The OHAFC 2nd XI swept to the top of Division Three of the Arthurian League with a thrilling 5-3 victory away to the Old Sennockians in Kent on Saturday morning. An incident-packed ninety minutes saw the two sides scoring goals throughout, the visitors racing into an early two-goal lead courtesy of strikes from Pedro Azagra but the home side fought back and by half-time were level at 2-2, their first coming from the spot. A closely-fought second half saw the scoreline remain the same until the final twenty minutes when skipper Miles Kellock restored Harrow’s lead only for his opposite man in the Sennockians side to equalise almost immediately with a thunderbolt of a left-foot shot from thirty yards out. But as the clock ticked into the final ten minutes, it was the visitors who proved the more resilient, Owain James cutting inside to fire in left-footed before Galen Crawley raced through the middle with two minutes remaining to put the result beyond doubt.

Following last week’s hugely frustrating 2-2 draw at home to the Old Alleynians 3s, when the Blues conceded twice inside the final five minutes, it would have been easy for heads to drop when another two-goal advantage was squandered here before the break. In idyllic conditions down in Kent, the visitors, bizarrely forced to wear their red away shirts again due to Sennockians own red kit being unavailable, made an excellent start, scoring a super opening goal after dominating possession from kick-off. Owain James, playing behind striker Pedro Azagra, collected the ball ten yards inside the Sevenoaks half and jinked past a couple of players before driving towards the box. The forward chose the perfect moment to release the ball, flicking it to his left where Azagra took a touch past the last defender before arrowing a left-foot shot into the near top corner. His second finish, twenty minutes later, was rather simpler, another excellent Harrow move allowed Miles Kellock to beat his man on the left and drill a low cross into the box. The Sennockians keeper parried the ball out and Azagra was on hand to gleefully fire in from eight yards out.

At this stage, with the Harrow midfield dominating and the front three threatening on a regular basis, a fairly comfortable afternoon in the Kent sunshine appeared on the cards. But to the hosts' credit they increased the intensity in the twenty minutes prior to the break, no doubt stung by finding themselves two goals down and their promising start to the season under threat. Suddenly the men in red found themselves under pressure, closed down deeper inside their own half and having to defend numerous corners and set-pieces. Keeper Rory Craig made one vital save, sticking out his left leg to block a low shot with the forward poised to score, but he was powerless to prevent the Sennocks opener when it did arrive, Ludo Palazzo penalised for a rather blatant foul inside the box after a long ball had bisected the Harrow back four. Although the keeper dived the right way, the penalty was beautifully and powerfully struck just inside the post. The home side now smelt blood and continued to press as the half drew to a conclusion. Eight minutes before the break the Harrow lead was wiped out completely, this time a neat move down the Sennocks right ended with a low cross that picked out a midfielder inside the six yard box and he tapped in to spark jubilant celebrations from those watching on.

Unsurprisingly, the Harrow half-time team-talk was a rather frustrated one, with last week’s two-goal collapse having been repeated here, albeit with a whole half of football remaining. Owain James was withdrawn from the fray with a slightly tight hamstring, the opening twenty minutes of the half proving the hardest fought of the entire match. Neither side could dominate, chances proved elusive. Young left-back Archie Nicholls enjoyed a strong second outing in OHAFC colours, timing his interventions to perfection and ensuring the tricky Sennockians winger was afforded little joy. The visitors then thought they had made the breakthrough when Kellock’s free-kick was knocked back across goal for Grasso to tap in but referee John Quirke, after considerable delay, ruled it out for a marginal offside call. Such was the lateness of the call that Grasso had already wheeled away and performed several different celebrations in honour of, what he believed, was his first ever OHAFC goal.

Nevertheless, it was then the turn of the home side to feel hard done by as the visitors hit the front for the second time in the game with just over twenty minutes remaining. Having been forced to defend for a few minutes, the men in red then broke with one of their few long passes all game, Lederman freeing Azagra down the inside left. Although he was then forced away from goal by the covering defender, the striker did superbly, turning on the goal line – the home side appealing in vain that the ball had gone out of play – and cutting the ball back to the edge of the box for Kellock, who cut inside on his right foot before firing back inside the near post with a precise low strike. But infuriatingly, for the visitors at least, the lead lasted barely a minute as the Sennockians skipper produced a stunning strike moments later to level at 3-3. The ball broke to him on the left, seven or eight yards outside the corner of the penalty area, and without hesitation he unleashed a rocket of a left-foot shot that sped past a motionless Rory Craig and just inside the far post.

Once more the sides were level and once more there was all to play for. It would have been easy for Harrovian heads to drop at the prospect of yet more points frittered away from a winning position, but this group are proving themselves a determined bunch if nothing else and galvanised themselves for the twenty minutes remaining, pressing forwards and once again putting the hosts under pressure. The men in red took the lead for the third time in the game with eight minutes remaining courtesy of another excellent passage of play that saw the ball worked into midfield on the break, Lederman feeding Tristan David on the right and he fed Owain James who had run the channel ahead of him. With space opening up ahead of him, it looked as if the striker had a clear opportunity to shoot on his right foot, but instead he cut back onto his trusty left, inside a covering defender and drilling a powerful low shot under the body of the sprawling keeper.

This time there was to be no dramatic response from the hosts, with the visitors ensuring all three points would be heading back to London courtesy of a fifth goal with a couple of minutes remaining. This final coup de grace showcased the excellent fitness levels of the side, with midfielders and forwards closing down the Sennockians inside their defensive third and forcing the keeper into a weak clearance towards the halfway line. Galen Crawley gathered the loose ball and drove forwards, the Sennocks defence spread far and wide, and although he had options left and right, continued his run before smashing home from just inside the box, the visitor’s keeper again executing a rather poor dive.

The win lifts the OHAFC 2s into top spot in Division Three – the first time the side has led a division since the six-game winning streak to start the abandoned Division Two campaign of 2019/20. A repeat of that particular feat will be severely tested before October is out, with the next three fixtures against the teams immediately below them in the table, two of them, against Brentwoods 3s and Albanians, away from home. Before that comes the visit of Old Berkhamstedians 2s to the Hill next weekend – both sides will have their unbeaten records on the line in what promises to be a thrilling encounter.