Vanarama National League North
Aggborough Stadium
Saturday 3rd August 2019

Debutants Josh March and Kaiman Anderson salaged a point for battling Brakes at Aggborough as Paul Holleran’s ten men staged a late fightback to frustrate Kidderminster on opening day.

All had looked rosy in the Leamington garden at half time as they led 1-0 courtesy of March’s well taken penalty, but a lacklustre Harriers switched up a couple of gears and deservedly led with time trickling away, only for second half substitute Anderson to pop up with a well taken equaliser to delight the travelling support.

All of Holleran’s summer signings were in the squad, with four in the starting eleven. Jake Weaver was one of those and he calmed the nerves in the early minutes by confidently coming off his line to claim a right wing cross, before later holding a curling shot from Ashley Chambers.

Brakes got their first effort in as the returning Jordan Murphy collected a left wing cross and laid the ball back for Junior English to strike low towards goal, but the shot was blocked.

As always Harriers were moving the ball around well but without that final bit of quality to finish things off. Former Brakes loanee Milan Butterfield somehow won a corner as he horribly miscued a shot followng one such passage of play.

Correy Davidson posed a large threat in the first half with his runs down the left when he was able to get past English, and he was allowed to advance with the ball before lashing a powerful effort across goal and just wide of the far post. He was then denied by a piece of quick thinking from Weaver as the goalkeeper dashed off his line once more to bravely claim the ball at the feet of the Kidderminster wing back just inside the penalty area as he looked to nick it past him.

Davidson again struck for goal from a rather laboured free kick routine on the edge of the Leamington penalty area, but the ball was straight at Weaver.

Leamington then hit the front when they were awarded a penalty four minutes before half time, March being bundled to the ground by more than one defender as he rose to try and win the ball inside the box. The striker picked himself up and ensured he would remember his first game for the club as he confidently drilled the penalty past Harriers debutant Cameron Gregory. Play was then briefly halted as a lone pitch invader attempted to show the Referee his phone, presumably to tell him he was wrong to award the spot kick.

Davidson blazed an early effort high over the roof of the North Terrace as the home side looked to get back on level terms quickly, but initially they were perhaps too hurried with their build up play, inexplicably straying offside from a short corner.

English got an important deflection on a stinging drive from Butterfield to divert the ball a whisker past the upright as Kidderminster turned up the heat, while Davidson miscued another effort at goal. Jack Lane then intervened to head behind with Chambers lurking just yards from goal. Butterfield was left with his head in his hands as he somehow directed the ball the wrong side of the post having been left unmarked at the far post from the resulting corner.

Declan Weeks then saw English defelct his shot behind for another corner, but the equaliser was not long in coming, Chambers nodding in from close range, possibly from an offside position, after Alex Prosser had been afforded far too much time and space to thunder a shot off the crossbar from just outside the box with 56 minutes played.

Leamington were certainly under the cosh now, and the Kidderminster pressure dividends when Ed Williams headed in from almost on the goal line with 18 minutes remaining to put them ahead for the first time. The Brakes players were clearly unhappy with something that had ocurred in the build up, and Referee Kristian Silcock looked to be going over to consult his assistant on the near side before changing his mind and signalling the goal.

Edwards almost headed Leamington level from Murphy’s inswinging left wing free kick, before doing superbly to hook the ball back into play as a Kidderminster defender tried to let it run out, allowing Connor Gudger to sling in a cross to the back post that was met by the incoming March, but sadly he could only blaze his effort high over the bar.

The manager sent on his third debutant substitute in Ravi Shamsi with ten minutes to go but it looked as though his chance to make an impact would be dramatically reduced when Edwards was sent off, shown a straight red card after appearing to do no more than lose his footing as he chased the ball to the near touchline with Harriers’ Cliff Moyo. It looked a very harsh decision, and the Leamington captian tried to argue his case but the decision had been made.

It looked a long way back for Brakes from here but despite the number of new faces they were able to draw on that never-say-die spirit that has got them out of jail so many times in the past, and with four minutes to go they stunned the home crowd into silence with an equaliser. With the Kidderminster defence standing still somewhat and expecting the ball to to roll out of play, English did superbly to pull it back from the right into the six yard box, and there was Anderson to ram a first time shot into the roof of the net. An equaliser out of nothing, and a welcome opening day point at one of the clubs expected to be fighting for promotion this season.

Attendance: 1,551 (107)

Kidderminster Harriers: Cameron Gregory (d), Sam Austin, Correy Davidson, Rhys Williams (d), Cliff Moyo © (d), Ryan Johnson, Declan Weeks, Milan Butterfield, Ashley Chambers, Ed Williams, Alex Prosser (14 Richard Peniket, 65).

Subs not used: 12 Jimmy O’Connor, 13 Tom Palmer, (d2), 15 Harry Higginson, 16 Knorry Scott.

Leamington: Jake Weaver (d), Junior English, Connor Gudger, Joe Clarke, James Mace, Jack Lane, Jordan Murphy (d2), Callum Gittings (16 Gift Mussa, 77), Josh March (15 Ravi Shamsi, 80), Jack Edwards ©, Cieron Keane (12 Kaiman Anderson, 63).

Subs not used: 14 Reece King, 17 Jamie Hood.

Referee: Mr Kristian Silcock

Assistant Referees: Mr Michael Herzog & Mr Liam Corbett

Brakes Man of the Match: Junior English.