The OHAFC 2nd XI rounded off their 2021/22 season in some style as they fought back from a 3-0 deficit after half an hour to earn a fully deserved 3-3 draw away to the Old Chigwellians 2s – a result that sees the Blues finish in seventh in Division Two with a respectable record of six wins, three draws and nine defeats from eighteen games played. This final fixture of the season was an entertaining game played in a good spirit in north London, with the visitors performing strongly throughout, bar a disastrous ten minute spell midway through the first half that saw the hosts score three easily preventable goals. Nevertheless, despite only having a bare eleven to call upon, spirits remained high and a strong second half display saw the Blues dominate, earning their point courtesy of goals from Alexi Pittalis and, for the second week running, Tom Ward.

With nothing resting on this game other than the final sorting of the minor places, Chigwellians were permitted to field a squad of fifteen, with Harrow’s permission. But this decision looked as though it may prove costly, with skipper Geoff Taunton-Collins ruled out late in the week with Covid and, disappointingly, Miles Kellock failing to show on the morning of the game. This left the visitors with a bare eleven, with Will Monroe still recovering from Covid, Pablo Hutchinson and Alexi Pittalis having not played for several weeks and Olly Roberts playing his first 2s game of the season. Despite this, the XI that took to the field had a strong look to it, with Giacomo Grasso joining Pittalis and Lederman in central midfield, Roberts playing on the right of the attacking three.

The pitch at the Old Chigwellians club was in fine fettle, although, unsurprisingly, it was dry and hard. However, the surface itself was almost billiard table flat – in stark contrast to last week’s offering at Sevenoaks School, and as long as the ball was kept on the ground, there was every reason to expect some decent football for the few spectators watching on.

And that’s the way the first half panned out, with both sides enjoying an enterprising first twenty minutes. Chigs moved the ball quite directly, searching out a lightning quick right winger who clearly posed a serious threat. But it was also apparent that the home side’s defence possessed a few weaknesses and the two Harrow wide men, Payne and Roberts, quickly got stuck in. Payne, in particular, tormented his full-back on numerous occasions, with only the final ball lacking. But after a fairly even opening quarter of an hour, it was the Blues who could, and should, have opened the scoring. An excellent spell of possession on the left midway inside the Chigwell half saw Hutchinson fed down the line. The striker produced the perfect cross with his left foot, curling the ball beautifully onto the edge of the six yard box where Alexi Pittalis timed his run to perfection. Arguably the best header of a football in the entire club, Alexi somehow missed his timing by a fraction, with the result that the ball skimmed off his head, onto his shoulder and flew agonisingly wide of the far post.

It was a let-off for Chigs and one the home side took full advantage of as, from nowhere, the game turned on its head, the home side scoring three times inside ten minutes – with the visitors making some fairly basic errors on each occasion. A harmless long ball into the Harrow half saw Felix Orchard hesitate momentarily, allowing the ball to be flicked on for the quick winger to chase. Ward managed to keep pace with him, but as he hared into the area, Kyri Pittalis raced off his line and caught the forward, almost in a sandwich with his teammate. Referee Adam Knight pointed to the spot and the Harrow keeper was wrong-footed. The second goal, only a couple of minutes later, was almost bizarre in nature. A Chigs free-kick was delivered into the Harrow box and the first contact sent the ball spiralling into the air and, presumably, out for a corner. But Alexi Pittalis lost his bearings, tried to acrobatically clear, only to succeed in not only keeping the ball in play, but flicking it behind him to perfectly tee up an opponent who gleefully drilled the ball into the far corner. The OHAFC were left stunned, but worse was to follow five minutes later. Lederman, under no pressure midway inside the Harrow half, dwelt on the ball too long, the cry of ‘man on’ arriving too late. Chigs broke forwards, the ball was played to the left of the penalty area and an excellent volleyed finish flew past Pittalis inside the near post.

The OHAFC 2s have always possessed a strong spirit and they would need it now. The response was a good one, with the visitors not letting their heads drop, finishing the half strongly. As is so often the case in situations like this, even a small battle won can change the mood in a struggling side and it was newboy Roberts who provided it, hassling the left-back into a poor pass and then chasing the ball into the area where he was upended by a flailing leg from the exposed centre-half. Lederman sent the keeper the wrong way from the spot and the visitors were back in the game with half-time beckoning.

If the Blues were unfortunate to find themselves two goals behind at the break, they could not have done more in the second half to turn things around. Right from the start the Blue shirts swarmed forwards, Roberts again earning a free-kick five yards outside the box barely a minute after the re-start. Lederman’s resulting effort curled inches over the bar, but the tone had been set.

Indeed, for the first twenty-five minutes of the half, play was concentrated almost exclusively inside the Chigwell half. Gone was the confident switching of play from the home side, their aimless punts forwards now barely causing the Harrow back four a problem, especially with their speed merchant surprisingly withdrawn. Instead, it was the visitors who played some excellent football, all over the pitch. Payne and Roberts continued to enjoy themselves out wide, Hutchinson worked tirelessly up front making excellent use of the ball and Pittalis began to roam forwards dangerously, looking for flick-ons. Lederman, too, enjoyed himself, spreading play and twice nearly teeing up Payne for a second goal: the keeper did well to race off his line and smother the first effort, some clever feet inside the box from the winger then ended with a disappointing shot over the bar.

As the game neared the final twenty minutes, it appeared as though some of the sting had been drawn from Harrow’s play. But the visitors then scored a superb goal to set up the prospect of an exciting climax. The ball was fed to Hutchinson who held it up well before feeding Roberts out on the right. He delivered a lovely cross to the far post where Pittalis arrived to finish from a slightly awkward position with a crisp volley from close-range.

The goal was the spark the visitors needed to believe in themselves again and the pressure continued to build on the home side, despite their now constant stream of substitutions. With just over ten minutes remaining, a corner was forced on the right. Lederman’s initial ball in was eventually cleared to the other side, but his second delivery from the left was inch-perfect, whipping the ball into the six yard box for Ward to head home with force – an almost carbon copy of the goal he scored to beat Sennockians last weekend.

Understandably, the feeling was now that the game was there for the taking, but the visitors enjoyed a huge let-off five minutes later. A Harrow free-kick was swung across to the right but Monroe and Roberts took slightly too long to sort themselves out and Chigs broke at pace, the ball played through to the quick winger, who had been brought back on for the final ten minutes. His first touch was a good one, taking the ball wide of Ward to the left and leaving him with just the keeper to beat. Fortunately, although the strike was a clean one, it rolled inches wide of the far post and the visitors could breathe a sigh of relief.

And a dramatic late winner that would have ended the season off perfectly then so nearly arrived at the other end. With just a couple of minutes remaining, Payne held the ball on the left and fed Hutchinson. For the second time in the match, he produced a magnificent cross to the far post, almost begging Alexi Pittalis to head home. Once again, the midfielder just failed to hit the target, straining every sinew in his neck to try keep the ball on track, only for it to fly just the wrong side of the post.

Despite the lack of a dramatic late winner, the visitors were understandably the happier of the two sides at the final whistle. It had been an excellent final performance to end the season with, just the calamitous ten minute spell in the first half denying the Blues the win. Nevertheless, it has been another very decent season from the OHAFC 2s and skipper Geoff Taunton-Collins and his men can be proud of their efforts in a division in which there are rarely, if ever, any easy games.

A full review of the 2s season will appear on the website later this month.