With the OHAFC 2nd XI’s promotion charge from Division Three faltering in recent weeks, an unexpected 3-2 defeat to Division Five side the Old Cranleighans in the first round of the Junior League Cup ensured that 2025 ended in miserable fashion for the Blues on Saturday morning. Having reached two semi-finals and two quarter-finals in the five seasons between 2017 and 2022, this latest exit, to a side sitting seventeen places below them in the Arthurian League ahead of kick-off, surely marks the low-point in the side’s recent efforts in the Cup, ensuring that since 2022 the team have won only one of five JLC ties, almost two years ago.

Despite the recent poor run in the competition, it’s fair to say that none of the recent defeats have been due to complacency. And yet that is precisely what happened here, with a rather half-hearted warm-up hinting at the easy ride the players apparently believed they would be in for against a Cranleighans team sitting fourth in Division Five with a rather modest record of three wins and four defeats from seven League matches played.

Yet within twenty minutes the visitors found themselves two goals to the good, the Harrow back four hardly distinguishing itself, and dreams of an upset began to form. Unsurprisingly, with the scoreline remaining the same until the break, and Harrovian efforts barely rising above the risible, half-time saw the players left in no uncertain terms that improvement was required – starting with a change in attitude.

The stern words clearly had some effect as the home side re-emerged with a determination at the start of the second half that had been so evidently lacking in the first. But the task of recovering the situation quickly became even harder when the visitors took advantage of the hosts being caught in possession with every player in an advanced position to score on the break.

The Blues did eventually make their superior ability tell midway through the half when substitute Henry Bamford crossed from the right for Owain James to head home from close range. And when Andres Hutchinson reduced the arrears to a single goal following some nice build-up play through the middle of the pitch, twenty minutes remained and the Blues were right back in the tie. But the visitors held firm and the outcome of the tie hinged on two vociferous penalty shouts from the hosts, both for handball, both waved away by referee Mark Chorlton, who claimed he was hampered on each occasion by looking into the sun.

This was of little consolation to the home side, but there were few complaints at the final whistle, the Cranleighans deserving winners and surely the most famous victory so far in the club’s fledgling history. For the OHAFC 2s, a bitter blow that leaves the side heading into the winter break with just a slim chance of promotion ahead of them. To achieve that, they will have to consistently produce far better performances than this one.