After winning 7 games on the bounce, the Hawks were defeated by Enfield Borough on Saturday in Finchley. It seemed that it wasn't their day, after a strong home side had more energy and hunger than the Harlow team. Despite being down to 10-men, Enfield Borough showed resilience to not give up, and found a late goal to win it at the end.

Things looked off for Harlow from the get go, with Enfield Borough's number 15 testing James Pellin with a shot down his throat in the opening minutes.

A free-kick from the Boro' number 10 was an easy claim for Pellin, and Harlow later fired back with a shot from distance from Denzel Effah, clinched by Oren Campbell, a young goalkeeper who made a few appearances for the Hawks in pre-season 2023-24.

Playing with real threat going forward, it was only a matter of time before the home side would grab the lead, and that's exactly what unfolded. The Boro' 14 played a fantastic ball across goal, and their number 10 was in position to tap-home past James Pellin, who could do nothing about it. It was an early shock, but it was a deserved one.

Just 6 minutes later, Boro's number 10's fine form continued, cutting inside and smashing it home past Pellin again, doubling the lead for Enfield Borough. It was beginning to look like a steep mountain to climb for Harlow Town, who were yet to register a clear-cut chance, 34 minutes into the game.

There were a number of instances where Harlow were seeking fouls in and around the penalty area, but the referee refused to award them on numerous occasions in the first half.

Desperately charging forward, the goal finally came for Harlow, pulling them back into the game, and a good goal it was too. Denzel Effah looped it into Ruben Santos down the line, who played a first-time ball over the top into Cav Clarke, who smashed it past Oren Campbell.

The half-time score was 2-1 to the home side, but with Harlow having scored not long before the break, it was anticipated that they would use this momentum to their advantage in the second half.

However, Enfield Borough came out fighting in the second half, immediately shooting over from distance.

It looked to be the turning point in the game when Cav Clarke was fouled in the box and a Harlow Town penalty was awarded. Along with this, Enfield Borough's number 18 was given a second yellow card, and they were reduced to 10 men from 51 minutes onwards.

Ruben Santos made no mistake to smash the penalty home emphatically, and Harlow had 37 minutes, plus added time, to push forward and look for a winning goal.

Harlow really should have scored after Arley Barker's cross was missed by Jack Zielinski, who was swinging for it on the volley, but the ball fell to Cav Clarke, who's powerful effort was saved unbelievably by Campbell, getting Enfield Borough out of trouble.

Harlow continued to search for a goal, but it was Enfield Borough who looked the sharper outfit, and the work paid off for the home side when on the counter-attack, their number 9 finished beautifully with a left-footed half-volley in what looked to be a match-winning moment.

Harlow had 12 minutes remaining and knew they desperately needed a goal if they were to salvage even a point from the game, but they made hard work of it.

Jack Haley looked to threaten from the right-hand side on several occasions, but Enfield Borough slammed on the brakes and left no gaps to be exploited, defending well to see off the late pressure.

In the end, it was an extremely disappointing defeat for Harlow Town against a side near the bottom of the table, however we must keep our heads up and swiftly move on to our next game, a huge home fixture to our former tennants Cannons Wood tomorrow, kicking off at 7.45pm.

Thank you for your continued support.