On a humid Tuesday evening a squad of 26 Old Harrovians attempted to make their way to the well-hidden pitches of Colliers Wood FC. With neither the postcode nor the address on the website leading to the correct location, and with no portkeys set up by Mr. H Woolley, it was to the amazement of all that everyone managed to arrive on time.

Messr’s Taunton-Collins and Sert assembled two teams (the blues and the yellows respectively) combining 1s, 2s, and 3s, with a mixture of established club players blended with some graduates from the much vaunted Harrow ‘La Masia’ (aka the School). The instructions were simple from both captains, with players having never played together and many feeling the effects from a long summer off: simple football and regaining one's touch was the order of the day.

The first half followed the path many expected, some loose touches, wayward passes and some slight misunderstandings between players who haven’t lined up together before, but also, intermittently, some lovely one-touch football, and moves put together which showed the glimpses of real quality the captains were hoping for.

Josh Adejokun (pictured below), one of the rookies, was showing why he is being much talked up for the season. With strength to hold up the ball and pace to burn he will be a real asset to whichever team he ends up in. He, Alhadeff, James Breeden and Omisore, the forward thinking players for the Blues, were getting into many dangerous positions throughout the opening half with Breeden pulling a shot wide on the edge of the area after build-up on the left and Alhadeff nearly being slipped in but for a last-ditch, perfectly-timed Von Hirsch tackle.

On the other team, George Gould was pulling the strings from midfield, Jesse Duah was his usual threat down the right-hand side and the very promising Will Payne was neat and tidy in everything he did. A nice move down Duah's wing led to a chance for Stebbings but Fred Richardson (referee for the night) pulled him back for offside.

Overall the defences were on top in the first half with Harry Neville, another rookie, particularly impressing alongside Simon Maydon, as did Archie Maxwell in a number of positions. The ever reliable Sert and Gibson also seemed to repel any advances on their goal and when chances did fall, you would’ve been forgiven for thinking a protego charm (copyright H Potter) had been cast by the keepers Walsh and McHardy with nothing getting past them.

Half-time came and went with similar instructions from both benches: keep the ball better, find the open man, drop into shape when losing the ball etc etc.

Goals thankfully did arrive in the second half, in what was to be a much more open game. As people’s legs started to tire, the tracking back, especially from midfield, seemed to drop off. One blues attack down the right led to a deflected shot which was seemingly heading out for a corner, but for the ever-running Hovey, who controlled out of the air and sent across a lovely ball which Alhadeff tapped in from a yard out. A reinvented Rollo at wing-back seems to be a tasty proposition this year with his stamina a much sought-after trait in this position.

From then on the Blues seemingly took control with Breeden usually at the heart of the attacks. Another Hovey ball slipped into the channel for Adejokun looked to be assist number two for Rollo but Josh selflessly and surprisingly squared from five yards out to Breeden who finished low in to the bottom right. The third was almost a mirror image of the second but this time there was no squaring to the open man with Adejokun firing into the bottom left-hand corner. This only left the captain to wrap things up. In true Geoff T-C style, the 2s’ inspirational leader took off down the left hand side - channelling his inner Wayde Van Nierkerk: chest out, arms pumping - ran 50 meters, cruising past men for fun, before playing a one-two with Breeden and coolly cutting in from the left and finishing near post past the helpless McHardy.

Although the scoreline was rather one-sided, the result was irrelevant and it was a good chance to dust off the cobwebs and hopefully put some much needed mileage into the legs with the season only a week and a half away.

The final pre-season games will hopefully start to see the sides taking shape, ready for the long grind ahead.

Blues: Walsh (gk), Maydon, Woolley, Hovey, Neville, Taunton-Collins (c), Newton, Maxwell, Poulter, Beresford, Alhadeff, Adejokun, Breeden J, Omisore.

Yellows: McHardy (gk), von Hirsch C, Gibson, MacIntyre, Sert (c), Bell, Payne, Cooper, Lederman, Gould, Magrath, Duah, Stebbings.

*Thanks to Jack Alhadeff for this round-up of the action