and then take advantage of the extra space available in the second half. The first part of the plan appeared to have been successful, although quite how was an absolute mystery.

Straight from the kick-off Brentwood were sharp on the ball and physical in the tackle, neither of which description could be applied to the home team. A long ball from the opposition right back was flicked through to tricky forward Jake Marsh and when his progress into the box was spectacularly halted by the lunging Umenyilora, a first-minute penalty appeared inevitable. To the astonishment of all present, the referee paused for a moment before awarding a corner. The boys from Brentwood were not amused.

The remainder of the half was one-way traffic, with the strong breeze limiting any Harrovian clearances and the quality of the opposition play limiting any semblance of a Harrovian attack. Several chances were created and spurned by Brentwood, although ‘keeper John Frederick was relatively comfortable, any shots that did find the target were soundly dealt with – the one exception being a superb tip-over from close-range when a goal seemed inevitable.

When the half-time whistle blew, the relief on the faces of the Harrovians was matched by the disbelief on those of the Brentwood players. It had been one of the most one-sided halves of football ever witnessed at the Phil pitches and it appeared as if the home side had got away with murder. Throughout the team there were problems: newcomers Tweddle and Umenyilora were well off the pace at the back, the central midfield pairing of Molloy and Hypolite were no match for the strength and poise of Kirby and Beale, the two wingers Lederman and Bourke were struggling to make any headway and the two Hoffen brothers up front had received precious little in the way of any decent service. A vast improvement was required, but with the wind at their backs, the team now had the belief that an unlikely victory was there for the taking.

The second half began more promisingly for the dark blues. Possession was more even and the front two were given several balls to chase over the top. Certainly the authority which the visitors had displayed in the opening exchanges was lacking and the outcome of the encounter was now far less certain.

It was going to take something special to break the deadlock and that is exactly what the game got with a little over an hour gone: a splendid goal scored by Jake Marsh, the pocket assassin from Brentwood. Cutting inside from the right flank, Jake carried the ball beyond three Harrovian defenders on the edge of the box, before firing a low, accurate, left-footed shot beyond the outstretched arm of John Frederick. Brentwood jubilation was unrestrained: it was highly apparent that this was a game they badly wanted to win.

The next ten minutes of the match proved to contain the day’s decisive action and, for once, things did not go the way of the Harrovians. Minutes after the goal, Umenyilora committed another foul inside the area and this time the referee had no hesitation. Brentwood delight turned to disbelief as the spot-kick rebounded off the bar to safety.

Play then switch to the other end with a Harrow attack down the left. The ball was cleared to Eddie Kirby just outside his box but inexplicably, having not put a foot wrong all day, he passed the ball straight to the feet of David Lederman 22 yards out. Lederman took one touch and rifled the ball towards goal, only to see the Brentwood goalkeeper, practically a spectator until now, produce a stunning save to claw the ball onto the crossbar and away to safety. Moments later and Lederman had the ‘keeper producing another excellent save, this time from a curling effort destined for the top corner that was tipped round the post. The two saves were to prove vital.

Moments later, another Brentwood attack was ended unfairly by a Umenyilora challenge, Obi by now surely realising that this wasn’t going to be his day. Eddie Kirby, having been denied the opportunity to take the first penalty, took this one and took it well, making no mistake to give the visitors a 2-0 lead with twenty minutes left.

Despite the Harrovians still battling to create chances, the threat at the other end always appeared greater and it was no surprise to see Brentwood add to their lead. First, a shot from the right somehow found its way through Frederick’s arms, the only mistake he made in an otherwise excellent display. Then, with Harrow heads dropping, an almost comical lack of awareness from the rapidly-wilting Umenyilora saw a Brentwood forward walk the ball in completely unchallenged to finish the scoring.

It had been a desperately disappointing performance from the reigning champions, their first defeat in the League since December 2003 and their first by such a margin for a very long time indeed. Although three of the four goals conceded could be put down to individual errors, in truth, it was a fair reflection of the balance of play and the superiority their opponents had enjoyed.

Regardless of the fact that two important members of the side were missing, there were two undeniable factors that contributed to Harrow’s comfortable defeat: firstly, the desire shown by the opposition was far greater, with their hunger to avenge last season’s 6-2 thrashing all too evident and all too much for the Harrovians to handle; secondly, many of the team began the match (and some ended it) as if in some kind of deep sleep. Quite why this was heaven only knows, but several established players will have their reputations to restore next week when the team travels south to face Winchester – the margin of error allowed now if they are to retain the title just got that much smaller.

Harrow (4-4-2): John Frederick; Nick Warner, Obi Umenyilora, Rowley Higgs, Charlie Tweddle; David Lederman, Ben Hypolite, Paul Molloy, Piers Bourke; Harry Hoffen, Rupert Hoffen (sub: Jamie Waugh, 65)

Goalscorers: None

Magnifico: No-one

Muy Bueno: No-one

Bueno: A few people.

Vaya Dia! Most of the team.

Leading Goalscorers 2004/5 (league only):

3 Rupert Hoffen

1 Nick Warner

Quentin Baker

Jamie Waugh

Paul Molloy

Freddy Brunt