26-12-18 – Report – Hereford FC 1 Kidderminster Harriers 0

Harriers fall to Boxing Day defeat at Hereford

Report: Phil Lench

The Harriers came away from Herefords Edgar Street ground without the Boxing Day points and, worse still, without looking anything like the team that clinically thrashed Leamington FC 4-0 a few months ago. That evening we were a team on fire with some slick passing and, crucially, some slick finishing. Now that’s nowhere to be seen and we’ve struggled to get a draw in most games played since. 

With our local rivals ensconced near to the bottom of the table, and a large Harriers expected following, this was supposed to be a game up for grabs but by the end we were a shambles.

The first sign of shambolic thinking came from the manager when the team line-up was announced. Russ Penn, who had given a bit of strength to the side since his arrival was relegated to the bench in favour of the ‘blow hot and cold’ Billy Daniels. For the hosts Josh Gowling was at the centre of their defence while another former Harrier, Calvin Dinsley, was out wide.

The first ten minutes of the game was scrappy beyond belief with both sides looking nervous. The only excitement was provided by the Hereford striker Mike ‘Sumo’ Symons with his lumbering over and through any player in a yellow shirt.

There was very little to talk about in the first half. Fraser Horsfall should have done better with a free header five minutes in and soon after Declan Weeks sent a free kick narrowly over the crossbar. Five minutes from the break Daniels was almost de-legged when Tom Owen-Evans scythed him down from behind and got away with it. The referee allowed play to continue as Hereford broke forward but thankfully they couldn’t complete the move and the shot was safely held by Brandon Hall.

The referee turned his attention back to Daniels to allow treatment only for him to limp off. Owen-Evans wasn’t even spoken to and Russ Penn came on for the Harriers midfielder.

In the last minutes of the half we almost took the lead when a Weeks free kick was tipped onto the bar and trickled down the back of the net leading Harriers fans to think that it had actually gone in. At the other end the hosts had a goal rightfully ruled out for offside by Sumo as Tom O’Sullivan fired home through protesting Harriers players.

HT: 0 – 0

The second period started much as the first half did with some scrappy, nervous play from both side but it was the home side that had the first chance with Kyle Finn firing straight into Halls arms but we immediately went up our end to see Dan Bradley tear the Bulls defence to bits and then fire a shot goalwards only to see Matt Yates tip the ball over his bar.

We grew confident that we could go on to actually score but that confidence was only in midfield and not with Adam Chambers who seems to have lost his confidence in front of goal. Twice he had one on one chances with the keeper but didn’t take his first when he could have lifted the ball over him but instead tried to take it round him and the ball was taken from his feet. The second chance was when he had the chance to redeem himself but this time the keeper rushed out of goal and bought him down. The keeper got booked and Weeks sent the free kick over.

With the game looking to be heading for stalemate it was all turned on it’s head when Symons was played through into the area and Ryan Johnson gave chase and pushed him over in the area. The lack of a brain in some of our players is worrying at times.

Up stepped substitute James Roberts, on earlier, to sidefoot the ball home into the righthand side of the net with Hall diving in the other direction. For the remaining ten minutes the Bulls opted to play the ball in the corner with our only attack being the second of Chambers missed chances mentioned earlier.

So Hereford go into part two of Christmas holding the upperhand and will now be more confident of another win at Aggborough on New Years Day. In between we have a tough game at Stockport to look forward too and I don’t think the team are in the right frame of mind. Neither are the fans. This is looking like a pointless Christmas. 

FT: 1 – 0

Goal for Hereford FC: Roberts 80 (pen)

The Harriers Online MotM is: Fraser Horsfall

Talk about the game here

Latest table and stats here

Hereford FC	Goals	Subs	Time	Cards
Yates
Thomas
Greenslade
O’Sullivan			82
Cullinane-Liburd
Gowling
Dinsley
Owen-Evans
Finn			67
Lloyd			57
Symons
Subs:
Horsell
Roberts			57
E Richards			67
Wharton			82
Dielna
Harriers	Goals	Subs	Time	Cards
Hall
Vaughan
Austin
Daniels			40
Horsfall
Johnson
Weeks
K Richards			67
Chambers
Bradley			78
Williams
Subs:
O’Connor
Penn			40
Baxendale			78
Phillips
Waring			67
Referee:
Mr Sam Mulhall
Cheshire