Hendon's usual brief sojourn in the Isthmian League Cup when Tilbury came from 2-0 down and then won a penalty shoot-out 300. The last three times the Greens and Dockers have faced each in cup competitions, 3-0 has been the final score in the Essex club's favour, so it is some sort of progress that this scoreline came after a shoot-out and not 90 minutes.

Hendon made 11 changes from the team that started the Ryman League defeat of Leiston on Saturday, with only Jack Mazzone (10 minutes) and Carl McCluskey (five) even seeing action for the Greens in that game. For all that, only goalkeeper Jordan Kennedy (and substitutes Kambo Smith and Lee Faulkner made debuts for Hendon). The other substitute Junior Lewis completed 150 appearances for the club when he came off the bench.

Kennedy had a more than competent game between the sticks - after a misplaced throw-out in the second minute almost gifted Aaron Matthews the opening goal. Matthews was 35 yards out when he shot, having run between Mustafa Mirzai and George Smith, but his effort failed to hit the unguarded target.

Hendon soon began to exert control with Belal Aite-Ouakrim's mazy runs causing chaos for the visiting defence. If he had passed on more than one occasion during those runs, he would have enjoyed far more success because defenders would have had to worry about team-mates. As it was, they all crowded out the striker and almost invariably won the ball.

Nevertheless in the 16th minute, excellent approach play saw the ball played into the Tilbury penalty area. Although the defence half-cleared the ball, it fell to Mazzone, who curled a beautiful shot into the top corner.

It was a very open match and the visiting defence, especially in the opening 35 minutes was more open than most. Indeed, with a little more composure, Hendon could have added more than the one goal they did net in that period. Aite-Ouakrim - looking for his 50th Hendon goal - twice should have done better when confronted by only James Marrable, the goalkeeper winning both one-on0one contests.

Mazzone, who was also similarly denied on one occasion, made no mistake in the 33rd minute. Ben Crooks and Danny Smith got into an awful tangle leaving Mazzone with a clear run at goal. Marrable came off his line, but the ball was stroked past him into the bottom corner.

This second goal woke up Tilbury and Matthews hit the crossbar with a powerful drive before Kennedy produced an excellent save to deny new signing Sherwin Stanley - the former Boreham Wood striker having arrived from Brentwood Town earlier in the week.

A half-time score of 6-4 would not have been unreasonable, so the four glaring misses by each team cancelled each other out and Hendon had a deserved two-goal advantage.

After Aite-Ouakrim had gone close early in the second half, Tilbury started to dominate. Their finishing, however, lacked the necessary accuracy to beat Kennedy, who had the calming presence of Wayne Walters and Elliott Brathwaite in front of him.

Twelve minutes into the second half, Tony Jacobs and Bradley Hooper replaced Joel Barnett and Jack Carilie for Tilbury, followed eight minutes later by a double-change for Hendon, Carl McCluskey and George Smith making way for the debutants Faulkner and Kambo Smith. The two departing Hendon midfielders had played well, supported by Jerome Federico out on the wing and Scott Shulton just behind them.

A minute or so after Hendon’s first two changes, Tilbury completed their substitution, Danny Francis giving way for Martin Llewellyn. Lewis came on with 15 minutes to go, Aite-Ouakrim being the player sacrificed.

Without the midfield craft of George Smith and McCluskey, Tilbury exerted greater pressure on the Hendon defence, which cracked in the 78th minute. A ball into the penalty area was not dealt with and Jacobs netted.

Five minutes later Tilbury were reduced to 10 men when Matthews caught the foot of a Hendon defender who was clearing the ball away for a corner. The ball rolled away, Matthews didn't and he was stretchered off the pitch, later to go for x-rays at a local hospital. From the corner, however, no defender picked up Stanley, who headed home to equalise.

With no extra time in the competition, the match was destined for penalties, unless either team could find a winner in the six remaining minutes, plus the same in stoppage time. Tilbury were the first to try to get a winner, but two efforts were off target and a loud penalty appeal was turned down.

Then in the last minute of normal time, Howard Hall forced Marrable to save low by his post. Two other long-range shots were way off target and rather selfish given his well-placed team-mates in the penalty area.

In the last two minutes of added time, Hendon had three chances to score. first Marrable made a very good low save to deny Mazzone, then a mad scramble saw two blocks by defenders, the second by Jake Pooley diverting what would have been Mazzone's hat-trick inches wide of the right post. From the corner, Conor Mead did his job guarding the post and using his chest to keep out a header.

Stanley took the first penalty of the shoot-out, thumping the ball past Kennedy. Shulton was Hendon's first taker, but his effort, despite being reasonably struck, was not far enough away from Marrable to stop the keeper making a good save.

Danny Smith made it 2-0 with another confident strike before Marrable cemented his place as Tilbury's hero, going the other way to save Mazzone's attempt. After Hooper had unfussily put away his attempt, Hendon had to convert their last three kicks and hope that Kennedy made two saves or Tilbury failed to hit the target.

It didn't matter because Brathwaite struck a powerful penalty off the top of the crossbar. Thus, in the minimum number of kicks, Hendon's League Cup interest was over.

"We should have been out of sight at half-time," said Hendon manager Gary McCann. "I am disappointed we didn't see the game out and our defending for the second goal was very poor."