15-04-22 – Report – Chester FC 2 Kidderminster Harriers 2

Harriers fight back for the Chester draw(ers) 

Report: Phil Lench

The Harriers came back from a two goal deficit at Chester FC today after looking dead and buried following two quickfire goals for the hosts. The scoreless first half was nothing to write home about but the second period came to life for us after a goalkeeping error allowed Amari Morgan-Smith in to score followed soon after by the equaliser when Omari Sterling-James slotted home. With the Reds going in search of a winner at the end that was all forgotten when Cliff Moyo went down, with no one near him, in a repeat of the injury that has kept him out all season.

The game started for us with the same starting line-up that beat Southport 6-0 last weekend but this game was never going to follow the same path as that one. On a slightly bobbly and over watered pitch both teams cancelled each other out by ignoring midfield and continually sending the ball over the top for the forwards to run onto. Chester coped with the tactics better than we did mainly due to us not being able to retain the ball and continually giving it away.

The two best chances of the half fell for Chester when the former Harriers midfielder, Declan Weeks, fired a shot wide and then Marcus Dackers coming closer with a shot from distance that whistled just past the post.

We hadn’t had a single shot on target but Lewis Montrose did have a shot that entered Wales in the Llandudno area.  

HT: 0 – 0

The second half followed a similar pattern as the first meaning it definitely wasn’t a feast for the connoisseur. Again there was little of any real quality from either side but we did get a repeat of Montroses’ skied shot but this time from Matty Stenson. Joe Foulkes had done well to work himself into a good position and sent over a cross to the edge of the area. With all the time in the world Stenson showed a lack of composure and this shot ended up in the air but, with everyone thinking that it had gone out of play it actually dropped back down onto the pitch  and was eventually cleared to safety.

On the hour came the first Chester goal out of nothing. We had just gone close again after Sterling-James put a shot wide but a long ball forward from defence split ours and Darren Stephenson ran onto it, flicked it around Nathan Cameron to run onto it again. He advanced on Luke Simpsons goal and fired the ball across him at an angle and into the side of the netting.

That wasn’t the end of it though because a repeat took place just a few minutes later but this time Simpson saved Weeks shot then let go of the ball momentarily. George Glendon pounced at the same time as Cameron slid in and the referee awarded the spot kick. Luckily for Nathan he was only given a yellow card and not the expected red.

Marcus Dackers, on loan from Salford City, put the ball home superbly and it looked to be all over and no way back for us.

Little did we know though and a little over five minutes later we were back in the game after a poor backpass to keeper Louis Gray was cleared straight to Morgan-Smith who managed to wrestle the ball from Grays feet and roll the ball home. The comeback was on.

Ten minutes later and the comeback was complete when a ball intended for Ethan Freemantle, on earlier for Stenson, found its way to Sterling-James instead and he fired an angled shot between Gray and the near post. We were getting all set up for an interesting finale with Chester looking spent instead all that looked less important following the Cliff Moyo incident.

Six minutes had been added on to the end of the game following lengthy treatment to two Chester players and also due to some idiot coming on to the pitch to goad the Harriers fans. Play got underway again and suddenly Cliff was lay on the ground slapping his hand on the grass. The referee chose to ignore it and waved play on despite the calls from Cliffs team mates and the fans. It was down to Gray kicking the ball out to get some treatment on the field for him and it only took minutes before the stretcher was called for.

The game was of no consequence following that and both teams knocked the ball around aimlessly until the ref eventually said we could all go home.

The draw keeps us in fourth place after the hoped for AFC Fylde defeat at Southport never happened, a 0-0 draw, and now we have to try and get the win at home to Kettering Town on Monday. All we can do now is hope that Cliff recovers from this latest setback by the start of next season. 

FT: 2 – 2

Goals for Chester: Stephenson 60, Dackers (pen) 65

Goals for Harriers: Morgan-Smith 72, Sterling-James 83

The Harriers Online MotM is: Joe Foulkes

Talk about the game here

Latest table and stats here

Chester FC	Goals	Subs	Time	Cards
Gray
Waters			84
Williams
Weeks
Sargent
Fitzpatrick
Burke
Glendon
Dackers			86
Apter
Stephenson
Subs:
Stanway
Grand			84
Dudley
Clarke			86
Roache
Harriers	Goals	Subs	Time	Cards
Simpson
Foulkes
Richards
Penny
Cameron
Montrose			74
Stenson			66
Martin
Morgan-Smith
Hemmings
Sterling-James			89
Subs:
Lowe
Carrington
Freemantle			66
White			89
Moyo			74
Referee:
Mr Ed Duckworth
Preston