Hornchurch FC produced another encouraging pre-season display as they came from behind to beat Tottenham Hotspur Under-21s 3-1 at Bridge Avenue, recovering from an early setback with an impressive first-half turnaround before comfortably seeing out the game.
The visitors made the perfect start, taking the lead inside two minutes.
An early corner was delivered into the area and captain Alfie Dorrington rose highest to head past Arthur Nasta and give Spurs an immediate advantage.
The Urchins responded positively and gradually took control of possession.
Nathan Ferguson was the first to test the visitors, firing over from distance as Hornchurch began to build momentum.
Their pressure was rewarded just after the half-hour mark.
A superb switch of play found Asher Yearwood in space on the right and his inviting cross was met by Henry Hearn, who powered a header beyond Sam Archer to level the scores.
Hornchurch continued to push forward and almost completed the turnaround moments later when Joe Kizzi headed narrowly over from a deep free-kick.
Spurs came close to restoring their lead three minutes before the break when Oli Irow unleashed a powerful effort, but Nasta produced an excellent save to tip the ball over the crossbar.
That stop proved pivotal as Hornchurch struck at the other end almost immediately.
Jack Powell collected possession around 25 yards from goal before unleashing a superb strike into the top corner to put the Urchins ahead.
The hosts then extended their lead deep into first-half stoppage time.
Ferguson raced onto a perfectly weighted through ball and kept his composure to slide a low finish beneath Archer and into the far corner, making it 3-1 at the interval.
After a lively opening period, the second half was a quieter affair as both sides made a number of changes.
Spurs threatened to reduce the deficit when Maeson King found space from an Elisha Sowunmi corner, but the defender guided his free header wide.
Hornchurch remained well organised at the back, restricting the visitors to few clear-cut opportunities while continuing to look dangerous on the counter-attack.
The Urchins almost added a fourth late on when George Alexander burst through on goal, only for Archer to react sharply and nick the ball away before the striker could apply the finish.
It mattered little, however, as Hornchurch comfortably saw out the remaining stages to record another impressive pre-season victory against strong opposition.
The performance combined disciplined defending with clinical finishing and maintained the positive momentum ahead of the new National League South campaign.
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