Havering 1s 1–1 Old Southendians 1s

Scorer: Connor
MOTM: Gauty
DOTD: Willett

We picked up our first point of the season with a hard-fought 1–1 draw against Old Southendians 1s.

We were slow to settle into the game, with Old South putting us under plenty of pressure and winning a number of short corners. Thankfully, Gauty was in inspired form in goal, keeping us in the game with some excellent saves, including several crucial stops from flicks that were on target.

Not to be outdone, Barlow was putting in a performance of his own. An incredible DIVING goal-line save kept the score at 0–0, before he then picked up the ball himself and went on a storming run into the D, winning our first short corner of the game. Despite the pressure from Old Southendians, we held firm to take the game into half-time level at 0–0

The second half saw the game slow down slightly, with both teams building more controlled attacks. Eventually, Old Southendians found the breakthrough, scoring from a counter attack, slipping the ball past Gauty for a back post tap in to make it 1–0.

With some questionable decisions going both ways, the game began to wind down and we found ourselves throwing everything forward in search of an equaliser. With time running out, we finally got our opportunity, winning a short corner that Connor calmly slotted away to bring the game level.

With only three minutes left on the clock, both sides pushed for a winner, but the final whistle soon went, confirming a 1–1 draw and, more importantly, our first points of the season.

A few other mentions from the game: Purton showed great composure controlling a difficult aerial, before promptly giving the ball straight back to their centre-back. Harry was excellent on the counter, getting in behind and winning a short corner after a great attacking move. Dover deserves a special mention for providing some top-tier side line chat despite not playing, while still turning up with all his gear just in case.

Finally, Willett played, the less said about him the better.