Look, it was Wednesday 5 August and the script seemed written. Heaton AFC arrived as the league's great stalemates, a side that treats a draw like a prized heirloom. Stepney, meanwhile, have spent the early part of the season playing like two entirely different teams in the same shirt.

Heaton actually looked the business early on. In the 16th minute, Cihan Köprülü found the net after a tidy bit of work from Helmuth Engelhardt. It was the sort of goal that usually puts a game to bed for a side in third place. Heaton looked comfortable. They looked composed. They looked like they had a plan.

So here's the thing: the plan lasted exactly three minutes.

Lorenzo Comencini levelled the score in the 19th minute, and suddenly the vibes shifted. Heaton didn't just lose their lead: they lost their collective grip on the afternoon. Stepney decided that the first half-hour was the only time they intended to work. Lautaro Elordi made it 2–1 in the 25th minute following a Felipe Mediavilla assist, and then Comencini grabbed his second in the 27th, again courtesy of Mediavilla.

It was a dizzying eleven-minute window. Stepney went from trailing to cruising, leaving Heaton to spend the rest of the match wondering where the game had gone. Heaton had spent so much time mastering the art of the draw that they seemed genuinely baffled by the concept of losing three goals in a blink.

“Lautaro Elordi made it 2–1 in the 25th minute following a Felipe Mediavilla assist, and then Comencini grabbed his second in the 27th, again courtesy of Mediavilla.”

Stepney spent the second half doing the bare minimum to preserve the lead, which is the most Stepney way to win a match. There was no grand tactical shift, just a general agreement to stop Heaton from doing anything of consequence.

Honestly, it was a bit cruel. Heaton had the lead, the table position, and the momentum, only to have it all dismantled by a brief burst of efficiency from a team that usually forgets to turn up for half the game. Stepney climb the table, Heaton finally stop drawing, and the cycle continues.

There is very little time to reset before Matchday 12 tomorrow.