A crowd of 279 witnessed a most entertaining match, when Hornchurch entertained top Conference side Ebbsfleet. The local heron flew majestically over the pitch but this time it did not drop the fish it was carrying. The home side started strongly, Joe Keith taking a pass from Bostock and crossing towards the far post, where it was headed away by Paul McCarthy as Brothers swooped in, Brothers was causing big problems on the left, and he cut inside and hit a shot narrowly wide, whilst Harry Elmes charged through the middle, and only a desperate rush out from goal by the home keeper saved a goal. Elmes again, this time chasing what looked like a lost cause, only for the home keeper to lose control. Elmes carried on after the loose ball but hit a left footed shot just a fraction too weakly and McCarthy managed to get back to block the ball.

Kris Lee broke through and shot narrowly wide, but Fleet came back into the match when Dale Brightly touched a shot around the post for a corner, with McCarthy coming up for the inswinging corner and heading goalwards, where Glozier cleared for another corner. At this point the referee decided that Dale’s yellow shirt looked remarkably like the away side’s yellow – most people had commented on that some ten minutes earlier. Play was stopped for Dale to put on a grey top. Bostock was felled by a disgraceful tackle which had the East Side calling for the red card – the Riverside just sat there in silence, but what’s new? (Ed. Cheers Dagsy!)- and from the free kick Keith curled the ball to Elmes, who hooked his shot inches over the bar.

Urchins who went ahead on 28 minutes when KRIS LEE took a midfield pass from Garry Cross, and ran forward to hit the ball home, with the Conference side in total disarray. Shortly before half time Fleet levelled when a home attack went wrong, and Kris Lee misjudged a pass to Purdie, which allowed Fleet to attack on the left, and LUKE MOORE weaved his way through to slot the ball home.

Dale Brightly emerged for the second half wearing a black top. Fleet came more into the game after the interval, but rarely broke through a solid home defence, whilst Garry Cross was close to scoring when the visiting keeper rushed out of goal to smother the ball at his feet. Chukki Eribenne, who replaced Raphael Nada, who had got little change out of Goddard, twice missed good chances for the visitors, firstly when set up by Moore, when he sidefooted the ball wide, and then again from Moore, when he ran on and hit his shot wide of the goal. Fleet’s attacked ebbed away and they were were forced to defend in the final ten minutes as Urchins launched forward. Their centre half, Smith, time and again stood between them and oblivion. John Purdie joined in the attack and was pulled up for offside – this one’s worth repeating, yes, John Purdie was pulled back for offside. Foyewa was creating havoc on the right, and Ainsley Gasper twice had goalbound shots saved, with the referee saving Fleet by blowing for full time after just 27 seconds of stoppages..