After a fortnight’s break, during which a rather dramatic Jubilee Cup was held, the OHAFC 1st XI returned to action on the Hill with their second League game of the season, this time versus newly-promoted Old Wellingtonians, a side they had never previously faced.

A comfortable opening day win over Repton had given cause for plenty of optimism among the ranks and a strong squad was available for Saturday’s encounter, with Paul Molloy becoming the third player to represent the Club in Division One fifteen years either side of their Premier Division stay. Fraser McGuiness returned in goal and Poulter, Sert, Portal, Soyinka and Trower were all primed to make their first appearances of the season.

Conditions on the Hill for an 11am kick off were perfect: the pitch had been freshly mown, there was no wind and a warm autumnal sun – there was even a morning dew on the surface to aid player’s passing. The one surprise awaiting both teams was the referee: Thomas Prime appeared to be some way short of his prime, looking about twelve years old. According to his father, who attentively watched his performance throughout, he was sixteen.

With skipper Ed Poulter losing the toss, the hosts were forced to defend the goal at the pavilion end and therefore deal with the sun at it’s lowest. It proved to be a minor inconvenience with, on the whole, Harrow enjoying much the better of the half. Early on some unnecessary dwelling on the ball in the full-back positions allowed the visitors to exert some pressure on the Harrow goal, but once Bajwa and Sert had got to grips with their respective wide men, the Blues midfield took control and, at times, the side produced some excellent passages of play.

Skipper Poulter provided the focal point for many of the hosts’ attacks, collecting possession from the back four and distributing it forwards intelligently. Wide men Gilbert and Trower were both involved, Gilbert especially getting forward down the left to good effect to support lone striker Harry Hoffen.

The opening goal of the game deservedly went the way of Harrow and it was an absolute peach, one of the best team goals that will be scored in the Arthurian League this season. Milln took a short free-kick inside his own half and at least ten passes later the ball arrived at the feet of Alex Gilbert on the left. He delivered a low cross which just evaded the onrushing Hoffen but was superbly turned back in from a narrow angle by Trower.

That the scoreline remained 1-0 until the break was due in large part to some wasteful finishing from the usually lethal Harry Hoffen. Twice he was presented with gilt-edged opportunities to extend the hosts’ advantage but twice he failed to hit the target.

At half-time Giles Newton, who suffered a dead leg just moments before the break, was replaced by John Portal and the substitute immediately added some energy and power in the midfield. Despite this, the Blues failed to match the fluency of their passing from the first half and the twenty minutes after the break saw the standard of football from both teams drop markedly. Fortunately, Wellington offered little by way of threat, with centre-halves Milln and Molloy looking assured and ‘keeper Fraser McGuiness rarely called upon.

With half an hour remaining and the game still in the balance at 1-0, Harrow made their second change with Lederman coming on to his favoured right wing position, Trower moving to left back and Yunus Sert taking a breather. The change paid immediate dividends, Lederman creating a second for Harrow barely two minutes after coming off the bench. The veteran calmly exchanged passes with Portal and Hill in midfield before slotting Hoffen through down the inside right channel – this time the striker made no mistake, poking a low first-time shot inside the near post.

The goal clearly relaxed the hosts and the final twenty minutes saw the fluency return to their passing and further opportunities created. The clinching third did not take long to arrive, this time it was Gilbert who was the provider, collecting the ball on the edge of the box and playing a neat reverse pass to his strike partner to finish. Harry was denied the opportunity of completing his hat-trick when Bemini Soyinka was introduced for the final fifteen minutes and he too could, and probably should, have scored when he turned his man neatly on the edge of the box only to see his curled effort drift wide of the far post.

At the other end, McGuiness was forced into one excellent save and a number of corners had to be defended diligently but, for the second game running, the Blues kept a clean sheet, something the side last managed in their title-winning season of 2009/10.

Overall it was another excellent display with the quality of play for an hour of the game of a high standard. The back four, with the added protection of skipper Poulter, looked extremely solid for the most part and the quality of the bench also proved vital, with Portal, Lederman and Soyinka all making valuable contributions.

If, and it’s a big if, the vast majority of this squad stay fit and commit to playing throughout the season the goal of promotion back to the Premier Division should be eminently attainable.