Saturday saw the visit to the Hill of the newly-promoted Old Citizens, fresh from a third win from three fixtures the weekend before. The recent history of the OH 2’s is closely intertwined with the Old Citizens, and the high frequency of recent fixtures has borne all manner of results, and accompanying emotional tumult. For chastening defeat, see the chaotic 8-3 home loss of 2014-15; for sweet revenge, see last season’s 6-1 Junior League Cup humiliation dished out to the Citizens by a resurgent OH side; for bittersweet drama, see 2016-17’s final-day 2-1 victory against a determined 10-man Citizens outfit, a result that denied the OH’s the Division 3 title by two goals’ worth of difference; and for unabridged animosity, see Jack Orr-Ewing’s pre-match eviction of the Citizen’s (ringer) keeper, a decision that indirectly led to a 6-1 rout.

Pre-match talk in the dressing room covered none of the historical significance of the fixture, but focused more on the state of the training tops (still wet from last Saturday’s deluge), the worryingly bobbly feel of the Phil pitches underfoot, and the strong state of the South-westerly wind blowing its way down the entirety of the field. Skipper Taunton-Collins emphasised the Citizens’ ability on the break and stressed the need for the left and right midfield to track back and prevent one-on-one situations, whilst warning against a repeat of the prolificacy in front of goal that had cost of the OH’s against Westminsters the previous weekend.

For the third time in three weekends the OH’s started strongly, looking composed on the ball, decisive in attack, and confident throughout. A series of early skirmishes should have seen them take an early lead, with Max Curry having the best of the chances. The wind at Harrow’s backs, while helpful on occasion when a lump downfield was required, actually proved a hindrance, with the ball running away from the Harrow attack on numerous occasions. The ball held up awkwardly in front of the Harrow back four repeatedly, though aside from this unfortunate quirk the back four of Woolley, Ward, Massey, complemented by a start for Andres Hutchinson, looked largely untroubled.

Having enjoyed comfortably the better of the opening 20-minute salvo, disaster struck as a relatively innocuous ball down the Citizens’ left-wing resulted in a peach of a left-footed cross into the box, with keeper Walsh left helpless in the face of an immaculate knee into the top left corner of the goal from the Citizens right-winger. It was a remarkable, unwarranted goal against the run of play that served to reinforce that Harrow should have made better use of their early chances.

Harrow’s heads remained unbowed, though a difficult period of Citizens pressure followed. O’Hara and Owen-Edmunds were industrious on their respective flanks, while Ollie Curry’s delivery from set pieces continued to trouble the indecisive Citizens defence. Meanwhile Max Curry and Alexi Pittalis were combative in midfield, frequently getting the better of their counterparts in the air.

Ten minutes out from half-time Harrow were given a lifeline, as referee Gareth Dineen pointed to the spot after a challenge on Max Curry. With universally-acknowledged penalty expert David Lederman unusually absent this week, momentary indecision swept the ranks, before Max Curry stepped up decisively – only to smash his effort nonchalantly against the crossbar. A mad-dash ten seconds of typical Arthurian League football followed, with new man Hutchinson moshing his way through the ranks before rifling the ball into the back of the net, to Curry’s great relief.

Harrow went into the break buoyed by the resolve shown in drawing the game level, with a game plan adopted of hanging the ball against the wind in the second half, and shooting the ball low into the wind from defence. This tactic payed almost immediate dividends in the second half, with Harry Woolley providing a lovely driven ball into Harry O'Hara's path down the right wing. He fed Taunton-Collins and the skipper’s ball into the box perfectly split the goalkeeper and the scrambling defence for Owen-Edmunds to finish into a half-empty net. It was comfortably Harrow’s best move of the game, beautiful in its simplicity, and meant that with just under forty minutes to play, the hosts enjoyed a 2-1 lead.

The visitors responded quickly unfortunately, with the Harrow back four somehow frequently faced with four-on-fours. On one such foray forward Walsh was tested with a shot from the edge of the area, which he did well to parry, though was unfortunate in conceding from a series of follow-ups.

Pegged back to 2-2, and in the face of the full force of both the wind and Citizens’ renewed belief, Harrow began to tire, and the standard of football from the team dropped noticeably, with a number of misplaced passes and poor close control ceding the advantage to the visitors on a number of occasions. Ten minutes from time disaster struck, as a perfectly weighted ball over the top of the Harrow defence allowed the Citizens’ left winger a one-on-one with Walsh, an opportunity he gleefully accepted.

Harrow, to their credit, produced a hearty final ten minutes, with a spell of pressure in the Citizens’ half resulting in a string of corners and an eventual free-kick on the edge of the area. Ollie Curry’s effort forced a terrific save from the Citizens keeper, but the final nail in the coffin was then delivered as Citizens broke upfield in the last couple of minutes to score an undeserved fourth.

The final scoreline was somewhat unfair on the hosts, given the state of the game for large periods, with Citizens’ more clinical finishing ultimately proving the difference. However, there was also acknowledgement in the immediate aftermath that, the opening and closing periods of the game aside, this was not a good Harrow performance.

Benchmarking against last season still provides comfort for those that remember Harrow’s tortuous opening seven-game losing streak, though there is no doubt that improvement is needed if the team is to prevent another season of nervous results-checking. The side’s inaugural appearance in the Old Boys’ Cup next weekend should prove a good opportunity to put a win on the board, and a change in recent fortunes.

*Many thanks to Ed Massey for this report

**Photos courtesy of Azhar Khan