The OHAFC 3rd XI secured their second win of the season in the most extraordinary circumstances on Saturday morning, destroying Merchant Taylors 2nd XI 8-4 in a game that will be remembered for years to come by all those who played in it. Ody Alfa, a former professional player who signed with Queens Park Rangers on leaving Harrow, agreed on the eve of the game to make his OHAFC debut at Taylors and he didn’t disappoint: a virtuoso display that included four goals, assists, tricks, flicks and more that left both sets of players in wonderment at what they’d witnessed. Whether or not Ody plays for the OHAFC again remains to be seen; what is fairly certain is that if he does, it will not be for the 3rd XI!

Ody’s appearance was not the only remarkable facet of this encounter, with debutant goalkeeper Seb Phillips providing his own unique source of wonder at the other end of the pitch. An outfield player by trade, Seb arrived for the game without a pair of keepers gloves. Undeterred, whilst the other twelve players warmed up, he set about scouring the surrounding area for something he could use, finally alighting upon a pair of gardening gloves behind the back of a shed. The choice of handwear for a keeper is not something usually recorded in OHAFC match reports, however it’s very likely that this was the first time gardening gloves had been used not only in an OHAFC fixture, but in any game ever played in the Arthurian League.

The remainder of the thirteen-man squad was, thankfully, far more consistent, with vice-captains Sam Dunn and James Gibbens returning to the midfield, young starlet Chike Odogwu returning to the back four and Anson Lo returning for his first OHAFC appearance since the Covid-curtailed 2020/21 season. He started on the bench alongside Mikey Watford, with the 3s aiming to avenge a last-gasp 1-0 defeat to Taylors suffered on the opening weekend of the season – the only points Taylors have mustered this season.

It took barely five minutes to learn that having a former professional footballer among your ranks for an Arthurian League Division Five fixture could prove rather beneficial. Alfa collected the ball on the edge of the box, beat the Taylors back four with a couple of extravagant stepovers before lashing the ball past the keeper. Two much simpler chances then presented themselves to the same player in quick succession, both were narrowly missed. But there was to be no denying him the next time the ball fell his way: Alfa collected the ball with his back to goal, turned two defenders inside out before hammering the ball into the top corner to double the Harrow lead.

With barely ten minutes having elapsed, an absolute massacre appeared likely. But Taylors were then presented with an ideal opportunity to put those concerns to bed when they were awarded a rather generous penalty from referee George Patriche, who judged a tackle from Odogwu inside the box to be a foul. But, remarkably, debutant Phillips guessed correctly, diving to his left to collect the rather weak shot in his recently-acquired gloves.

This proved all the motivation required for the OHAFC to head back up the other end and once more torture the poor shell-shocked MTs defence. The visitors scored twice more before the break, Jake Speed sprinting down the left before cutting in to fire into the top corner, before Alfa duly completed his hat-trick with another magical finish.

When Tobi Adebayo made it 5-0 early in the second half the result was put beyond all doubt, the winger taking advantage of Mikey Watford’s dummy to fire in a cross from Speed. At this point it was unsurprising that the visitors relaxed somewhat, Taylors scoring twice in quick succession on the break to reduce the arrears to 5-2. But Jake Speed then scored another fine goal with a wonderful finish into the top corner to half that particular comeback in its tracks.

Both sides scored twice more in the closing stages, Alfa netting his fourth with another outrageous effort that left most players staring in wonder at what they were witnessing, Chatwin nearly scoring his first goal for the club with a quickly-taken free-kick that nearly caught out the MTs keeper.

Whilst the four-goal hero was undoubtedly the star of the show and the main reason for the victory, to disregard the efforts of the other twelve players on the day would be a great disservice. This was a strong 3s squad and one that should be able to produce further victories as the season progresses if availability remains consistent.