Late goals see OHAFC rise to fourth in the table

Old Wellingtonians 1st XI
0 : 3
Old Harrovians 1st XI
  • October 14th 2017, Bacon Community 3G Astro, 1pm
  • Division 1
  • Referee: Luke Steele
  • Weather: Cloudy
  • Pitch: Astroturf
No. Starting XI Goals Yellow & Red Cards Subs On/Off
1 Emre Sert
2 Ciaran Jordan
3 Ed Poulter
4 Yunus Sert (c)
5 Hamish MacIntyre 65'
6 Jack Hill 75'
7 Alex Breeden
8 Chester Robinson
9 Josh Adejokun 85'
10 Will Bamford 60'
11 James Breeden 70'
Substitutes
12 Alex Gilbert 35'

The OHAFC 1st XI travelled across London on Saturday afternoon fresh off the back of their emphatic 7-0 win against Old Aldenhamians the previous week, brimming with confidence and keen to continue their push towards the promotion places in Division One. For the second time in three meetings, the fixture against the Old Wellingtonians would be played on astroturf, with the Bacon Community Centre dominated by the imposing Canary tower just a few miles away.

On arrival at the ground the players were treated to their first ever taste of an amateur American football game which, whilst of some interest, restricted the team to warming up on a rather confined space adjacent to the main pitch.

Receiving his first taste of competitive 1s action meanwhile was youngster Ciaran Jordan, who had played up front for the 2s the week before, but was now asked to do a job at right-back for skipper Yunus Sert. Alex Gilbert returned to action for the first time this season and he began on the bench, Adejokun, Bamford and James Breeden the attacking trio.

The visitors dominated the first-half possession with some excellent pass and move football, the Blues clearly possessing superior technique to their hosts. Nevertheless, Wellington were resilient defensively, helped by Harrow failing to use enough width in their play. The familiar failing of players taking too many touches rather than spreading the play resurfaced allowing the hosts to clear with relative ease. Thankfully, Wellington’s forays forward were limited and consisted of a number of diagonal balls fired over left-back MacIntyre’s head, something the youngster dealt with easily enough.

There was some frustration at half-time at the lack of fluency in Harrow’s attacking play, a stark contrast to the goals bonanza enjoyed the week before. Even referee Luke Steele’s peroxide blonde hair (held back with a hairband) had failed to add much pzazz to proceedings, even if he did look like he was enacting some tribute to a youthful Alex Breeden.

The second half saw Gilbert replace Bamford up front, the striker immediately enjoying some freedom on the left flank and seeing plenty of the ball, although the general pattern of play continued, with Harrow enjoying the lion’s share of possession but struggling to hurt their opponents. Bamford returned to the fray to replace an injured MacIntyre and Harrow pressed on in their search for a winner.

Finally, with a quarter of an hour to go, came the breakthrough the Blues had been craving. Gilbert played the ball to Adejokun down the right hand side, who then threaded it through to an onrushing Bamford. He then beat his man and slipped the ball to James Breeden inside the box, who took a touch before finishing expertly. The goal provoked wild celebrations, not least from the skipper.

Encouragingly, the visitors continued to press and were rewarded for their endeavours with two further goals late on to confirm the win. Midfielder Jack Hill scored a superb second when he curled in a left-footer from the edge of the box before James Breeden then produced a moment of magic on the left wing, dumping his full-back unceremoniously on the ground and squaring for Adejokun to tap in from close range.

The 3-0 scoreline was somewhat flattering to a Harrow side who were not nearly as fluent as they had been in their victory over Aldenham the week before. Nevertheless, the side is clearly gaining momentum, at a crucial time too, with the visit of Division Two leaders Alleynians in the first round of the Arthur Dunn Cup next weekend.

*Thanks, once again, to Alex Breeden for this report