Maidenhead United face Enfield Town for the first time ever at York Road on Saturday in our 'Bring A Friend For Free' fixture and although we have only faced the north London club - founded in 2001 by disenfranchised supporters of Enfield FC - this season, our history with Enfield goes back right to before World War II when the sides first met in a 1935 Amateur Cup tie. Perhaps the most famous meeting between Enfield FC and Maidenhead United however came in a FA Cup tie in 1971 after the Magpies had embarked on a memorable marathon run.
As a modest Athenian League team who’d battled through four epic qualifying rounds, Magpies supporters, players and staff would have preferred a home draw against EFL opposition when the FA Cup 1st Round draw instead sent them to Enfield on 20th November 1971 to face a top Isthmian League side who’d won that division three seasons out of the last four.
Manager Maurice Wlliams had masterminded a fantastic run to even reach that stage. Firstly - in one of the most satisfying results in recent memory - United were drawn to face local rivals and eventual 1971/72 Isthmian League Champions, Wycombe Wanderers. 2,500 spectators crammed into York Road as the Magpies took sweet revenge for a 3-0 home defeat to the Chairboys in the 1st Round proper in 1962, an afternoon on which United missed TWO penalty kicks. Alan Tottman was the hero on this occasion with a brace scored inside five first half minutes.
Another home draw brought Leytonstone from the other end of the Isthmian League and another attendance of 2,000 spectators to York Road. An own goal from the away side’s Howlett with eight minutes remaining took Maidenhead through to an away tie at more familiar Athenian League opposition Aveley - where a draw in Essex brought a York Road replay won 3-2 by United thanks to two injury time goals. Youngster Graham Owen had already suffered a broken ankle before Tottman scored after seven minutes of second-half stoppage time to level things up. Terry Fancett scored a winner an improbable two minutes later to prompt a delirious pitch invasion.
Now the might of Walton & Hersham - destined to finish third in the Isthmian League behind Wycombe and Enfield - stood between United and a place in the competition proper for the first time in eight years. Another big crowd saw Mick Chatterton - who will probably be at York Road this afternoon as usual to watch the Magpies - open the scoring. Mick Scott added a second from a penalty rebound before Walton pulled one back late on.
Would Southbury Road a fortnight later be a bridge too far? Our Matchday programme for Saturday’s game – FREE to download HERE - will recall the events of that First Round tie.
Share this post: