Hendon 2 Bromley 1
Ryman League Premier Division

A superb 40-yard lob from striker John Frendo gave Hendon the two-goal cushion they needed to see off Bromley at Claremont Road on Saturday.

Frendo's moment of magic came on the half-hour mark and added to Danny Julienne's 18th-minute opener. But the Greens failed to kill off their visitors and Bromley staged a late rally after pulling one back with ten minutes to go.

Hendon were always the better side and deserved the points, but manager Gary McCann admitted the match should have been sewn up much earlier.

He said: "We made it extremely difficult for ourselves. If we had been clinical in our finishing we could have won very easily."

The hosts started the brighter and the lively Belal Aiteouakrim tested Andy Walker with a thumping drive that the keeper did well to tip over.

Dave King also had to be on his toes at the other end and produced two routine saves to deny the visitors.

But the Hendon opener was not long in coming. Eugene Ofori beat his marker and played a nice ball inside for Julienne to crack home a first-time effort that Walker could only get a hand to as it sped into the far corner.

The second goal was even better. With Ofori racing on to a through-ball, Walker came to meet him but only cleared the ball to Frendo. With Walker well out of his area, the Hendon striker, some 40 yards out, sent the ball over the heads of everyone into an unguarded net. It was a quality finish.

The visitors might have pulled one back just before the interval but James Parker was on the line to clear a header from Des Boateng.

The Greens had a number of chances to increase the lead after the break, but it seemed like they were trying to walk the ball in. And, when Nic McDonnell slotted in from close range after Hendon had failed to clear a high ball into the box, the visitors sensed a comeback. McDonnell had two good chances but was guilty of some poor finishing.

HENDON: King, Parker, Murphy, Pickett, Matthew, McGrath, J Burgess, Julienne (M Burgess, 82), Ofori, Frendo, Aiteouakrim (Froud 45 (Gallagher 72).Subs not used: Courtnage, O'Sullivan.