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A crowd of 402 on Non League Day watched a rather drab game that was short on quality and clear cut scoring chances but Gulls were generally the better team and did enough to shade victory against a tough and uncompromising Harrow side.

Harrow were strong defensively and Canvey were far from their best for the majority of the match. Chances were at a premium for both sides and it was no surprise the man of the match award was won by Steve Sheehan who had a solid game in the centre of defence for the Gulls.

The first half was a dour affair with very little to entertain or enthuse the crowd. Canvey were often guilty of giving the ball away cheaply and the Harrow defence contained Jay Curran and Danny Heale very well.

Harrow keeper Nick Pope was also impressive in goal showing immaculate handling to come and take several difficult crosses.

It was 37 minutes before Canvey finally registered an effort on target with Alex Rhodes’ header being comfortably saved by Pope after he got on the end of Andrew West’s right wing cross.

Heale tried his luck on 40 minutes from 20 yards but his shot was high and wide and then Rhodes broke down the left hand side of the penalty area but fired his shot straight at Pope who was able to beat the ball away to safety.

The best chance of the first half fell to Harrow after Matt Game conceded a free kick wide on the right. The set piece caused a scramble in the penalty area and Canvey keeper James Russell had to be alert to fling an arm up and turn a goal-bound header over the crossbar.

The second half improved slightly entertainment wise but it took 63 minutes before the game finally sprang into life when Canvey took the lead from the penalty spot.

Rhodes did well to anticipate a weak header and a burst of pace took him ahead of the defender and clear on goal. As he rounded Pope, the goalkeeper’s challenge knocked him to the ground giving the referee no choice but to award a penalty. Pope was lucky to receive just a yellow card but was powerless to stop Robbie King tucking his penalty away into the bottom corner of the net.

After taking the lead, Canvey sat back and attempted to hit Harrow on the break. As a result, Harrow enjoyed their best spell of the game and began to dominate possession.
Michael Alaile replaced Jay Curran with Heale up front on his own.

A great tackle by John Easterford on Dave Lawrence prevented him getting a shot away and then Duane Ofori Acheampong saw a shot deflected away for a corner as Harrow pushed Canvey back.

On the break, Gulls still looked a threat and a great right wing cross by West just eluded Heale at the near post but fell to King who guided a header off target on 76 minutes.

Antonio Gonnella  received a booking and then Ashley Dumas was cautioned for a late tackle on Joe Kelly as Canvey attempted to cling on to their slender advantage.

They did have a scare in the second minute of stoppage time as Russell brilliantly turned a header away from goal. The rebound fell to Ofori-Acheampong who somehow put the ball wide from barely two yards out. His blushes were spared though by the linesman’s flag.

Canvey held out to secure a scrappy victory that moves them up to 3rd in the table. This was a far from convincing display from the Gulls but they obtained the three points without being at their best.

Next up for the Gulls is an away match at newly promoted Wingate & Finchley.