Kidderminster Harriers 1(1) v (0)1 Bristol Rovers

Football League Two - Aggborough - 22 February 2005

Attendance: 2082

Individual Stats
Kidderminster
Shots
Fouls
Off.
v Bristol
Shots
Fouls
Off.
 
On
Off
For
Ag
     
On
Off
For
Ag
 
John Danby 50(2)0000[15/1]Kevin Miller 70(6)0000
Johnny Mullins 510000[6/2]Craig Hinton 500041
Wayne Hatswell 510010[22/3]Robbie Ryan 500000
Simon Weaver 500210[8/5]Christian Edwards 500000
Mark Jackson 500010[28/14]John Anderson 500010
Dean Keates 503110[11/6]Steve Elliott 500110
Bertrand Cozic 51(1)2130[21/8]James Hunt 501110
Tom Bennett 51(1)0000[24/32]Aaron Lescott 500310
Chris Beardsley 61(1)5520[7/17]Richard Walker 61(1)0112
Blair Sturrock 73(2)1003[12/9]Junior Agogo 63(1,1w)2113
John McGrath 61(1)0200[23/16]Ryan Williams 500121
Lee Jenkins 500010[2/4]Paul Trollope     
Billy Jones     [14/11]Jamie Forrester     
Ian Foster     [16/20]Craig Disley 500100
Simon Russell     [19/26]Lewis Haldane 500000
Daniel Lewis     [1/36]Ricky Shakes     
Team Stats
  Fouls Conceded Offside Corners Shots On Shots off
Kidderminster1037911
Bristol127543
GOALS
Kidderminster Bristol
29Blair Sturrock Mullins won the ball in midfield and slipped a pass through the centre for Sturrock who lifted his shot over the advancing keeper from just inside the penalty area. 53Junior Agogo A long ball down the middle was knocked down by Walker into the path of Agogo who drilled it under Danby from 12 yards out.
Formations
Kidderminster
  Danby  
MullinsWeaver JacksonHatswell
     
CozicBennett KeatesMcGrath
     
 Beardsley Sturrock 
Bristol
  Miller  
 EdwardsAndersonElliott 
Hinton   Ryan
 HuntLescottWilliams 
     
 Walker Agogo 
SUBSTITUTIONS
Kidderminster Bristol
67JenkinsMullinsJenkins to right back. 34DisleyAndersonDisley to right midfield, Lescott to right central midfield, Hunt to left central midfield, Williams to left midfield, Hinton to right back, Ryan to left back.  Now 4-4-2.
    88HaldaneWalkerHaldane to striker.
BOOKINGS
Kidderminster Bristol
    
Referee: A. Kaye (West Yorkshire)
Match Report by St@tto

A point against the draw specialists of the league was not good enough for Harriers in their fight against relegation as closest rivals Cambridge and Rushden & Diamonds both won, Harriers are now just one point off the foot of the table and seven points from safety with only 12 games remaining.

Of those 12 games three have to be won just to catch up with Rushden who beat Bury 3-0 this evening, although with the Diamonds still to come to Aggborough a victory in that match would be useful, as it stands, however, any sequence of Harriers wins looks highly unlikely and a return to the Conference is looming large on the horizon.  Stuart Watkiss made only one change to the team that had capitulated to Shrewsbury at the weekend, Dean Keates returning from injury with Ian Foster stepping down to the bench; once again there was no sign of Iyseden Christie who has been set to return for the last three weeks.

Despite the team being essentially the same as the one that lost at Shrewsbury Harriers played well in the first half, starting in very lively fashion although inside the first five minutes the score could have been 1-1: Blair Sturrock was thwarted by Kevin Miller after a good run through the inside left channel while at the other end James Hunt dragged a shot across the face of goal.  Harriers were well on top in the opening stages and once again missed a good chance that they would later regret when Keates whipped in a dangerous cross from deep on the left to the far post where Bertrand Cozic headed over the bar.  soon after John McGrath set up a good chance for Tom Bennett but Miller was alive to the danger and saved his shot at the expense of a corner; from the flag kick both Johnny Mullins and Wayne Hatswell had shots blocked before Rovers cleared the danger.

Eventually Harriers made the breakthrough; Mullins won the ball in midfield and slipped it through the inside-right channel for the impressive Sturrock who made no mistake lifting his shot over the advancing Miller from just inside the penalty area.  There should have been more Harriers goals before the break, a Keates corner was cleared back to him and his better second cross found Chris Beardsley whose glancing header went wide of the far post.  Such was Harriers' domination of the first half that Rovers made a tactical substitution twelve minutes before the break, sacrificing one of their defenders - John Anderson - for an attacking Midfielder - Craig disley - and switched to 4-4-2.  In the last minute of the half Harriers were given a scare when Ryan Williams was set free on the right by a quick pass from Miller and his cross to the far post found Junior Agogo who volleyed over.

Early in the second half Harriers continued as they had played the first and looked to build upon their lead.  A Keates free-kick from just outside the penalty area curled over the wall but also over the bar and turned out to be one of their last good chances, and there were still forty minutes to play.  Gradually Rovers began to get back into the game and it was no surprise when they drew level; a long ball forward was knocked down by one-time Harriers target Richard Walker into the path of Agogo who took it in his stride before sweeping it under John Danby for his 16th goal of the season and his fourth of the campaign against Harriers.

From then on it looked as if anyone were to score another goal it would be the visitors.  Mark Jackson, making his home debut and still looking desperately short of match fitness, was caught out by Walker but his shot from the left was kept out by the fingertips of Danby who managed to push it wide of the far post for a corner. Later a short back header from Hatswell let in Agogo again but Harriers were fortunate to see his powerful shot rebound back off the post and away to safety.  In the closing minutes Harriers mustered a couple of half-decent efforts, a Sturrock cross from near the corner flag on the right was met by Beardsley at the near post but his dicing header went wide and then a long ball from McGrath found Sturrock who took one touch  to control and then hit a shot that Miller was equal to.

Harriers are now four games without a win and at this stage it is difficult to see where the next victory is coming from. Now that they have discovered their shooting boots and have Beardsley and Sturrock scoring goals the defence has fallen apart again and is undoing any good work done by the forwards.  Next up is a trip to a Rochdale side that have not lost at home since October.