Harriers 3 Woking 0
Date: 21-03-09
Venue: Aggborough
att: 1594
away fans: 96
|
Woking brushed aside with ease
The Harriers continued in their rich vein of form and brushed aside the insipid challenge of the once useful Woking to keep up with the pack. We went back up to sixth place in the table after being knocked down to seventh following Oxfords win over Kettering in mid-week but we do have three games in hand over them.
In glorious sunshine that heralded the official return of Spring the Reds kicked off fielding what is now becoming our regular starting eleven and bench. For some reason we failed to get into our stride and Wokings plan of packing the defence and hoofing any loose balls high into the air seemed to be putting off the more cultured Harriers players.
As early as the sixth minute of the game we should have been awarded a penalty when leading scorer Justin Richards was un-ceremoniously pulled backwards by Pat Konan as they tussled to reach the ball. The referee ignored the offence totally.
Justin had a real chance to score soon after when Keith Lowe made use of his trademark long throws to provide him with the ball but his volley went wide.
For a long period of the game we too resorted to playing the long ball for our front men to run onto but the Woking players were closing us down too quickly for that tactic and we needed to get the ball back onto the ground.
That returned when Chris McPhee and Darryl Knights swapped passes to supply Matt Barnes-Homer with a chance to shoot but just as he was about to he found the ball blocked out by Colin Miles. Just after Richards was once more dragged down by Konan, this time outside the area, and again the referee failed to punish the Woking defender with a yellow card but we did get a free kick out of him.
With five minutes of the first half remaining we started, at last, to put a bit of pressure on Danny Knowles. First a free kick from Darryl Knights was played into Chris McPhee who forced the ex Weymouth keeper into dropping the ball and then we took the lead at last.
Another free kick was taken, this time by Lowe, and it managed to sail over everyone into the net but could have taken a slight touch off Martin Riley. He was credited with the goal so that's how it can stay.
HT: 1 - 0
After the break it again took time for us to get into the game with Woking still employing their spoiling tactics. Time and again shirts were getting pulled and handball offences were being committed with no real reaction from the referee.
It took ten minutes into the half to produce anything resembling good and then the floodgates opened. We actually started to believe in ourselves and began to put some passes together and pressurise Woking more. First MBH went in for a fifty-fifty ball between him and the keeper with Knowles bravely saving as MBH leapt over him and then a free kick following a foul on Russ Penn was struck straight into the wall by Knights.
Both sides made substitutions with Daniel Sintim coming on in place of Miles for the visitors and a few moments later Dazzler Knights made way for Brian Smikle.
Chris McPhee fired the ball over from twenty yards out and then out of the blue came our second goal and what a wonder goal it was. Russ Penn sent over a cross to the far touchline for Justin Richards who spotted the keeper slightly off his line and sent the ball soaring over his head and into the net from thirty yards out.
Minutes later and Justin was denied another chance to score when he went in for another fifty-fifty ball with Paul Lorraine and the big Woking defender shoulder barged Justin off the ball only for the strange referee to again bemuse the Harriers fans by awarding the free kick to Woking.
From that free kick Woking managed to get their only shot on goal for the entire game and that was sent over the bar by Kelvin Bossman.
Martin Brittain came on in place of Russ Penn following that and then four minutes later Stefan Moore came on for Richards who left the field to applause from the fans. It was the two subs that then combined to set us up with the third goal of the day.
Following a good chance for MBH, that Knowles again did well to save, Brit played a pass from midfield over to Stefan Moore out wide. He raced past his man and then put in a sublime cross for McPhee to meet at the far post and bury for the first goal of his Harriers career.
The whistle went for full time soon after and another three points in the bag for us. The victory should have been by a larger margin but it's still three points to give us some confidence when we travel to Wrexham on Monday and hopefully inflict the double over them. They lost at home to Crawley today and they have seen their play off hopes evaporate in recent weeks so now could be a good time end them for this season.