Match preview Vs York CityDate: 13-03-18Venue: AggboroughKick off: 19:45hrs

12-03-18 - Preview - Harriers Vs York City

With the Harriers now going through their worst run of defeats for two seasons the need to get back on track with a win at home to York City tomorrow evening at Aggborough becomes crucial if we hope to confirm our place in the play-offs. The title is probably well out of our reach now with leaders Harrogate Town showing how it should be done when they beat FC Utd of Manchester 6-0 on Saturday while we were struggling to get a single shot on target at relegation certainties Gainsborough Trinity.

Elton N'Gwatala
Elton N’Gwatala.
Will he be fit to play?

The Harriers manager John Eustace has said that he was disappointed in the performance on Saturday and is blaming the team for a lack of effort when really he should be looking at his own tactics and the way the team is set up for games against a side struggling to stay up. Playing one striker up front hasn’t worked all season and isn’t going to work now. On Saturday Joe Ironside looked totally uninterested and who can blame him when all he has is scraps to feed off.

George Waring came on for him during the second half and again he was left isolated with no one to play off. Both players need someone nippy to put away the knock downs but any option they have is playing out wide putting balls in to a centre forward tightly marked by two or three defenders. Eustace needs to change his playing formation sooner rather than later because at this rate Kidderminster Harriers are going no where.

While we were falling to Trinitys sucker punch on Saturday York were also struggling to beat Boston Utd on their own turf. A scoreless first half ended with City being booed off the pitch by their fans but at least their manager Martin Gray reacted to that, blasted his players, and made instant changes for the second half. Defender David Ferguson scored the only goal fifteen minutes from the end but a bad tempered game ended with three red cards including one for former Harrier Simon Heslop. 

He’ll be available to play against us with his ban not taking effect until next Saturday. Also available will be Jon Parkin who has now completed his three match ban following his red card at Curzon Ashton a few weeks ago. City re-arranged a County cup game against Middlesborough during last week to use up one of his banned games so in effect he has only missed the Alfreton and Boston games. Shades of the Welsh FA and Wrexham there.

We have an injury problem to worry about with a possible injury to Elton N’Gwatala after he picked up a first half knock at Gainsborough and was replaced by Sam Austin at the break. Joel Taylor returned following injury although we had been led to believe that he would be out for much longer while James O’Connor continues to remain unavailable (but is he?). It also looks likely that Brandon Hall will still be out injured too.

The one mystery is Liam Truslove who seems to have been sidelined yet again. On the bench one minute but not the next. Is he injured yet again? It would be nice to know.

It was interesting to read a snippet from the City preview of the game from their manager this evening. It was what we have all been saying for months now.

We’ll have a game plan, like all teams do. I’ve watched them many times this season. I watched them at Harrogate only a month ago. They got beat against a 4-4-2 but, equally, they could have been well and truly in charge of the game had they taken their chances on the night.

The only fault I would say about them is that they over-play at times and didn’t kill Harrogate off because they should have won the game. 

So we go into this important play-off clash on the back of three defeats and we can only hope that it doesn’t become four. To stop that happening then we need to make changes to the way we play. Stop this idea that possession is the be all and end all and go into the game with the full intention of winning and winning convincingly.

Can we see that really happening though? 

Photo © KHFC


Teams:

Harriers from:

Hall, Flatt, Palmer, Taylor, Horsfall, O’Connor, Vaughan, Pearson, Croasdale, Truslove, Weeks, Austin, Bradley, A Brown, Sonupè, McQuilkin, N’Gwatala, Ironside, Waring.

York City from:

Bartlett, Simpson, Whitley, Bencherif, C Brown, Ferguson, Burn, Law, Newton, Parslow, Rowe, Williams, Connolly, Heslop, Haswell, Kamdjo, Moké, Pattison, Smith, Steels, Wharton, Almond, Correia, Kempster, Rankine.


Talk about the game here and phone the Harriers Hotline on 01905 577 777 after the game too.

Links to York City websites here

Find Pubs around Kidderminster here


Previous games against York City
 
DateH/AComp:Score GoalsAtt: (away)
16-12-2017HFA Trophy 1st rd2 – 1 Pearson, Sonupè1138 (89)
18-11-2017ANational North1 – 1 Croasdale2507 (117)
24-01-2012HBlue Square Premier1 – 1 McQuilkin2417 (159)
19-12-2011ABlue Square Premier2 – 3 Byrne, Gittings, Matt2830 (56)
30-11-2010HBlue Square Premier0 – 0  1066 (79)
23-10-2010HFA Cup 4th qual rd0 – 2  1123 (144)
14-08-2010ABlue Square Premier1 – 2 Gittings, Shaw2682 (177)
23-03-2010HBlue Square Premier0 – 1  1127 (135)
26-09-2009ABlue Square Premier3 – 2 Smikle, Barnes-Homer2509 (113)
28-03-2009ABlue Square Premier0 – 0  2384 (171)
11-02-2009AFA Trophy 3rd rd replay1 – 1York won 14-13 on penaltiesRichards683 (34)
31-01-2009HFA Trophy 3rd rd1 – 1 Brittain1115 (153)
23-09-2008HBlue Square Premier2 – 0 Smikle, Richards1481 (93)
05-01-2008ABlue Square Premier2 – 2 McGrath, Christie2423 (116)
08-09-2007HBlue Square Premier3 – 0 Richards 2, Bennett1589 (177)
20-01-2007HNationwide Premier2 – 1 Constable, Bennett2073 (303)
16-09-2006ANationwide Premier1 – 0  2181 (98)
09-04-2006ANationwide Premier2 – 2 Fleming, Reynolds3376 (95)
19-11-2005HNationwide Premier0 – 0  1768 (243)
06-03-2004HNationwide League 34 – 1 Foster, Bennett, Yates, Murray2569 (220)
21-12-2003ANationwide League 31 – 0  2973 (136)
21-04-2003ANationwide League 30 – 0  4069
14-12-2002HNationwide League 31 – 2 Bishop2304
23-03-2002ANationwide League 30 – 1 Larkin2787
23-10-2001HNationwide League 34 – 1 Broughton 2, Sall, Foster2002
05-05-2001ANationwide League 31 – 0  3185
25-11-2000HNationwide League 33 – 1 Smith 2, Foster2602