Wanstead & Snaresbrook captain Joe Ellis-Grewal knows Harold Wood can be an extremely dangerous opponents, therefore his side have to remain focused this weekend.

The Herons will make the trip to Harold Wood Park on Saturday for the second fixture of the Hamro Foundation Essex League Premier Division season.

And they will be eager to build on their opening day victory over Hornchurch which has put them in the driving seat early on.

“We’ve played against them a few times in the past, they had a long time in the Prem, but dropped down for a bit and it looks like they’ve rebuilt and have got some good players,” said Ellis-Grewal.

“They’re always one of those dangerous teams Harold Wood, that on their day they’ve got a few really good players that can turn up and put you down a few wickets early or score big runs.

“It’s obviously away from home, we haven’t played at their ground a lot, so we know we’re going to have to play well to beat them. I don’t think there's any easy games this year.”

It is then a trip to the Old County Ground the following day to take on league rivals Brentwood in the National Cup.

“Another huge game, we really enjoy the National Cup," added Ellis-Grewal. "It’s obviously a shame when you get drawn against a team that you play week in and week out every year, but we’re looking forward to it as it’s always a big game.”

Wanstead won the toss and elected to field first after a rain delay against Hornchurch, who were bowled out for 105 thanks to the efforts of Zain Shahzad (4-10), Eshun Kalley (3-16) and Ellis-Grewal (2-31).

Ilford Recorder: Zain Shahzad of Wanstead CC attempts to dry the playing area after heavy rain fell ahead of Wanstead and Snaresbrook CC vs Hornchurch CC, Hamro Foundation Essex League Cricket at Overton Drive on 8th May 2021Zain Shahzad of Wanstead CC attempts to dry the playing area after heavy rain fell ahead of Wanstead and Snaresbrook CC vs Hornchurch CC, Hamro Foundation Essex League Cricket at Overton Drive on 8th May 2021 (Image: ©TGS Photo tgsphoto.co.uk +44 1376 553468)

Arfan Akram (25) then led the way with the bat, after an early scare, as Wanstead sealed a two-wicket victory.

“It was a fantastic team effort from the club to get the game on, we turned up at nine in the morning, and there were big puddles and lakes in the outfield. We worked for three hours solid to get all the water off," said Ellis-Grewal.

“It wasn’t the best of wickets, but it also wasn’t a bad wicket, if you got in and got stuck in by getting used to the pace of the pitch then you could score runs.

“It was just credit to our bowlers, Zain and Eshun were quality up top, then our spinners backed it up really nicely.

“We were great in the field as well, it was a really complete all-round fielding performance against a strong batting line-up, so to bowl them for just over 100 on what was a 140-150 par was really pleasing.”