Marc White’s side began the match on the front foot, kicking into the sunlight, and looked to assert themselves early on. Theo Alexandrou, making his first home start, saw a shot blocked before Hornchurch’s McQueen forced a fine save from Harrison Foulkes, who tipped the effort over the bar.

We responded swiftly as captain Charlie Carter intercepted a ball at the halfway line, laying it off to Alfie Rutherford. With time and space, Rutherford unleashed a spiralling long-range strike that deceived Hornchurch keeper Terry, nestling into the back of the net to give us the lead.

The dominant possession continued as Carter doubled the advantage shortly after our opener, this time with a deflected effort from the edge of the box that left Terry helpless once again. The first half continued with some fluid passing moves, one of which resulted in an Alexandrou volley which was saved by the Hornchurch goalkeeper.

However, the visitors struck back through Akinwande, who capitalised on a Craig and Brooking collision and broke down the wing and slotted the ball past Foulkes to reduce the deficit. Following their first goal Hornchurch continued to press, and a speculative effort from range was deflected behind by Bowerman. The resulting corner was headed wide and culminated the first half.

The second half began with Hornchurch threatening to equalise, as McQueen surged into the box, only to be denied by a superb last-ditch tackle from Seb Bowerman.

However, we regained our two-goal cushion soon after, courtesy of substitute Jason Prior. Prior, who had replaced Alexandrou at halftime, pounced on a defensive mistake to calmly slot the ball past Terry, making it 3-1 to the Wanderers.

Hornchurch continued to push forward, with a good chance coming late in the game; requiring a goal-line clearance by Tony Craig and a quick reaction save from Foulkes kept our lead intact.

Manager Marc White made several substitutions during the second half, with Carter, Rutherford, and Bowerman making way for Francomb, Murphy, and Norville-Williams, respectively.

In the closing moments, Ryan Scott fired a powerful shot just wide of Foulkes’ goal, and a Hornchurch cross flashed across the box without finding a teammate. We saw out the final stages, securing the victory as White made his final change, bringing on Bobby-Joe Taylor for Jimmy Muitt just before the final whistle.

The result sees us get back to winning form and gives us momentum heading into our next fixture against Hemel Hempstead at the Meadowbank on the 12th October. Join us then for non-league day with discounted tickets available online.