Northwich Victoria 0(0) v (1)1 Kidderminster Harriers

Football Conference National - Victoria Stadium - 19 August 2006

Attendance: 976

Individual Stats
Northwich
Shots
Fouls
Off.
v Kidderminster
Shots
Fouls
Off.
 
On
Off
For
Ag
     
On
Off
For
Ag
 
Phil Senior 6 0(3) 0 0 0 0 [1] Scott Bevan 7 0(3) 0 0 0 0
Richard Battersby 5 0 0 3 0 0 [2/4] Gavin Hurren 7 0 1 0 0 0
Tony Gallimore 5 0 0 1 0 0 [3/21] Gavin Cowan 6 1(1) 0 1 2 0
Gareth Griffiths 5 0 0 1 0 0 [4/6] Stuart Whitehead 5 0 0 1 0 0
Kieran Charnock 5 0 1 5 1 0 [6/5] Mark Creighton 6 0 0 2 3 0
Mike Carr 5 0 1 3 1 1 [8/23] Dwayne Lee 5 0 0 0 2 0
Mike Byrne 5 1(1) 0 2 3 0 [14/18] Brian Smikle 6 1(1) 0 1 3 1
Steve Payne 5 0 1 4 2 0 [12/7] Jake Sedgemore 5 0 0 0 5 0
Jonny Allan 5 0 0 0 2(1h) 0 [9/14] Luke Reynolds 7 1 0 0 1 3
Kevin Townson 5 1(1) 2 1 2 3 [18/16] Russ Penn 7 0 2 2 2 0
Chris Williams 5 0 1 0 0 0 [19/11] Michael Blackwood 6 0 3 3 1 0
Paul Brayson 5 1(1) 0 0 1 1 [10/3] Jonny Harkness      
Carlos Roca 5 0 0 1 0 0 [11/8] Dean Sturridge 6 1(1) 2 1 2 0
John McCarthy       [16/9] Andy White 5 0 0 0 0 0
Mark Sale 5 0 0 0 0 2 [17/15] Simon Russell 5 0 0 0 0 0
Ben Connett       [20/13] Steve Taylor      
Team Stats
  Fouls Conceded Offside Corners Shots On Shots off
Northwich 12 7 5 3 6
Kidderminster 21 4 8 4 8
GOALS
Northwich Kidderminster
    35 Luke Reynolds  
Formations
Northwich
   Senior   
Battersby Griffiths   Charnock Gallimore
     
Byrne Payne   Carr Williams
     
  Allan   Townson  
Kidderminster
   Bevan   
Hurren Whitehead   Creighton Cowan
     
Smikle Sedgemore   Lee Blackwood
   Penn   
   Reynolds   
SUBSTITUTIONS
Northwich Kidderminster
17 Roca Williams Roca to left midfield. 63 Sturridge Lee Sturridge to striker, Penn to left central midfield.  Now 4-4-2.
65 Brayson Payne Brayson to striker, Allan to left central midfield, Carr to right central midfield. 77 Russell Smikle Russell to right midfield.
80 Sale Battersby Sale to striker, Charnock to central defender, Gallimore to left central defender.  Now 3-4-3. 90+ White Sturridge White to striker.
BOOKINGS
Northwich Kidderminster
Charnock 41 Foul   Cowan 61 Unsporting Behaviour  
Referee: M. Brown (tbc)
Match Report by St@tto

Luke Reynolds' first goal of the season was enough to seal Harriers' first win of the campaign and condemn Northwich to their second successive home defeat.

Mark Yates used the same team as the one that drew with Burton in midweek except for Jeff Kenna who failed a pre-match fitness test and his place at right back went to Gavin Hurren.  Once again they gave a solid, hard-working, performance that earned them the three points.

Pouring rain throughout the match made conditions difficult for both teams and as a result the encounter was not pretty.  The early stages had little excitement and the major incident was an injury to Vics' Chris Williams who was stretchered off with a suspected broken ankle and was taken away in an ambulance.

Harriers were the first to have a really good scoring chance; Brian Smikle chased a through ball in the inside left position and was only denied by the alertness of home keeper Phil Senior who was quick off his line to deflect the ball away for a corner.  The home side should have taken the lead midway through the half; a free kick was pumped into goalmouth from the right and was dropped by Scott Bevan who appeared to be fouled, the ball ran to Kieran Charnock who blasted his shot over the bar and out of the ground.  Harriers took the lead ten minutes before the end of the half, the goal coming somewhat out of the blue; Michael Blackwood found himself in space on the left and rolled the ball across the penalty area to an unmarked Luke Reynolds who had an easy task to score.

The Vics could have got themselves back into the game in the opening seconds of the second half but Mike Byrne's long range shot was pushed away for a corner by Bevan who had got down well to his right.  Harriers began to take control of the game, however, and created a string of chances to finish the game off.  Reynolds' pass through the inside right channel set Smikle away, he exchanged passes with Russ Penn and his shot nearly caught out Senior who spilled the ball away for a corner.

Reynolds had the ball in the net again midway through the half as Harriers pressed for another goal, heading in from Gavin Cowan's left wing cross but the flag was up for offside and the goal did not stand.  Dean Sturridge came on for the ineffective Dwayne Lee and he created an opening for Penn but the midfielder headed his cross over the bar.  Penn then turned provider moments later, his pass through the middle set Sturridge free but his shot was straight at the keeper.  Cowan then went close, meeting Jake Sedgemore's cross  but heading straight at Senior.

There was a danger that Harriers would rue their missed chances and were almost made to pay after 77 minutes when Carlos Roca got free on the left; his cross was headed away by Cowan at the far post only as far as Mike Carr on the edge of the penalty area who blasted his shot over the bar.  Five minutes from the end Harriers went close again, Sedgemore's free kick from the right found Sturridge whose diving header went over the bar.  There were no more scares for Harriers despite the addition of four minutes of stoppage time and they deservedly held on to take all three points.