After Friday’s enthralling but ultimately point-less encounter with landlords Barking, Boro face league leaders Enfield at Mayesbrook Park tomorrow evening.

Enfield have returned to the top of the table after being briefly usurped by Redbridge following a slight wobble in form that saw The E’s lose two in the trot before returning to form with two consecutive away wins. They will certainly provide Boro with a very stiff test indeed.

Brief History:

The original Enfield FC were formed in 1893 as Enfield Spartans. By 1912 they had dropped the Spartans name and joined the Athenian League, remaining members until 1963, when they moved to the Isthmian League.

Enfield were Athenian League champions in 1962 and 1963, and won the Isthmian League eight times between 1968 and 1995. The Football Conference was won in 1983 and 1986, and the club’s other honours include winning the FA Amateur Cup (twice), the FA Trophy (twice), and the European Amateur Cup Winners Cup.

In 1999, the club sold its Southbury Road stadium, and began ground sharing with several nearby clubs and two years later a group of supporters formed a breakaway club, Enfield Town. In 2007 the club were liquidated and a new club, Enfield 1893, was formed. The 1893 suffix was dropped in 2019, although it continues to be used on various non-League websites.

Enfield 1893 joined the Essex Senior League, which they won in 2011, however, promotion to the Isthmian League was denied due to ground grading issues. In recent years the club have finished as low as 20th (of 21) in 2016, and as high as 3rd in 2014.
Following groundshares at Brimsdown and Harlow Town among others, the club now play at Bishop’s Stortford.

Previous Meetings:

Romford have played Enfield ten times since their first meeting in 2007. Remarkably, only four of these meeting have been league fixtures, and Boro have won all of them, with the most recent being a 1-0 win in an Essex Senior League game played at Ware FC in 2009.
The other six games (four in the Essex Senior League Cup and two in the Gordon Brasted Trophy) have seen two draws and four wins for Enfield.

Romford and Enfield were involved in something of a two-horse race for the ESL championship in 2008-09 with Boro at one time having built up a lead of more than ten points, only to be reeled in towards the end of the season before Enfield (then Enfield 1893) lost a crucial game at Bowers & Pitsea to confirm Boro’s championship win.

Last Season:

Enfield finished in fifth place in the Essex Senior League last season and won the Errington Challenge Cup, beating Cockfosters 3-2 in the final.

Leading scorer for Enfield last season was former Walthamstow forward Dwade James, who bagged 30 goals in all competitions.

This Season:

Enfield have been top of the pile in the Essex Senior League for most of this season and currently lead second placed Redbridge by two points with 61 from 25 games as against The Motormen’s 59 from 26. Only four sides have beaten Enfield this season, and two of their defeats have come in the last four fixtures: 2-0 at home against West Essex, and 1-0 away from home at Athletic Newham. Their other defeats have come at Redbridge, where they lost 2-1, and at home to Stansted by the same score.

Since their two defeats in mid-February, Enfield have won 2-1 at FC Clacton and 3-0 at Takeley.

In the FA Cup, having secured a famous win over Southern League side AFC Rushden & Diamonds, Enfield were beaten by Billericay Town, and in the FA Vase they reached the Second Round before losing 1-0 at Dunstable Town.

Leading scorer for Enfield this season is Louie Johnson, who has 13, closely followed by Danny Norton with 12. Last season’s leading scorer, Dwade James, has 9 goals this term.

Other Essex Senior League games this week:

Tuesday 28th February:
Buckhurst Hill v Woodford Town
Saffron Walden Town v FC Clacton
West Essex v Takeley
Halstead Town v Athletic Newham (Errington Challenge Cup)
Barking v Stansted (Peter Butcher Memorial Trophy)

Wednesday 1st March:
White Ensign v Sawbridgeworth Town