Hendon won the Robert Dyas (Isthmian) League Cup with a pulsating 3-2 victory over Grays Athletic at Whyteleafe, on Wednesday. It was the Greens' first triumph in the League Cup since 1976/77, the first season the club entered the competition, and after being 3-0 after 30 minutes of their first-round tie away to Wingate & Finchley, one of the most remarkable comebacks imaginable.

Dave Diedhiou, Kevin Maclaren and Kezie Ibe made the starting line-up, at the expense of Sam Flegg, Ollie Sprague and Leon Smith, all of whom were named on the substitutes' bench, with Max McCann and fit-again Tony Taggart.

Grays made a very strong start to the game and in the second minute, Dumebi Dumaka set up Nathan Ferguson, but his shot was blocked by the outstretched leg of Elliott Brathwaite.

Harry Agombar then fired over from a very good position as Hendon struggled to clear their lines. Agombar and Dumaka both then tried their luck from long-range, but Ben McNamara was not troubled by either effort, making more than comfortable saves.

When Hendon started to get into the game, the Grays defence was asked some serious questions. Jay Leader was very fortunate, in the 21st minute, not to be penalised for pulling back Ibe after the striker had dispossessed him on the edge of the Grays penalty area. It seemed to be a clear penalty though, with other players close enough, it was a good goalscoring opportunity, not an obvious one.

Three minutes later, Lamar Joseph-Johnson had to be at full stretch to keep out a shot from Maclaren. It came on the back of a concerted spell of pressure and the captain was set up by Diedhiou, who had just seen a shot flash across the goal - and was kept in by Ibe.

Play switched to the other end and Grays felt they might have had a penalty when Kenny Beaney sent Joao Carlos clear. McNamara was quickly off his line and he was able to block the ball before colliding with Carlos. From the corner, Leader saw his dipping header tipped over the bar by McNamara.

In the 36th minute, Hendon took the lead. A good spell of possession saw Peter Dean pass to Andre Da Costa just inside the left edge of the penalty area. Da Costa jinked outside and in, before curling a right foot shot which Joseph-Johnson mishandled - he dived too early - and the ball squirmed off his body before trickling over the goalline.

Five minutes later, Maclaren passed to Ibe, who collected the ball in the centre circle on the Hendon side of the pitch. Ibe immediately turned and sent Dean running clear down the right side.

His inside pass picked out Morgan, who was forced wide by the onrushing Joseph-Johnson. Morgan kept the ball in play and when he laid it across the 18-yard-box, there was Ibe to control it before smashing it into the roof of the net from 15 yards out for his 23rd goal of the season.

Grays halved the deficit within 60 seconds when Bradley Fortnam-Tomlinson was set up by Jay Siva and Agombar. Fortnam-Tomlinson timed his run perfectly to get behind James Fisher before lifting the ball over the advancing Ben McNamara.

It was pretty much one-way traffic in the second half as Grays launched attack after attack on the Hendon goal. Carlos side-footed a chance wide, though McNamara deliberately let the ball go the wrong side of the far post.

A teasing cross was just too high for Dumaka to kick and too low to header, so the ball brushed off his thigh before going wide of the post. Dumaka and Carlos then rather got in each other's way as they chased a through ball and McNamara was able to push the ball away from danger. And GB-Dumaka followed this up with a curling shot which went high and wide.

Midway through the half, Maclaren was substituted by Flegg. The captain had missed almost three weeks with an injury and the Hendon management team was determined he would not play much more than a hour.

In the 72nd minute, Fisher won a challenge in midfield and quickly played a short pass to Morgan, who in turn fed Dean. From there the ball went out to Da Costa, who was faced by Leader.

The full-back gave Da Costa far too much room, and he could do nothing as a sweet curling shot nestled just inside the far post. Joseph-Johnson made no real attempt to get to the ball; he may have been unsighted, but the shot could not have placed better.

This time, when Grays made an immediate response, Dumaka lifted the ball over McNamara, but it cleared the crossbar too. The reaction from Grays players was this might have been their best chance to get back into the game.

In fact, there would plenty more. Three minutes later, Siva fed Dumaka, whose cross to the far post was knocked down into the path of Ferguson, who scuffed his hot wide of the far post.

Agombar then overhit a cross, but it dipped very late and McNamara had to back-pedal before tipping the ball over the crossbar. His catch from the resulting corner was superb, gathering the ball at its highest point.

With 15 minutes to go, McCann took over from Dean, followed a few minutes later, but another member of Wealdstone's 2014 Isthmian League title-winning squad Glen Little. Two other members, Siva and Sean Cronin played the full 90 minutes.

A break down the right from Leader resulted in a short pass to Dumaka, but his goalbound shot was brilliantly turned aside by McNamara.

Grays then won a free-kick on the edge of the penalty area, but McNamara, under great pressure, punched the ball away from the danger area. The ball was not completely cleared, and McNamara was again the hero, this pushing aside a 25-yard drive from Leader. On a night when he made so many, this was easily McNamara's best.

But the agony for Hendon fans was far from over. The giant Brian Moses took over from Agombar, while the Greens replaced Morgan with Smith.

When Grays won a corner two minutes into the five of stoppage time, there was clear danger. But it was not Moses who got to the ball, but Cronin, who powered a header into the net.

Two more nerve-shredding corners had to be defended, but they were, the second of which saw McNamara make another fine catch, only this time he was bundled over to give Hendon a free-kick.

With time almost up, Smith suddenly found himself running at goal with only Leader for company. Smith played the ball off the defender for a corner, but there was no time to take it and the Robert Dyas Cup was on its way to Hendon.