Report
By Bailey Howard
Hornchurch slipped disappointingly to a 2-0 defeat on Saturday afternoon at York Road against Maidenhead United but despite the setback, the Urchins remain top of the Enterprise National League South and will quickly turn their attention to Tuesday night’s Essex Senior Cup tie against Hashtag United.
A determined Maidenhead United side produced an energetic performance in their first game since the departure of Alan Devonshire, with Ryan Peters now in charge. They showed moments of quality and fight and saw off Daryl McMahons Urchins with Will de Havilland’s header in the first half and second half substitute Jayden Mitchell-Lawson in stoppage time sealing all three points to the Berkshire side.
Daryl McMahon named an unchanged line-up from last time out, that hit four past Hemel Hempstead in midweek and kept faith with the core of the team that has impressed throughout the season.
The match began at a lively tempo, with Hornchurch looking to impose their usual attacking rhythm, and the first big opportunity of the afternoon actually fell to the Urchins. In the third minute, a curling strike by Myles Weston was fielded by Jordi Van Stappershoef and ten minutes later, a misplaced back-pass from the hosts allowed Angelo Balanta a clear sight of goal, after cutting inside to find room for the shot, but saw his effort bravely blocked by Will De Havilland, just as it looked destined to test the goalkeeper.
However, in the twenty-fourth minute, it was the hosts who struck first as, after seeing a goal ruled out moments earlier for a foul, a corner from the left by Josh Popoola was flicked into the far corner by De Havilland, leaving Arthur Nasta with no small chance to save, 1-0 Maidenhead.
As the half progressed on, Hornchurch looked to respond and struggled to create clear openings for the remainder of the half as the Magpies grew increasingly confident, but the Urchins stood firm defensively, with Harry Gibbs and Tom Wraight marshalling the back line well, while Nasta produced a sharp save to deny Matt Robinson’s curling free-kick and other several solid stops to keep the deficit to one at the interval.
Half-Time: Maidenhead United 1-0 Hornchurch
Daryl McMahon made two changes at the break, introducing new signing Junior Morias and Josh Rees in place of Charlie Ruff and Giles Phillips.
The second half got underway and Maidenhead created a couple of moments on the break to aim and double their lead, with Liam Dulson testing Nasta with a routine effort and Remy Clerima tried his luck from the edge of the box, but his shot flicked off a defender and went narrowly wide.
Hornchurch then came out with purpose and the biggest chance of the half for McMahon’s side arrived in the fifty-fourth minute, when Junior Morias’ header beated past Van Stappershoef and was only to be cleared off the line by Owen Cochrane at the last moment.
Hornchurch pushed bodies forward and grew stronger as the half wore on, but a moment of controversy arrived in the sixty-eighth minute, when the referee initially awarded Maidenhead a penalty before overturning the decision after consulting with his assistant.
Two minutes later, McMahon made a double change once again, with Charlie Pegrum and Henry Sandat coming on to replace Balanta and Aaron Henry.
Despite the substitutes, Hornchurch were kept on their toes as Maidenhead probed once again for a second goal and seal all three points. In the seventy-third minute, Nasta produced a superb save to deny a low-driven effort, before Harry Gibbs was on hand to block a goalbound follow-up and keep the deficit to just one, but the Urchins’ goalkeeper was called into action again in the seventy-ninth minute, producing another outstanding stop to deny Popoola’s powerful strike.
Daryl McMahon made his final change, new signing Bobby Kelman was introduced, replacing Darren McQueen to inject fresh energy into the Hornchurch attack.
However, with McMahon’s men committed forward, Maidenhead found space to counter, and in the opening minute of seven minutes of stoppage time, Jayden Mitchell-Lawson curled a clinical effort into the bottom corner past Nasta and seal all three points for the hosts, but a defeat on the road for Hornchurch, 2-0 Maidenhead.
Even with the defeat, results elsewhere ensured that Hornchurch remain top of the league, maintaining their strong position as attention now pivots to midweek cup action.
Hornchurch now prepare for Tuesday’s Essex Senior Cup quarter-final away to Hashtag United, where McMahon’s side will aim to respond immediately and continue their push for silverware.
- Full-Time – Maidenhead United 2-0 Hornchurch
- Enterprise National League South
- Saturday 6th December 2025 — York Road
- Attendance: 1,043
Stats
For Match Stats, click here.
