Northwood secured their first FA Cup victory of any sort for three years by comfortably dispensing of Hellenic League side Longlevens in the Preliminary Round at Chestnut Avenue on Saturday.

A brace from in-form striker James Ewington followed an audacious 40-yard half-volley from strike partner Ben Pattie as the Woods won 3-1 and pocketed the £2,890 in prize money.

The scoreline might have been more emphatic had the hosts not squandered three or four excellent chances, but manager Dean Barker was quick to praise the efforts of his players as his young side progressed to the First Qualifying Round in confident fashion against their Gloucester-based step five visitors.

“I’m delighted with the win,” Barker said. “We created plenty of chances – it could have been a little bit more comfortable – but I’m pleased that we created chances and I’m pleased that James [Ewington] and [Ben] Pattie got a few more goals.”

Barker subsequently got his wish of what he termed a “home tie against a side we can match” after Northwood were paired with neighbours Kings Langley at home in the First Qualifying Round, to be played on Saturday, September 8.

Kings may play one level higher than Northwood following a whirlwind three promotions in as many seasons that took them from Spartan South Midlands Division One in 2013 to the Southern Premier Division in 2016 via a series of clashes with the Woods, but the message is clear: Barker’s young side will relish the challenge of facing a step three opponent.

There has certainly been no shortage of verve and creativity in their ranks either – as 11 goals in four competitive games would attest to – but the 34-year-old did concede his players are still learning and will make their fair share of mistakes along the way.

That was demonstrated by Monday’s 4-1 reverse at rivals Uxbridge, Barker’s first defeat since taking the job and one he labelled “a bad day at the office for everyone involved”, where defensive errors proved their undoing.

A worrying habit of conceding penalties will need to be curbed, too, something Barker acknowledged after both the Longlevens and Uxbridge games in which the Woods fell foul of the officials for the third game in a row, but the Woods boss is remaining positive and believes it will be a positive learning curve.

He also stressed that he is backing his players to respond from Monday’s setback with another positive performance at Northwood Park against Waltham Abbey, a side managed by former Grays Athletic and Gillingham boss Mark Stimson, who have been tipped for big things this term.

“Giving away six penalties in our last seven games isn’t helping but good teams lose games of football and bounce back so I look forward to our reaction on Saturday,” Barker said.

“We play Waltham Abbey who I would imagine will be up there with their management and players. They’ll be pushing for the play-offs and trying to get promoted so we’ll see where we’re at after Saturday.”