Kidderminster Harriers Youth 6(2) v (1)1 Leamington

Harriers kept alive their faint hopes of winning the league with a return to winning form with their biggest win of the season.

After their disappointing defeat against Hednesford earlier in the week Harriers set out to win from the start and within 30 seconds of the start could have taken the lead.  Tom Byrne chased a pass through the inside-right channel and took the ball around the keeper and shot into the side netting.  Mitch Butler went close on 7 minutes; Nathan Walker pumped a free-kick forward to the edge of the penalty area and Butler's volley was well tipped over the bar by Tom Heath in the Leamington goal.

After Byrne had created another opening for Butler that he missed, with Tom Meyrick's follow-up shot being saved, Harriers surprisingly fell behind.  The ball was played over the top of the Harriers defence and Andy Gordon held off the challenge of Joe Corbett only to see his shot saved but Sean Rellis was following up to fire into the empty net.

The lead was short-lived, however, as Harriers drew level within a minute; Karl Hooper played a pass over the defence on the left and Byrne beat Heath with a deft lob from the edge of the penalty area.  Nathan Walker put Butler in five minutes before the break but he snatched at his shot and pulled it wide of the far post.  Soon afterwards, though, Harriers were ahead; a corner from the left was met by the head of Butler at the far post but it lacked power and trickled over the line through a crowd of legs.

After the break it was all Harriers; they piled on the misery for Leamington adding a further four goals.  On the hour Meyrick played the ball in from the left to substitute Levi Chambers who juggled the ball at the near post before lobbing it over the head of Heath.  The fourth goal came in the last ten minutes; Chambers was involved again, after receiving the ball over the middle of the defence his lob hit the post but Butler was on hand to slot in the rebound.  Two minutes later Scott Eaton added a fifth; he beat Heath to the ball played in from deep on the right and was left with a simple tap in.  In stoppage time Butler completed his hat-trick, taking his total for the season to 23, Dan Upton's throw from the right found him at the near post, his initial shot was saved but he was quick to react and lash in the loose ball.