Romford (0) 0, Frenford (1) 1 – Saturday 28th March 2026 – Essex Senior League

Just when you thought that Romford’s season could get no worse, it did. In a game that was mediocre at best and poor for the most part, bottom club Frenford kept alive their slim hopes of staying up and leave Boro with work still to do to retain their Essex Senior League place for next season.

With a stiff breeze at their backs, Frenford were on the front foot in the early stages and had created two good chances before scoring what proved to be the game’s only goal after 19 minutes. In the eighth minute Jahziah Blackford had a shot deflected wide and then in the thirteenth minute the same player got on the end of a passing move and shot across the face of goal.

Former Romford player Nickal David Luzolo – who turned out against Boro for Ilford earlier in the season – set up the winning goal when he got free on the right and delivered a low ball into the area that Connor Slater converted.

Frenford fended off Romford’s few attempts to get back into the game with little difficulty. After Henry Hart’s cross had been headed out for a corner, the ball pinballed around the box from the dead ball before goalkeeper Dominic Alexandru claimed possession. Alexandru was largely untroubled, being mostly employed to catch crosses or take possession of wayward Boro passes.

Darnell Fuller headed Henry Hart’s cross over the bar after 24 minutes and two minutes later Chris Millar tried his luck from outside the box, but his effort was straight at Alexandru. There was a brief moment of anxiety for the visitors’ goalkeeper after 27 minutes when he rushed out of his area to clear but only found Matt Price, who attempted to chip him, only for Alexandru to scurry back and turn the ball over the bar.

There was more purpose about Boro after the break, but all too often passes were overhit or generally went astray and it was the visitors who had two early sights of goal. In the 46th minute Lee Haylock pushed a shot from Correy Davidson round a post, although it might have been going wide anyway, and then Davidson took a pass from Olusesan Ayudele but shot over the bar.

Darnell Fuller headed Joe Damrell’s cross wide after 62 minutes and Matt Price poked wide from close range after 66 minutes, while substitute Nick Brown shot over the bar shortly after coming on for Chris Millar. Brown showed some nice touches, but his afternoon ended prematurely when he hobbled off injured, but not before he had set up Fuller for a shot on the turn that went over the bar.

Romford’s next match in their quest for the points that will guarantee safety from relegation is the visit of Play-Off chasing Buckhurst Hill next Saturday. The Stags were 6-1 winners at Woodford Town in their last outing and Boro will need to perform significantly better that they did against Frenford to have any chance of getting anything from that game.

Romford: Lee Haylock, Joe Damrell, Munir Hadi (Louis Mathias 88'), Chris Millar (Nicholas Brown 60'), Jake Barlow, Harry Elsey, Greig Stewart, Henry Hart (Christian Adu Gyamfi 71'), Matthew Price, Ibitayo Oyebola (Dhillon Sandhu-Nelson 80'), Darnell Fuller

Report: Mike Woods