Saturday sees the Men’s First Team continue their Pitching In Isthmian League campaign with a trip to Harrow Borough.
This game is noteworthy for a couple of reasons; the first is that the match is likely to be our final visit to Borough’s Earlsmead ground, which the club has sold for development. The second is that it is the first competitive match Luke Morgan-Tuffs’s squad will play on a grass pitch this season. Six games have been played at the Robert Parker Stadium, with away games against Merstham, Jersey Bulls, AFC Stoneham and Hendon all being played on 3G pitches.
Although their soon-to-be vacated home presents a different challenge for Ashford in terms of the playing surface, Harrow are yet to win a League match on their own patch this season, although they did beat Northwood in the Middlesex Senior Cup. Borough have enjoyed better form on the road and won at Cobham last weekend.
The historical head-to-head gives Harrow a small advantage, given that they have won seven of the 14 previous fixtures. Ashford have won six, including the most recent meeting of the clubs. That game took place at Cobham on 28 December 2024 and finished 3-0 to the Tangerines. Jack Arnold scored twice, with Adam Humpheys also finding the net.
Ashford go into this game having drawn at Hendon in midweek, which given that the Greens are currently unbeaten in the League might be considered ‘a good point’. The League table is still uneven – Hayes & Yeading United have played only four times, while Littlehampton Town have completed nine game – and both the Tangerines and the Reds are in lower mid-table, level on eight points. Harrow are two places below Town, thanks to an inferior goal difference and have played a game more. Such is the competitiveness of the division that the clubs are only three points off the play-off places and only two points clear of the relegation zone. A win on Saturday could therefore ‘kick-start’ the season for either side.
Kick-off on Saturday is 3:00pm and there is a Tangerines on Tour post with background information and travel advice. However, if you can’t make the journey, you can follow the key incidents in the Match Centre
