Poleon and Baldwin give McMahon a birthday win over Eastleigh
Sunday 11 October 2026 · By Duncan Hesketh
Daryl McMahon celebrated his 43rd birthday in the best possible way on Saturday as Hornchurch beat Eastleigh 2–0 to climb three places to ninth in the Enterprise National League.
Dom Poleon opened the scoring in the first half, finishing after good work from Will Greenidge. Jack Baldwin doubled the lead on 62 minutes, heading in an Alfie Massey corner, and Hornchurch saw out the game comfortably to keep a clean sheet.
McMahon was full of praise for his players. “I thought the players were excellent,” he told the Non-League Paper. “To keep another clean sheet at home is very pleasing in what was a very professional performance. It was a combination of commitment and hard work, they were brilliant.”
He also singled out his goalscorer. “Dom has been excellent lately,” McMahon said, highlighting the striker’s experience as well as his goals.
The win was a timely response to a difficult week. Hornchurch were beaten 3–0 at Harrogate Town on 3 October, and they then went out of the National League Cup on penalties to Fulham Under-21s on 6 October.
Saturday’s result continued an unusual pattern. Hornchurch have alternated wins and defeats over their last six league games, and they are yet to draw a league match this season. With seven wins and six defeats from 13 games, they have 21 points, level with Barrow and two points behind seventh-placed AFC Fylde.
Their goal difference of −4 is the one area for improvement. Hornchurch have scored 15 and conceded 19, so they have been efficient in the games they have won. Saturday’s clean sheet will give McMahon confidence that the defence is heading in the right direction.
It has been an impressive start for a newly promoted side. Hornchurch came up through the National League South play-offs, and McMahon was named Manager of the Month for August after a strong opening to the season. Now they are firmly in the mix for the play-offs.
Next up is an FA Cup fourth qualifying round trip to Uxbridge on Saturday 17 October. Uxbridge will be eager to cause an upset, and Hornchurch will need to be at their best.
The league then resumes with a long trip to Hartlepool United on Saturday 24 October. Pools recorded their first win under new head coach Pete Wild on Saturday, beating Forest Green Rovers 4–2, so they will be full of confidence. Hornchurch then host Yeovil Town, who have won their last two league games 6–0, on Tuesday 27 October, before travelling to AFC Fylde on Friday 30 October.
That is a demanding run of fixtures, but Hornchurch have shown they can compete with good sides. If they can find a way to break their win-loss pattern and string together consecutive victories, a place in the top seven is well within reach.
For now, McMahon can enjoy a birthday win and a return to the top half.
Hornchurch Stadium sits on Bridge Avenue in Upminster (RM14 2LX), a short walk from both Upminster Bridge on the District line and Upminster station on the Fenchurch Street line. It is a council-owned athletics and football ground, opened in 1956, with a listed capacity of around 3,500. A full 400-metre running track rings the pitch, so every spectator is set back from the touchline. The playing surface is a synthetic football pitch inside that oval. Visiting supporters should treat the diagram above as a working plan rather than a surveyed drawing: the two goals sit in front of the Clubhouse/Hasbeen’s Hill end and the Windmill End respectively.
For National League fixtures the club has been segregating matches unless it advertises otherwise. Away fans enter via Abraham Court, opposite The Windmill pub on Upminster Road, then follow the public footpath to a dedicated turnstile block next to the away section. Home supporters use the main entrance off Bridge Avenue. Away turnstiles usually open ninety minutes before kick-off and close half an hour after it. Tickets for visiting supporters are sold in advance through Hornchurch’s box office; online sales typically close around midday for Saturday games. Prices move with the season and opposition, but recent National League figures have been in the region of £20 online for adults, with concessions and young adults cheaper and under-12s free with a paying adult. Check the club site on the morning of travel, because construction work for ground grading can change capacities from week to week.
The current away allocation is on the Riverside side of the ground: roughly 160 unreserved covered seats in the Rom Valley Glass & Glazing Stand plus adjacent open and partly covered terracing toward the Windmill End, with a working away capacity of about 600. A raised wheelchair viewing area sits on the open terrace and is reached by a ramp; book it through [email protected] at least a day ahead. The Colin McBride Stand, also on the Riverside, honours a former chairman and sits closer to the Clubhouse end. Opposite, the Main Stand and Directors’ Box give the highest view of the pitch and are the usual home seating. Behind one goal is the clubhouse and the decked terrace nicknamed Hasbeen’s Hill; behind the other is the Windmill End. Redevelopment planned through 2026–27 will replace much of the Riverside with new covered terracing and add seats on the Eastside, so expect temporary layouts.
There is no general supporter parking on site. The car park is reserved for players, officials and pre-booked disabled bays. Street parking exists on Bridge Avenue and Brookdale Avenue; wardens are active on matchdays, so do not block driveways or sit on yellow lines. The stadium is inside the London ULEZ. From the M25, leave at junction 29, take the A127 toward London, then Hall Lane into Upminster, right at the lights onto St Mary’s Lane, and second left into Bridge Avenue; the ground is about 200 yards on the right. From Upminster Bridge tube, turn right, walk under the railway bridge and take the second right into Bridge Avenue. From Upminster mainline station the walk is ten to fifteen minutes.
Inside, bars include the Clubhouse, the Jimmy Mac Bar and the Temper Gold Bar. Reusable cups carry a small deposit. On segregated days the home clubhouse and shop are not for away fans, though club badges are often sold at the away end. Programmes are sold inside the ground. Smoking is restricted to Hasbeen’s Hill and the front gate. Bags may be searched; leave non-essentials at home. Alcohol, pyrotechnics, air horns, glass and footballs are banned. Dogs are not allowed except assistance dogs arranged in advance. The Windmill opposite the away entrance is the obvious pre-match pint. Arrive early, follow stewards to the Riverside and Windmill End, and you will be in the right place when the sides kick toward the goals in front of those two stands.