FA Vase 1st Qualifying Round - Sunday 24th August

Basildon Town 1-2 NW London

CJ Eseka 22' (NW London)
CJ Eseka 40' (NW London)
Lucas Willison 90+1' (Basildon Town)

This was the seventh meeting between the two clubs, with Basildon Town having won five of the previous six encounters. History suggested a difficult afternoon for NW London, but Wasim Khan's side arrived determined to change the narrative.

In league action, NWL have been competitive in most fixtures but have also suffered three defeats, leaving them eager to find consistency. The Vase tie offered a chance to turn performances into a positive result.

Khan reshuffled his side for the occasion. Wesley Café, Noah Salama, and Ashiqur Rahman lined up together in midfield for the very first time, giving NW London fresh balance and energy in the centre. CJ Eseka returned to the XI, while Emmanuel Okoko captained the side from centre-back.

NWL started confidently and thought they had an early lead when Devin Mills converted from a corner, only for the referee to rule it out — leaving the players bemused. The opener soon followed. Café won the ball in midfield and fed Salama, whose slide-rule pass released Eseka to tap home from close range.

NWL continued to control possession, restricting Basildon to long-range efforts. When the hosts did create danger, Okoko was on hand to clear off the line. Before the interval, the visitors doubled their lead as Farhat slipped a pass into Eseka, who finished assuredly with his left foot into the corner.

The second half followed the same pattern, with NWL dominant in possession and creating several good situations but unable to apply the finishing touch for a third goal.

Basildon's threat was largely confined to set pieces, and it finally told in stoppage time when a long free kick was lofted into the box and converted to make it 2–1. Moments later the hosts thought they had equalised, but the effort was ruled out for offside.

It ended 2–1 to NW London, a deserved victory in which they controlled long spells of the game and limited Basildon's threat to a handful of chances. The scoreline suggested a tighter contest than it really was.

After a mixed start to the league campaign, this Vase win provides a timely boost of confidence and momentum as NW London look ahead to the next stage of the competition and the continuation of their league campaign.