3s cruise into DW Trophy semis courtesy of first-half blitz

Old Harrovians 3rd XI
3 : 1
Old Brentwoods 3rd XI
  • March 10th 2018, Philathletic Ground, 1:30pm
  • DW Trophy
  • Referee: Temitope Shabi
  • Weather: Cloudy
  • Pitch: Excellent
No. Starting XI Goals Yellow & Red Cards Subs On/Off
1 Tom Mitchell
2 Ed Richards
3 Connor Barrett
4 Kyle Barrett
5 Alec Fogarty
6 Oscar Gairard 15'
7 Nick Kapoor (c) 45'
8 Harry Bick
9 Tom Faber
10 Ned Callander 25'
11 Alex Smith 40'
Substitutes
12 Humphrey Atkinson 45'

The OHAFC 3s continued their superb run of form with a comfortable 3-1 win over their Old Brentwoods counterparts in the quarter-finals of the David Woolcott Trophy on Saturday afternoon. First half goals from Oscar Gairard, Ned Callander and Alex Smith were sufficient to see off the visitors and Nick Kapoor's men will now face either the Old Johnians or Old Alleynians 2s in the semi-finals.

On a fine Philathletic pitch, the hosts wasted little time in asserting their superiority over their opponents, scoring twice inside the opening half-hour: Oscar Gairard scored his first goal for the club after a quarter of an hour with a tap-in following some neat build-up play and ten minutes later Ned Callander doubled the lead, hooking in from close range after a long throw dropped to him inside the six-yard box.

The Blues were in complete command and leading scorer Alex Smith put the tie beyond Brentwoods' reach with a third a few minutes before half-time, his first-time shot taking a slight deflection on its' way in.

Skipper Kapoor withdrew himself at the break, Humphrey Atkinson taking his place. Harrow's level understandably dropped slightly in the second half without the need to press for further goals.

Brentwoods did pull a goal back ten minutes into the half with a spectacular effort from their goalkeeper, who launched a magnificent left-footed strike past 'keeper Tom Mitchell from a free-kick. Bizarrely, the goalscorer looked the cleanest striker of a ball in the visiting side!

Despite the goal, Harrow remained resolute and saw out the remainder of the game without further alarm to deservedly claim their place in the semi-finals - the first time in club history the 3s have reached the last four of the competition. The win also stretched the side's unbeaten run to a hugely impressive 14 games.

Next week the team return to League duty with a home fixture versus Westminster 2s and the first chance to clinch the Division Five South title - a point would be enough to ensure Kapoor's men cannot be caught at the top of the table.