Chesham Utd 2-2 Harrow Borough

It’s a huge frustration to Harrow fans, and must be even more so for Steve Baker and his management team, that their young team can rise to terrific performances in games like this where they are significant underdogs, while messing up the chance to acquire points from games with sides around them in the lower reaches. Here, on a chilly Buckinghamshire afternoon, they stood toe-to-toe with the side lying third in the table to gain a valuable point.

Harrow introduced new signing Quaine Bartley, a striker on loan from AFC Wimbledon, and he played as one of a front duo alongside Anointed Chukwu. The early signs of their partnership were good. Ezra Ikebuasi, Keegan Bloom and Ahmet Biler remained injured, but Isiah Noel-Williams was fit enough to return.

After his awful start to the game last Saturday, Jacob Knightbridge was close to another here, as his first touch to an admittedly over-firm back pass from Sonny Hart was close to gifting a goal to the home side, but he recovered just in time. Ex-Borough man Liam Ferdinand then got into the near-post to meet a right-wing cross, but good defending kept the ball out. Prince Kandolo made a super interception to stop another attack, and Hart then did the same. After this sharp start from the hosts, it was Harrow who had a great chance when Bartley got in on the right and picked out Chukwu at the far post, but he shot straight at Beasant. Rolfe rose highest to meet Rowe’s curling free-kick but Knightbridge saved well.

Noel-Williams picked up a loose ball 30 yards out, strode forward and hammered a fierce shot narrowly over, before Harrow took the lead in the 35th minute. Beasant came out of his goal to meet a long ball forward, a couple of defenders were on hand but seemed to get in the way, and Chukwu was in the mix too. There was a big collision, but no foul, and the ball rebounded off the Harrow striker and rolled slowly into the net.

Harrow’s wall did well to repel a home free-kick, before George Moore’s cross to the far post found Chukwu, but his effort was blocked. The half ended with a neat one-two between Rowe and Ferdinand, the former’s shot going just wide.

The second period began with Samuel Adenola making a great stop to deflect Hippolyte-Patrick’s shot over the bar, with Gibbons flicking the ensuing corner just wide of the near post. Borough then went close when Kai Omoko Brosnan got to the right-hand by-line, and Billy Leonard just couldn’t rise high enough to meet his cross, his header flying over. Bartley then cut in from the right to send a left-foot shot past the near post. Chesham equalised in the 52nd minute when Joseph played the ball to Braney, who cut into the box on the right and unleashed a thunderbolt of a shot past Knightbridge.

Harrow heads didn’t drop and Noel-Williams won the ball, allowing Moore to pick out Bartley with a superb pass, the newcomer hitting his shot across the goal. At the other end Gibbons side-footed a shot across the goalmouth from a clever Rowe corner. The game was now end-to-end and very open, and Chukwu controlled Leonard’s deep corner but saw his shot blocked.

In the 65th minute, Brosnan broight the ball forward on the right, playing it inside to Chukwu, with his back to goal on the edge of the box. He trapped it and laid it off to Moore, in the inside-left channel, and he curled a superb low right-foot shot into the far corner, giving Beasant no chance.

Back came Chesham and four minutes later, Gibbons was brought down in the box by Hart. Penalty. At the top level Jorginho, or Bruno Fernandes, might get away with ridiculous-looking run-ups when they put away their spot kicks, but here Oliyide might be looking back on his approach to the penalty spot wondering why he didn’t just run up and hit the ball, for his stuttering approach was followed by the ball flying over both the bar and the stand, to the glee of a goodly Harrow following.

However, in the 77th minute, he atoned. Rowe found him inside the box, and he took the ball from left to right before sliding it back past Knightbridge. Bartley and Leonard both had dangerous efforts blocked for corners as Harrow showed no sign of merely settling for a point. And Chukwu missed a golden chance to get the three points when he held off a defender only to blast the ball over the bar from well inside the area. But, as seven minutes of stoppage-time were nearly up, it was Chesham who nearly won it, as Edwards rose to meet a right-wing cross in the centre of the goal, but Knightbridge was positioned perfectly to save.

There was widespread agreement after the Halifax FA Trophy tie that, by repeating the level of performance seen that night, Harrow would get out of trouble. Alas, Borough have not since repeated those levels, save a great battle against the odds to get a point at Salisbury with barely eleven fit players. But this was an illustration of what they can get when they do apply themselves as they did that night against the Shaymen. Can they rise to this level again on Tuesday night, when they travel the short distance to Hanwell Town?

CHESHAM UNITED: Sam Beasant Jeanmal Prosper Jack Connors Lewis Rolfe Steve Brown Jordan Gibbons (booked, 84 mins) Zak Joseph Omar Rowe Liam Ferdinand (sub Bradley Clayton, 73 mins) Tobias Braney (sub Jordan Edwards, 89 mins) Shaquille Hippolyte-Patrick (sub Karl Oliyide, 56 mins; booked, 90 mins). Unused subs: Frankie Sutherland, T’Sharne Gallimore.

HARROW BOROUGH: Jacob Knightbridge, Samuel Adenola, Jaden Sharman, Prince Kandolo (booked, 39 mins; sub Shaun Preddie, 80 mins), Sonny Hart (booked, 69 mins), Isiah Noel-Williams, George Moore, Billy Leonard, Quaine Bartley, Anointed Chukwu, Kai Omoko Brosnan. Unused subs: Johnny Allotey, Kamon-Sherell Assidjo, Hani Berchiche, Charles Taylor.

Referee: Mr T Green

Att. 509