Hendon produced one of their most remarkable performances of recent times when they came back from 3-0 down to win 4-3 at Wingate & Finchley on Tuesday night.

There were a number of firsts - a least for a considerable period of time - in this victory: It was the first win in the League Cup, now sponsored by Robert Dyas, since a 4-3 victory over Flackwell Heath in September 2006; it was the first win after being 3-0 down since the Middlesex Senior Cup quarter-final defeat of Harrow Borough in April 1987 (the Greens have twice come back from 4-1 down to win - 5-4 against Wealdstone in a Ryman League match at Northwood in August 2005, and 6-4, after extra time, in a League Cup tie away to Chalfont St Peter in September 1991).

As with the London Senior Cup tie against Barking a week earlier, a number of the squad members were given starts, and Andre Da Costa had to fill in at right-back. After his off-season surgery Adam Wallace was named in a squad for the first time in 2014-15, but he was not used. It should also be noted that Wingate & Finchley also used the game to give a few of their squad members a run-out.

And it was the Blues who made the better start. Brendan Hazlett had already made a good save when, in the seventh minute, Paul Wright linked with Richard Graham before delivering a well-weighted cross.

Nico Muir - who had a brief spell at Hendon a couple of seasons ago - got in front of Elliott Brathwaite and sent the ball goalwards, though it caromed off the Hendon centre-back on its way into the net, leaving Hazlett without a chance.

Leon Smith, against his former team, nearly equalised when he got the better of Kieran Street. His goalbound effort beat Jack Metcalfe, but the goalkeeper was saved a brilliant goal-line clearance.

Almost immediately, the Wingate & Finchley lead was doubled. This time, the cross came from their right wing and Ola Sogbanmu applied the finishing touch.

Things went from bad to worse for the Greens when Hazlett failed to hold a routine shot - he had made two outstanding saves - and Rob Laney reacted quickest. His unfussy finish made it 3-0 with 31 minutes on the clock.

It was imperative for Hendon to get back into the game quickly and the duly achieved that aim. Kezie Ibe was set up by Smith and beat Metcalfe with an angled drive, only to watch the ball hit the inside of the far post.

The rebound was kind to Hendon and Max McCann, who netted the rebound for his first Hendon goal. Ahmet Rifat felt he had been fouled by Smith in the build-up and his protestations earned him a yellow card.

Four minutes later, Peter Dean did well to bring a through ball under control, though there was a hint of hand-ball as he ran towards the penalty area. Under pressure from Street, Dean took the ball away from the defender and was about to shoot, when he was pulled down.

It was clear penalty and as Street said to the referee, "I suppose you're going to send me off too." He was right, and there was no protest from the home. Sam Murphy took responsibility for the spot-kick and made no mistake.

The ten men were in some disarray and they were more than a little fortunate not to concede a third goal in the six minutes before half-time, Lee O'Leary and Smith both going close.

After the break, Hendon continued to dominate, but they had to wait almost a quarter of an hour before they restored parity. Smith was put through, got the better of Sogbanmu, who was filling in at centre-back, took the ball around Metcalfe and smashed into the roof of the net.

Carl McCluskey came off the bench for Wingate & Finchley, replacing Graham, but he went into midfield rather than dropping in at the heart of the defence. Hendon sent on Aaron Morgan and Tony Taggart, replacing Dean and Oliver Sprague, respectively, before the Greens made their last change with Ryan Palmer taking over from Smith at the same time as the Blues' replaced their third goalscorer, Joe Sharpe taking over from Laney.

Moments before the last change, Hazlett, who had been little more than a spectator for most of the previous 50 minutes, plunged low to his left to palm aside a shot from Fisher which was arrowing into the bottom corner.

Then with one minute of normal time remaining, Hendon completed their remarkable turn-around. Palmer got around Ronayne Marsh-Brown and crossed the ball into the danger zone. Whether Metcalfe would have reached the ball or not was rendered moot as Sogbanmu, attempting to clear the ball, deflected it inside the near post, the one place the goalkeeper could not reach.

In the next round, Hendon will make another trip around the north London, this time to take on Enfield Town at Queen Elizabeth II Stadium on Tuesday 25th November.