There were three changes to the team that beat Potters Bar Town at home last week, with injury keeping out both Luca Cocoracchio and Danny Barker and Cam Tutt starting on the bench. Coming back in were Captain, Aarran Racine, Dean Cox and Jasper Pattenden while U18s Skipper, Owen Spicer and fellow youth teamer, Owen Worsdell were amongst the subs.

It was the recalled Pattenden who had the first real chance of the afternoon when he saw his curling effort from inside the penalty area diverted away off the head of Keano Robinson, following a mix up in the host’s rearguard.

Shortly afterwards, a fine save by Tyla Dickinson meant that Reece Myles-Meekums’ pile driver produced a corner, which Meeky took himself and he could only watch as Racine’s unmarked header bounced onto the far post and Dinesh Gillela completed the clearance.

Reds continued on the attack; Dajon Golding breaking clear and feeding Cox to send in a low, fizzing delivery that a sliding Ollie Pearce couldn’t quite get on the end of as it sped towards the back stick.

Pearce then almost turned provider; releasing Myles-Meekums through the inside-right channel, with Robinson once again getting in the way, at the expense of a flag-kick. Dickinson this time keeping out Pat Webber as he headed goalwards from the set-piece.

United responded via Amos Nasha’s pass to Moses Emmanuel on the right that allowed the striker to burst into the box and sting the palms of Harrison Male, to force a corner, not long after the travelling ‘keeper had also frustrated Francis Amartey.

The free-scoring hosts maintained their pressure as Emmanuel sold Pearce a delightful dummy on the edge of the penalty area before unleashing a powerful shot that Male pushed over the bar.

Something that Pattenden struck moments later with a curling attempt from the left hand side of the eighteen yard box.

Eventually, two minutes from half-time the stalemate was broken thanks to that man Racine rising salmon-like and unchallenged again above the home defence, to head beyond Dickinson.

Typically though, Hayes and Yeading hit back and it might have been all-square going into the interval, only for Hassan Jalloh to blaze a good opening over the top.

However, five minutes into the second period the guests doubled their advantage.

Golding beautifully turned his man, Gillela and drove a low one across Dickinson and nestled it nicely in the bottom corner.

We still hadn’t reached the hour mark and Cox made it three. Picking the ball up in the inside-right position, he surged forward, played a tidy one-two with Joel Colbran and bent his shot around the defender and into the far side of the net, with his “weaker” left foot.

A shell-shocked home team retaliated once more; a byline pull-back fired narrowly the wrong side of the upright, from just outside the penalty box, by Omar Rowe, with the number eight coming somewhat closer than he would a few minutes later when he was closer to landing the ball at Terminal Five.

The woodwork, after earlier coming to the rescue of the Southern Prem highfliers, did likewise for Worthing as substitute, Jordan Norville-Williams let fly with the outside of his boot from nearly twenty yards out, only to be denied by the (top) frame of the goal.

You’d barely had time to catch your breath when Pearce slipped in another replacement, Mo Diallo who was kept out by Dickinson, with Tom Chalaye – introduced to the action at the same time – comfortably clearing the crossbar as the hosts struggled to clear their lines.

Time was nearly up when sub, Tyler Goodrham won possession in midfield and advanced, only to drill across the target and past the far post but, in truth, it was a thoroughly deserved win for the blue-clad Reds as they became the first non-league side to beat United this season.