It’s another week of cup tie action for Romford with Baldock Town coming to Mayesbrook Park in the Emirates FA Cup Preliminary Round on Saturday, but first Boro are at home to Harwich & Parkeston in the First Round of the BBC Essex Senior Cup on Tuesday evening.

Following Friday’s FA Vase win over Ilford, Romford have another cup tie coming up on Saturday 12th September with a visit to Burnham Ramblers, who beat AFC Welwyn 2-0 in that competition on Saturday.

Harwich & Parkeston were Romford’s opponents on the last day of last season and at one point during the afternoon, had the scores around the league stayed as they were, then Boro were relegated but an equaliser from Teddy Desmond and a headed winning goal from Nick Reynolds not only kept Romford out of the bottom two, but lifted them to a final position of 14th.

Teddy Desmond scores the equaliser against Harwich on the closing day of last season. Photo by Bob Knightley.

Previous Meetings:

Since Romford reformed in 1992 there have been just three games against Harwich & Parkeston, two of which were the league games played last season. The third game was the FA Cup Preliminary Round tie played at The Royal Oak ground in 2019 which Boro won 2-0 with goals from Rashaad Ogun and an own goal.

Between 1937 and 1977 there were 12 meetings between the clubs in a variety of cup competitions with Romford winning 7 of those games and Harwich winning 2. The last of these games was the Essex Senior Cup Semi-Final played at Brooklands in 1977. Romford fell behind when a slip by Paul Gilbert gave Mal Crissell an opportunity, which he took. Boro struggled to get to grips with their opponents until Les Cobb came on as a substitute and he seemed to inspire both the team and the crowd and with fewer than 20 minutes remaining, Joe Peck headed Boro level. So to extra-time again, Mickey Hanson came up with the goods, scoring two headed goals to secure a place in the Final with a 3-1 win.

Last Season:

Last season was Harwich’s first ever in the Essex Senior League and they ended the campaign in 13th place with 40 points from 38 games. In an up and down season, The Shrimpers won three of their first five league games but they had a wretched run as the season drew to a close, losing seven and drawing one of their last eight fixtures.

In the cups, Harwich made early exits in the FA Cup and FA Vase, losing 4-2 at home to AFC Dunstable and Brimsdown respectively. In the Essex Senior Cup got through the first two rounds beating Buckhurst Hill and Woodford Town, both at home and both by the score of 2-1 before they exited the competition 1-0 at Tilbury in the Third Round.

The games between Romford and Harwich last season were the first ever league games between the teams with both teams winning at home. Boro’s last day win over The Shrimpers avenged a 1-0 defeat at The Royal Oak ground the previous August.

This Season:

Harwich began the season with a 1-0 home league win over Hutton, but since then they have played three games and lost all of them without scoring a goal. In the FA Cup, Harwich lost 2-0 at home to Eastern Counties League side Mildenhall Town and after a 1-0 home defeat against Hullbridge Sports in the Essex Senior League, The Shrimpers visited Harlow Town in the FA Vase on Saturday and were beaten 6-0.

This season’s Harwich squad includes Lewis Wood, who was with Little Oakley last season and for whom he made over 600 appearances in a lengthy career with The Acorns, the 600th of which was against Boro last January.

The BBC Essex Senior Cup:

The Essex Senior Cup was first played for in 1883-84 and the first winners were Colchester, who beat Braintree 3-1 in the Final. Thirty-six different clubs have won the competition with Ilford being the most successful side, having picked up the cup 13 times, albeit that their last win was in 1953-54.

Harwich have won the Essex Senior Cup twice, but not since the 1930s, although they have reached the Final twice since, losing against Dagenham in 1978 and 1980. Romford have lifted the cup five times, most recently in 1946-47. Boro’s last Final was in 1977, en route to which Boro beat Harwich & Parkeston in the Semi-Final, before losing 1-0 to Walthamstow Avenue.

Last season’s Essex Senior Cup Final was won by Billericay Town, who beat Great Wakering Rovers 2-1 at Colchester United’s ground.

First Round fixtures:

Monday 17th August:
West Essex v Halstead Town

Tuesday 18th August:
Clacton Town v Heybridge Swifts
Dunmow Town v Lymore Gardens
Clapton Community v Wivenhoe Town
Burnham Ramblers v Hutton
Basildon United v Stansted
Romford v Harwich & Parkeston
Frenford v Saffron Walden Town
Hullbridge Sports v Holland
East Thurrock Community v Harlow Town

Wednesday 19th August:
Ilford v Cannons Wood
AFC Pegasus Colchester v Rayleigh Town
Hackney Wick v Great Wakering Rovers
Benfleet v Southend Manor
Basildon Town v Buckhurst Hill
Marcelona v Little Oakley
May & Baker EC v Coggeshall Town
White Ensign v Barking