VALLEY
& KIDDY SEE PLENTY OF ACTION IN FINAL FRIENDLY
Rugby
Town rounded off their pre-season preparations
with another creditable performance losing narrowly
against Blue Square Bet Premier side Kidderminster
Harriers at Butlin Road.
By
Jon Venner
Photo:
Martin Pulley |
 |
 |
Ben
Steane played an influential
role from midfield for Rugby against
Blue Square Bet Premier side Kidderminster
Harriers at Butlin Road. |
|
Overall
Valley more than held their own for long periods
of the game against a team that just missed out
on a play-off place in the Blue Square Conference
in 2010-11.
After
having fallen behind to an early Kidderminster
goal, a Seb Hamilton brace saw Town take the lead
before the away side levelled once more ahead
of the interval.
Two
second half strikes did ultimately seal the win
for the visitors, although Valley did rattle the
opposition woodwork on three separate occasions
in total.
The
first of those near misses came in the opening
exchanges with Richard Wesley just denied an early
goal firing against the underside of the crossbar
from 18 yards.
Tyrone
Fagan then got in behind the Kiddy back-four,
only to delay his shot for too long – allowing
his marker the opportunity to make amends.
Marc
Williams gave Harriers the lead on ten minutes
forcing home from close range, after ex-Nuneaton
midfielder Kyle Storer’s shot from twenty
yards had fallen fortuitously at his feet.
However
the visitors’ advantage was relatively short
lived when JJ Cole opened up their defence with
an excellent reverse pass on 24 minutes, and Hamilton
powered through before applying a clinical finish.
Another
pass from Cole – this time a longer through
ball – released Hamilton once more ten minutes
later, and again the Rugby striker made no mistake
with his shot to put his side ahead.
Kidderminster’s
Nick Wright scored at the third attempt after
new Rugby goalkeeper Louis Connor had blocked
his intital effort, but Valley were unlucky not
to regain the lead when Cole’s well-executed
volley cannoned back off the angle of the frame
– with Wesley blazing the rebound over an
unguarded net.
The
visitors started the second period well with Connor
turning substitute Steve Guinan’s low shot
around the post. However he was unable to get
a hand to the ball when another half-time replacement
Callum Gittings’s curled one into the net
on 51 minutes, after the home defence had given
Guinan far too much space in the build-up.
Storer
then twice went close, before Town struck wood
for a third and final occasion – with Fagan
this time the unlucky player.
The
full-time side’s fitness finally began to
tell in the closing twenty minutes. Luke Medley
blazed over after Kidderminster had broken quickly
and outnumbered a tiring Town, and Robert Thompson-Brown
also sent an effort high of the target.
For
the home side, Adam Khan did pull one wide of
the post though and Ben Steane chipped into the
keeper’s hands.
Guinan
rounded off the scoring when he lifted the ball
over the off-the-line Connor from around thirty
yards on 84 minutes.
Valley
Line-up: Connor; Moran, Reece (Hall),
Preston, Gourlay; Steane, Wesley, Gundelach (Evans),
Steane, Cole (Wilson); Fagan (Haycock), Hamilton
(Khan), Sub not used: Da Costa
Kidderminster
squad: Lewis, Vaughan, Mike Williams,
Jones, Phelan, Marshall, Hankin, Vincent, Guinan,
Marc Williams, Byrne, Thompson-Brown, Wright,
Sharpe, Briscoe, Medley, Gittings, Matt, Demetriu,
Storer, Lyness.
|
