Harrow Borough
United dug deep and battened down the hatches at Rectory Meadow with substitute Remi Onabanjo netting the only goal in stoppage time on his league debut to earn United a key three points as the hosts were denied the result to match the grandeur of their newly refurbished ground.
With a third consecutive away league game taking place on a false pitch, albeit a first class one, the opening ten minutes were spent with both sides getting used to the bounce and run of the ball following a pre-match downpour.
United were to go close first, with just 11 minutes on the watch a throw-in from the left fed Kaylen Hinds who hit a dipping volley that beat Mark Scott all ends up before cannoning back off the crossbar to be cleared by the Villains defence and a minute later Ibrahim Bangura found Hinds but this time his low shot provided an easy gather for Scott.
Despite the home side seeing a lot of the ball, they showed little in the way of creative ideas and the United defence easily repelled anything that they threw forwards, in fact the first real effort on the United goal came after 26 minutes with Brandon Curtis trying his luck with a shot from 25 yards that Aaron Watkins watched go wide of his upright.
A minute later Watkins was required though when a neat passing move on the edge of the United area saw a Sam Merson drive held low down by the United stopper.
With seven minutes to go to the break, a sloppy challenge on Marco Haigh in the United box saw referee Heron point to the penalty spot. Merson took the kick and struck it firmly but despite sending Watkins the wrong way, his kick smashed into the post and flew out for a United throw-in.
As half time approached, Marco Correia crossed from the right to Haigh but his shot was well defended and blocked wide by Louis Rogers and a minute later at the other end, Hinds flicked on a long Watkins clearance to Sam Ashton, the United top scorer firing inches wide from the edge of the Villains area.
And that was it for the opening half as the rain started to fall once more it was time to dash in for a brief rest and team talk.
The first opening of the second half went to the home side less than a minute from the re-start as a free-kick fired in from the right side by Curtis was met by Villains skipper Josh Casey but his header thankfully went the wrong side of the upright.
The home side really came out in dominant fashion this half but credit the United defence who stood firm despite an onslaught from the home side. On 63 minutes a miss-hit shot found its way to Merson beyond the far post, his goalbound effort was cleared off the line with Calum Duffy nodding the loose ball wide for a corner that came to nothing.
A rare break forwards for United minutes later saw Ashton play the ball left to Hinds who returned it to Ashton but his feet appeared to get caught in the turf and after controlling the ball he chipped it back across only for the home defence to head it away from the incoming Hinds.
71 minutes had passed when the home side must have thought they had scored when Sam Mead met a right wing cross close in and headed goalwards only to be denied by Watkins who clawed his effort out and as the ball came down it struck the United crossbar before being scrambled away from inside the packed six yard box.
As we entered the final ten minutes of the 90, Merson fired over when well placed and with five minutes left Watkins saw a punch skim his gloves leaving Amos Nasha to clear off his own goalline. Two minutes later a long punt up field from Scott was flicked on by Abdullah Javaid to Merson but with Watkins half out from goal the Villains striker lofted the ball over the crossbar.
With a minute a standard time remaining the home side again saw a great chance go begging when Carey’s cross from the left was met by Merson close in, his header being pushed out by Watkins before Correia’s follow-up was blocked away by Bangura.
In the second minute of stoppage time proof came of what can happen if you don’t take your chances, or if the opposition ‘keeper and defence are having a blinder, you get caught “on the hop”. Nasha collected the ball in the middle of the park and played a perfectly weighted chipped pass over the Villains defence for substitute Remi Onabanjo to race onto, the former Bromley man beating Scott to find the net on his United league debut.
With eight more minutes of additional time still remaining it was not going to be smooth sailing. At 90+5 the referee deemed an Isaac Olorunfemi challenge cautionable and duly dismissed the United man for a second caution having dished one out to him earlier.
Another couple of openings came the way of the home side as firstly Merson fired a 20 yard free-kick well over the United goal and then at 90+9 Louis Collins rolled a free-kick aside to Casey who forced Watkins to dive and push the effort away and with Scott joining the rest of his team in the United box for a couple of corners the United defence continued to repel the Villains and as referee Heron drew proceedings to a close it was a happy bunch of United fans who travelled home safe in the knowledge that Simon’s boys had battled to the end and done us all proud.
Report by Kevin Watts.
United Man of the Match: Aaron Watkins.
Hanworth Villa
Mark Scott
Marco Correia
Josh Casey ©
Guy Ansah-Palmer
Guy Hollis
Brandon Curtis
Shane Dunne
Joe Adoo-Peters
Sam Merson
Sam Mead
Marco Haigh
Substitutes
Louis Collins (for Dunne, 68)
Aston Nunn (for Mead, 84)
Rayan Djouadj
Abdullah Javaid (for Haigh, 68)
Ben Geraghty
Half-Time: 0 – 0
Full-Time: 0 – 1
Referee: Gerry Heron
Attendance: 365
Goals:
Hanworth Villa:.**Hayes & Yeading United:**Onabanjo (90+2)
.