28-01-23. Match report Vs Peterborough Sports

Ash Hemmings. Set piece King

Report: Phil Lench

Ashley Hemmings grabbed a brace today in a Man of the Match winning performance at Peterborough Sports. Both goals were ‘of a few’ with the first coming from a perfectly taken free kick and the second from a perfectly taken penalty. Both we have seen very few of this season.

A late goal from Sports gave us the jitters, when the incredibly named Adburamane Sano Sani fired in a well executed strike from the corner of the area, and then in the dying seconds their keeper, Peter Crook, came up for a corner and met the ball well but thankfully sent it wide. In the end the Harriers were well deserved winners on a poor pitch that didn’t encourage good football.

Before the game came a bit of a surprise when the news came out that the former Harriers striker Michael Gash had been appointed the temporary manager of the Sports following the departure of Jimmy Dean to take up the post of the new Scunthorpe Utd manager. With the team news out it was also a surprise to us to see that Tom Palmer was keeping his place in goal even though we’d signed a new keeper yesterday in Christian Dibble.

The game got underway at a high pace but it wasn’t very pretty due to the poor surface. Very little football was being played by either side and Peterborough seemed more intent on the physical side with their centre half Connor Johnson getting away with some underhand tactics. It was good to see him get his comeuppance at the end of the first half when he jumped headfirst on to the top of Amari Morgan-Smith and bloodied his nose.

In real action terms there was very little to write home about with goalscoring chances few and far between. The first chance came for the home side when Josh McCammons attempt was cleared off the line and for us it didn’t come until the fifteen minute mark when a Hemmings free kick went wide of Crooks post. The next chance came another fifteen minutes later when AMS sent a header in but it was soft and easily collected.

He came close again when, for once, he beat their offside trap and chased a through ball towards goal but it had rolled slightly too far for him and Crook scooped the ball from his feet.

The final chance of a scrappy first half for us fell to Joe McGlynn but his shot from distance was way too soft and was a simple collect for the keeper. For the hosts Mark Jones sent one well wide of the post.

HT: 0 – 0

The second half was a much better spectacle for the Harriers fans. First of all came the news that Connor Johnson wasn’t coming back out and with it came a more cultural attempt at football from us as we began to pass the ball around more and not hoof it as much. That was still happening but only when needed.

Kai Lissimore was the first into action for us with a slightly soft shot that, again, Crook held easily. I wish we could just learn to simply whack the ball sometimes because you never know it might go in.

A few minutes later and the opening goal arrived. Harriers were awarded a free kick some way from goal and Hemmings and Shane Byrne lined up to measure the distance. Hemmings took it and the ball flew through the air and into the corner of the net leaving Crook to dive but unable to get a fingertip to it. A cracking free kick from Hemmo and one we’ve seen very little of this season so far.

Sports came back at us straight away and confusion in our box almost led to them drawing level when McCammons header looked to be going in until the ball was desperately cleared away upfield. Then came the penalty.

For once we had got bodies into the area and panic ensued for Sports. McGlynn attempted to pass the ball sideways and suddenly found himself flipped over to the ground. Up stepped Hemmo with the fans just praying that he wouldn’t mess it up with a silly hop, skip, pirouette and roll the ball towards the keeper. Luckily for us he hopped, skipped, pirouetted and drove the ball into the corner leaving the keeper to dive the wrong way.

We should have gone on then to increase our lead further but you just knew what was going to happen. Peterborough broke away quickly down the right through Dion Sembie-Ferris. He avoided defensive attention and then played he ball into the feet of Sani who struck the ball first time over the top of Palmers head and into the goal.

We should have regained our two goal advantage soon after when in some kind of inspired moment Alex Penny found himself well out of position (maybe that was the plan?) near the halfway line. This time the ball broke for us, he collected it and made his way upfield until he was one on one with the keeper and the goal looming ever nearer. He should really have just hammered the ball home but instead decided to lift it over the keeper. He lifted it over the bar instead.

Into extra time and Sports were looking for that equaliser. A bit of a mess from Nathaniel Knight-Percival in not clearing the ball led to a last gasp corner. Up came Crook and the corner kick was directed perfectly onto his head but luckily for us he sent it just wide of Palmers upright. Game over.

FT: 1 – 2

Goal for Peterborough Sports: Sani 81

Goals for Harriers: Hemmings 49, 64 (pen)

The Harriers Online MotM is: Ashley Hemmings

Talk about the game here

Latest table and stats here

Peterborough Sports	Goals	Subs	Time	Cards
Crook
Bazeley			49
Fox
Fryatt
Johnson			46
Lawlor
Sembie-Ferris
Kennedy
M Jones
Jarvis			21
McCammon
Subs:
Gash
Camara
R Jones			46
Williams-Lowe			49
Sani			21
Harriers	Goals	Subs	Time	Cards
Palmer
Penny
McNally
Knight-Percival
Pearce
Byrne
Owen-Evans			92
Lissimore
Morgan-Smith
McGlynn			73
Hemmings
Subs:
Dibble
Martin			92
Margetson
Freemantle			73
Bearne
Referee:
Mr James Westgate
Durham