Saturday 22nd March 2008
HARROW BOROUGH  0  HORNCHURCH  2

HBFC – Gary Ross – Danien Nielsen – Nick Burton – Wayne Walters © - Danny Leech - Bobby Highton – Kwasi Frempong – Danny McGonigle – Zimzon Lelo – Lee Hall – Jonathan Constant
Subs – Victor Asambang for Highton 58 – Gary Meakin – James Fraser – Jamie Diston

HFC- Dale Brightly – Donny Barnard – Elliot Styles –John Purdie © - Jim McFarlane – Andy Tomlinson – Frankie Curley – Mark Janney - Harry Elmes – Simon Parker – Dean Green
Subs –Kris Lee for Elmes 73 - Michael Brothers for Parker 83– Jamie Richards - Danny Glozier – Des Boateng for Janney 80

Scorers – Simon Parker 57 – Dean Green 76
Booking – Walters 72 (HB)
Officials – S Lewis with A Trinder and M Barnes
Duration – 45.59 + 47.59
Attendance 184 (150 from Hornchurch)
Weather – 2 degrees at start, overcast, then rain, then hail, then sleet, temp down to minus 2,  then snow, then sunshine, temp 5 degrees, blizzard second half, followed by bright sunshine, followed by another blizzard, then snow flurries, 0 degrees at finish, wind speed first half up to 40 mph, and second half up to 30 mph, wcf minus 6.

HARROW BOROUGH  0  HORNCHURCH  2
With Richard Goddard out for two matches due to suspension, Andy Tomlinson returned to the starting line up. Prior to the start, Sir Gary looked resplendent in his pseudo moon boots, with Unc of course wearing the real thing. Whoever won the toss had a marked advantage, and Urchins found themselves kicking into the teeth of a raging gale, which soon turned into hail and sleet.

Urchins started strongly, Tomlinson’s through pass to Janney was touched across to Barnard, whose first time drive was tipped over the bar by Ross, Janney took the corner and Curley’s header was again tipped over. Janney took the corner again, but put the ball behind the goal. Janney was quickly in action again, this time intercepting a long ball out to the left, and his clearance swerved out of the ground for the first of nine lost balls in the first half. Urchins, despite playing into the gale, continued to force the pace, Styles sending an excellent pass through to Elmes, forcing Ross to race out of goal to hick clear. With 150 Urchins, virtually the entire crowd, urging their team on, a goal looked a certainty when Harry Elmes played the ball through to Simon Parker, who raced goalwards, only to be pulled back for an offside which brought howls of anger from the massed ranks of red and white. At the other end Hall raced clear, at least ten yards offside, and eventually a reluctant whistle halted play.
 
Barnard up to Parker and his shot was deflected out for a corner, which Janney took, and Leech headed away. Tomlinson took up the running and played the ball on to Parker who turned his pass inside to Elmes, who was thwarted by Ross who had raced off his line to save at Harry’s feet. In a rare breakaway, Harrow won a corner when Purdie’s clearance swerved out of play, and Constant, who took all the set pieces, played the ball to Walters, whose chip into the goalmouth was cleared by Elmes. A long ball up field to Hall saw the resultant cross tipped over the bar by Brightly, with Constant’s corner cleared by McFarlane. Tomlinson took a pass from Styles and played the ball on to Curley, whose shot was deflected for a corner, only for a goal kick to be awarded. Urchins then won a real corner, thanks to Parker’s persistence, and Janney’s kick was part cleared by Nielsen, only for Barnard to power the ball back, with Burton clearing.

Half time, and the snow which had been threatening during the first half now started to come down thicker, and a flock of penguins flew in to enjoy what was for them ideal conditions, whilst what appeared to be a polar bear behind the goal turned out to be an Urchins supporter covered in snow. The wind had decreased to a mere 30 mph northerly blast and Urchins now had the wind and the slope in their favour, kicking towards the very muddy end of the ground, which had taken a battering during the week from constant rain. It was the home side who took advantage of a brief spell of bright sunshine and Ross dispossessed Green in midfield, and shaped to shoot, with Purdie getting in an excellent sliding tackle to block. Zimzon Lelo, who had up to now got little change from McFarlane, then slotted through to captain Walters who hit his shot wide of the goal.

And then it happened – a raging blizzard, coming down horizontally, and the pitch quickly disappeared under a white blanket, whilst the far side simply disappeared in the sheet of white pellets hammering down. Elmes did not appear to be particularly concerned, for he picked out Parker who came inside at speed, only for Ross to race out of goal to clear. Brightly then pumped a free kick deep upfield and another free kick resulted, about ten yards out from the area and right in front of goal. The entire Harrow team lined up and up stepped SIMON PARKER to take his first ever free kick for the Urchins, and he hit the ball low and hard straight into the net, to send 200 Urchins into raptures, whilst Simon celebrated as only Simon can. It was some time before play restarted as the linesman and referee were hounded by a very irate captain Walters, who insisted the ball had gone through a hole in the net. ‘There’s a hole in the net’ he called to anyone who wanted to listen. Back came the answer – ‘there’s a ball in the net as well’.

Urchins never looked like letting the points go, and it could have been two when Parker found Green whose cross was tipped out by Ross, Janney’s corner just eluding McFarlane, with Nielsen hammering the ball out. Barnard to Elmes and Nielsen again cleared, with the local residents now preparing to hold a boot sale of second hand footballs. Janney took the throw, got the ball straight back, and centred, Ross touching over for a corner, which Janney played to Tomlinson, whose cross was almost finished off by McFarlane. Parker to Elmes, and Leech cleared, with the ground now bathed in springlike sunshine. Janney’s free kick was fumbled by Ross and Tomlinson was narrowly beaten to the ball by Nielsen. Walters, still very unhappy about the goal, had little to complain about when he was booked for a bad tackle on Barnard, and then it was time for another blizzard, just as Kris Lee came on for Harry Elmes. A goal kick by Brightly was played on by Barnard to Curley and to Kris Lee, with Ross doing well to nip out to gather, but it could not last and a foul on Tomlinson saw another free kick awarded, which Styles played to McFarlane, thence to Parker, and then out to Tomlinson near the left hand corner flag, just as the referee had called him back onto the field, and his low cross was touched on to DEAN GREEN, right in front of goal, and Dean turned to hammer his shot into the net, to send 200 Urchins into an Arctic  delight.

Harrow made good ground on the left side when Constant pumped a free kick into the area and McFarlane cleared. Des Boateng came on, quickly followed by Michael Brothers.

Boateng was soon in action, appearing out of the blizzard to slot the ball to Green, Nielsen tackling, only for Brothers to toss the ball into the middle, and he promptly received it back, and his return centre drifted behind. Twice in quick succession Green burst through, the first time being pulled back by Walters, the free kick going Harrow’s way, and a minute later a similar move again saw the free kick going against the Urchins. Harrow tried hard to pull a goal back, Leech firing a shot wide and Constant sending over a corner which Brightly punched away.

Three more points, and the sun came back out, the penguins took off, and the three home supporters wandered off to their car, muttering to themselves. And when was the last time we had penguins flying over a ground? At Southend Manor of course, two years ago almost to the day, and today’s match was just as surreal.

Weather Conditions: Minus 2 to Plus 5 Degs. C. Rain, Snow, Sunshine, Wind Speed 30-40 mph

Match Officials: Referee - Mr. S. Lewis, Assistants - Mr. A. Trinder and Mr. M. Barnes

Match duration: F/H 45 mins. 59 secs., S/H 47 mins. 59 secs.