Haringey Borough started their FA Cup campaign with a 7-2 thrashing of Essex Senior side Barkingside on Saturday.

This fixture was a league game last season and ended up as a tight away win. But this time the game was over inside 15 minutes when Haringey’s Christopher Benjamin, Nana Asamoah and a penalty from Dean Fenton calmed the nerves and a potential “banana skin” result was kicked into touch.

Asamoah scored his second and Borough’s fourth on the half hour with a run across the edge of the box before finishing low to the keepers left and 5 minutes later Fenton’s second made it five.

Barkingside started the brighter after the break and deserved their first goal, when James Holland-Malcolm tapped in from close range at the far post.

Haringey had brought on Jamie-Lee O’Donoghue at half time and he didn’t disappoint.

He and Joseph O’Cearuill beat the offside trap and O’Cearuill unselfishly passed when he could have scored himself to restore the five goal lead.

On 70 minutes, Harry Palmer had his first and only meaningful save of the match, when a shot by Paul Wright was pushed out for a corner.

The resulting corner was headed in by Barkingside’s Maxwell Amoako.

O’Donoghue got his second and Haringey’s seventh, five minutes later but his chances didn’t end there.

Twice he hit the same post and Haringey had umpteen chances throughout the game that went begging. They could easily have scored double figures.

Next up in the first qualifying round is Witham Town who beat Eton Manor, which is scheduled on Non-League Day 3rd September.

Before that Haringey travel to Norwich United on Saturday 27th and then are at home to Maldon & Tiptree on Bank Holiday Monday.

HARINGEY BOROUGH: Harry Palmer, Anton Blackwood (Michael Folonsho), Benjamin Adams, Leon Wilson, Joseph O’Cearuill, Aaron Scott, Dean Fenton Joshua Willer, Christopher Benjamin (Jamie-Lee O’Donoghue), Ishmail Kamara (Gregory Moorse-McDougall), Nana Asamoah UNUSED SUBS: Andreas Loizou, Walid Matata, Austin Byfield (gk)