Long trip to Brentwoods once more proves fruitless

Old Brentwoods 3rd XI
2 : 0
Old Harrovians 3rd XI
  • October 1st 2022, Old Brentwoods Club, 11am
  • Division 4
  • Referee: Brian Howard
  • Weather: Sunny, breezy
  • Pitch: Fair
No. Starting XI Goals Yellow & Red Cards Subs On/Off
1 Tom Mitchell (c)
2 Andrew Chan
3 Simon Nicholson
4 Joss Awdry
5 Gev Arnsberg
6 Olly Roberts
7 Ali Buckley
8 Ed Stewart
9 Jake Speed
10 Daniel Graham
11 Adam Graham

The OHAFC 3rd XI made the long trek out to Essex to face their Old Brentwoods counterparts on Saturday morning and, despite their best efforts in a battling display, lost out to late goals in both halves to return home still in search of a first win of the season.

A bare eleven made the trip to Old Brentwoods Club, with two debutants included: Andrew Chan and Gev Arnsberg. Otherwise the side had a familiar look to it, although the lack of a substitute was far from ideal, especially given the rather heavy nature of the Brentwoods pitches.

On a bright, slightly breezy day the visitors made an encouraging start against a Brentwoods side that, somewhat bizarrely, had played just a solitary fixture so far and that was a 1-1 draw away to the Berkhamstedians 2s all the way back on September 3rd. The OHAFC adopted a solid defensive shape so that, although their hosts moved the ball with precision, keeper Tom Mitchell was left with little to do. The Blues tried their best to counter, with a direct attacking trio of the two Graham brothers, Adam and Dan, and the livewire Jake Speed.

With little to separate the sides after half an hour, it was the OHAFC who had the first clear opportunity to strike: a long goal kick from skipper Tom Mitchell was chased down by Dan Graham and, having forced the defender into a mistake, collected possession, looked up and squared for older brother Adam but he couldn’t quite stretch far enough and the chance went begging.

But as the half wore on, the Brentwoods sustained spells of possession began to take their toll and the Harrow goal came under increasing pressure. The Blues held on, just about, until a few minutes before the break, although the goal, when it arrived, owed much to lady luck. A corner from the right was swung in and smacked a Harrow defender on the head, the ball looping back over Mitchell’s head and into the top corner. If the goal itself was unfortunate, there was little question that it had been coming.

With no changes available at the break, the visitors were forced to press on, although the side were slightly hampered in attack with Adam Graham suffering a slight knock prior to the Brentwoods goal that restricted him from moving perfectly. A tactical change was made with Dan Graham, who ahd looked lively throughout, moving into a more central position, Jake Speed switching out wide.

The pattern for the majority of the second half followed that of the first, with the Brentwoods enjoying more of the ball but the OHAFC well organised, defending resolutely and enjoying sporadic success on the counter.

A quiet spell midway through the half almost made it appear as if both sides had settled for what they had, but, once more, as the half wore on, Harrow bodies tired and the home side began to threaten. The diminutive number eleven had already caused problems in the first half and he began to trouble the visitors back four once more, making darting runs hither and thither and collecting the ball in dangerous positions.

Mitchell was forced into several decent saves to keep the OHAFC in the game, but with ten minutes remaining he was finally beaten once more, the goal again easily preventable from a Harrovian perspective. A long goal kick was fired into the visitors’ half and the ball was allowed to bounce, a cardinal sin for any defending team at any level of football. Sure enough, the hesitation proved fatal as the Brentwoods playmaker stole in behind to send a looping header over the stranded Mitchell and into the top corner.

It had been a valiant effort from the Blues but once more the long trip and lack of availability for a Brentwoods away fixture had proved fatal to Harrovian hopes, the side now facing the much easier journey to Chiswick for next week’s fixture away to the Berkhamstedians 2s in search of that maiden victory.