17-10-22. FA Cup 4th Qual Rd replay. Match preview Vs AFC Fylde

Preview: Phil Lench

The Harriers reward for failing to beat AFC Fylde on Saturday is this replay tomorrow evening at Fylde and their reward, if they somehow overcome a team that we’ve never beaten, is a 1st round proper game against Gillingham at Aggborough.

First of all we have to get past this major obstacle. On Saturday they took the lead through a Nick Haughton goal, of course, but we hit back in the second half with a goal each for Ashley Hemmings (although general consensus was that it should have been given to Krystian Pearce) and Yusifu Ceesay. Of course Haughton had to have the last laugh and drew his side level soon after with a well taken – but poorly defended – free kick.

We started that game with yet another training injury when Alex Penny was withdrawn from the squad before the game with a suspected hamstring pull once again. Ethan Freemantle also didn’t make the cut following his withdrawal from the game against Farsley Celtic a week previously. Again it was a back injury picked up in training that forced him out. Add in Jack Tolley and Jack Bearne both injured in training and you have to wonder if we have a problem there.

Bearne came back from his injury and played for most of the original game but was played out quite wide with Ceesay leading the line. Sadly Ceesay is not the out and out striker we’ve all been wishing and hoping for.

Hopefully there’ll be no more training ground injuries and we can put out a strong team at Fylde. The only worry could be from the referee who teaches at a school in Poulton le Fylde some eight miles from Mill Farm.

Hopefully too the added impetus of playing another struggling league club is enough for us to buckle down and beat this lot at last.

Teams:

Harriers from:

Palmer, Emery, Penny, Richards, Knight-Percival, Foulkes, Pearce, Margetson, Lowe, Bastable, Leak, Lissimore, Byrne, Brown, Owen-Evans, Burgess, Rogers, Martin, Freemantle, Tolley, Bearne, Hemmings, Morgan-Smith, Ceesay.

AFC Fylde from:

Neal, Cranston, Weston, Obi, Whitmore, Rowley, Philliskirk, Cullen, Conlan, Morrison, Gregson, Barratt, Haughton, Piggott, Walker, Whitehead, Rowe, Ligendza, Hatfield, J Byrne, Davis, Patten, Bird, Holmes.

Referee: Mr Paul Marsden. Leyland

Talk about the game here

Links to AFC Fylde websites here

Find Pubs around Kidderminster here