15-08-17 – Report – Harriers 2 Leamington FC 0

Sonupè makes a fool of Walkabout Breeden

Report: Phil Lench

A third goal of the season from Manny Sonupè clinched all three points this evening but it’s the former Harriers keeper Tony Breeden that we have to thank for it. During his time with us he deservedly earned the nickname Walkabout Breeden and tonight he showed us well and truly why.

With his side going for an equaliser, and all his team mates up for a last gasp corner, the overweight clown sauntered up hoping to get his head on the ball. He did and it bounced off his baldness but then he decided to stay up there instead of running back to guard his goal. We played the ball around until it found Sonupè and he dashed forward and directed it into the empty net from the halfway line to clinch the game for us.

Exciting stuff so can we leave it there because, to be honest, the rest of the game was below par fare and there was very little to compare to last season. Then we looked too good for the Conference and easily good enough for League 1. This time round we look like the National North side that we are.

Our passing game seems to have now gone and we started the game looking a right shambles. Being without Ryan Croasdale didn’t help matters (he was excused for personal reasons) and passes were going astray, challenges were clumsy and overall it wasn’t football being played the right way. Leamington were even worse than us and looked like a team with one eye on 22nd place.

The visitors had arrived at Aggborough with six ex Reds in the squad and also with the intention of returning back home with a point. They were the first to get a chance of scoring when new signing Joel Taylor cleared a loose corner ball off the line. Our first chance also came from a corner and this time it was Liam Daly with a trademark header that went just over.

We began to get our passing game together after around twenty minutes but it still wasn’t the kind we were used to. Elton N’Gwatala was the creative lynchpin and his tricks left Leamington defenders kicking out at fresh air. Sonupè was seeing plenty of the ball too but his control for the final ball was letting him down and so most of our attacks were breaking down.

We rarely troubled Breeden.

HT: 0 – 0

The second period started in a similar pattern as the first with Leamington still hoping for the draw and happy with their two lines of four across the back. We were still finding it hard to get through them but finally we did when some Sonupè trickery inside the box seduced substitute Milan Butterfield into a reckless ankle tap and Snoopy went down.

Up stepped Joe Ironside to, hopefully, dispatch the spot kick but he had to wait while a Leamington player mysteriously fell to the ground clutching his leg even though there was no one near him. Joe waited patiently then once given the go ahead by the referee sent Breeden the wrong way.

Leamington laid off their time wasting tactics a little now that they had gone a goal down and we struggled to build on the goal for a while. Daly had another chance from a corner and Ironside should have grabbed a second goal when he completely mis-kicked in front of an almost empty goal.

The visitors probably came the closest to scoring when they were given a free kick on the edge of the area after James McQuilkin pointlessly bought one of theirs down and could also have earned himself a second yellow card too after he had already been booked minutes earlier for kicking the ball away. Connor Gudger took the kick and the Harriers keeper, Brandon Hall, bought off the save of the game when he leapt back to flick the ball over for a corner.

That corner was the one that Breeden came up for and we all know what followed.

Now up to ninth place in the table, and two consecutive wins, things are looking a little better for us so hopefully we can get something from a challenging game at Salford City next Saturday and make it even higher up the table. 

FT: 0 – 2

Goals for Harriers: Ironside 65 (pen, Sonupè 91

The Harriers Online MotM is: Liam Daly

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

Latest table and stats here

Harriers	Goals	Subs	Time	Cards
Hall
Williams
Taylor
Weeks
Daly
Digie
Sonupè			92
McQuilkin
Ironside
N’Gwatala			60
Bradley			74
Subs:
A Brown			74
Webb
Austin			92
Keane
Joachim			60
Leamington FC	Goals	Subs	Time	Cards
Breeden
Taundry
Gudger
J Clarke
Hood
Magunda
Obeng
English			81
Bishop
Gittings			75
Thompson-Brown			57
Subs:
Butterfield			57
Bevan			81
Moore
Canavan			75
James
Referee:
Mr Thomas Kirk
Manchester