Hendon showed good discipline and eventually quieted the spirited effort from Tooting & Mitcham United to advance to the third qualifying round of the FA Cup. The 3-0 win at Claremont Road, may have been slightly flattering on the balance of play, especially in the second half, but victory was definitely deserved.

With on-loan Rob Hollingdale unavailable, Iain Duncan returned to action, while there were a number of changes on the bench, with Micky Woolner, Ricci Crace, Mark Cooper and goalkeeper Dan Burton coming in at the expense of Duncan, Martin Randall, Pat Sappleton and Warren Kelly.

Former England Non-League international Lee Endersby showed what he was capable of with a dangerous shot across David Hook's goal after 8 minutes, but there was little incident of note in the opening 15 minutes.

However, Endersby was soon to be booked for a handball on the edge of his own penalty area. His pleas for leniency from referee Mr K Batchelor (Berks) fell upon deaf ears, but Kieran Gallagher failed to hit the target with the 20-yard free-kick.

The next free-kick on the edge of the penalty, indirect following an obstruction by a Tooting defender, led to a flashpoint. Paul Yates' curling shot didn't touch anybody, but goalkeeper Tony Webb elected to make a save instead of letting the ball bounce harmlessly into the net. He fumbled the ball and in the melee, the goalkeeper was caught by a stray boot. Retribution was exacted by Dean Forbes, who punched Paul Towler, but it was on the blind side of both the referee and his assistant.

Mr Batchelor, who did his level best to ensure the game ended with 22 players stayed on the pitch - too many, however, had other agendas and he failed in his quest - called both captains over and made it very clear that he wanted the teams to calm down.

Midway through the half, Hendon took a death grip on the game with 2 goals in 2 minutes. In the 25th minute, Eugene Ofori crossed into the Tooting penalty area. The ball was cleared to the edge of the penalty area, where Gallagher was waiting to shoot. His effort was stopped by Webb, but he could not hold it and YATES reacted quickest to the rebound, heading the ball past the goalkeeper's despairing dive.

Before Tooting had a chance to hit back, they found themselves 2 goals down. This time the damage was created down the opposite wing and the supplier was Jamie Burgess. His pinpoint cross was met by Rob HAWORTH, who guided a neat header into the far corner, well beyond Webb's reach. He saluted his first Hendon goal with glee.

Two more players picked up cautions before half-time as the mistimed tackle count continued to rise. A stray boot also caught Jon-Barrie Bates and it seemed to cause him a few problems. It led to him failing to appear for the second half, with Cooper coming on to play at centre-half alongside Steve Butler, with Towler partnering Steve Forbes in midfield.

It gave Tooting a foothold in the game and they piled on the pressure. A couple of long-range shots were comfortably dealt with by Hook, before Tooting pressed the self-destruct button.

In the 62nd minute, Eugene Ofori brought a ball out of defence, but was scythed down by a ghastly-looking challenge from former Hendon triallist Youness Nabil. Mr Batchelor was certain the challenge was deliberate and violent, so he produced a red card. Nabil pleaded his case in colourful terms and, at first, refused to leave the pitch. Captain Alex O'Brien came over and finally persuaded him to go.

Even with 10 men, Tooting pushed hard for a goal and they had a couple more reasonable openings. While their on-target shooting lacked the power to trouble Hook unduly, Hendon's defence lacked its usual polish. In the 83rd minute, a right-wing cross fell to Endersby, but he steered his shot wide of Hook's left upright.

Almost immediately, substitute Crace, who had replaced Gallagher 12 minutes into the second half, made a break down the Hendon left. He beat O'Brien for pace and had Haworth screaming for the ball, unmarked at the far post. Instead of picking out the tallest man in the penalty area, Crace laid the ball into the path of Steve Forbes, who wastefully blasted over the bar.

In the 85th minute, Yates did well down the right wing and picked out Crace, arriving late at the far post. The young striker headed powerfully past Webb, but into the side netting.

It proved not to be a crucial miss because, in the 88th minute, Hendon scored their 3rd goal. Again Yates was the provider down the right wing. He took advantage of Tooting's short-handedness on his wing to run at Luke Dowling.

The defender was left trailing and as Steve Lawson and Dean Forbes came across to cover, he crossed low along the 6-yard box. Ofori looked to have a simple tap-in, but HAWORTH arrived at pace and smashed the ball into the net before his team-mate could get a touch.

Tooting made two more substitutions, including the introduction of former Hendon star Mark Xavier, while Hendon gave another run-out to Brian Haule. The latter player again showed what a handful he could be with some nice flashes, but the game was over as a contest.

"I'm glad that was over," admitted manager Dave Anderson. "We had to be professional today or we could have been involved in a shock.

"I must say something about the way our fans have treated Robbie Haworth in the last 2 games. Their support for him has been fantastic and his two goals today may not have come if they had got on his back and made him tentative."