The Harriers go into FA Cup action tomorrow when Eastleigh wing their way to Worcestershire for this 4th Qualifying round game. It's the first time that the two teams have ever met but that duck would have been broken in January anyway when they will be coming to Aggborough for their first ever League game against us following their promotion from the Conference South last season.We'll be without Josh Gowling for the game, out with his shoulder injury still, and also Jack Byrne who finds it is his turn for a one match ban this weekend following his booking in the 2-0 defeat at Halifax last weekend. Luckily we have no one on four yellow cards prior to this game so that record won't last for a fourth weekend. Unless one of our players get sent off that is. Kyle Storer will be returning from his one game ban tomorrow.
Eastleigh, as mentioned just now, gained promotion from the Conference South last season after bubbling under for a few years. It was a hefty input of money that finally clinched them a place and with that money they strengthened their chances of staying up here by signing some players that we could only dream of. Jack Midson arrived from Wimbledon, Stuart Fleetwood from Luton, Ben Strevens from Dagenham while James Constable was the one we could afford once but no longer. He upped sticks from Oxford at the end of last season to join up with the Spitfires on a free transfer even though he had been just given a new contract with Oxford.
Many will remember Beanos time with us and his two goals in the first ever club final at the new Wembley where we sadly lost in the second half to an inspired Stevenage and some poor substitutions by our then manager Mark Yates.
Eastleigh will be without the aforementioned Midson due to a shoulder injury along with Ben Wright (knee)and defender Jamie Turley (arm).
If, hopefully not, Eastleigh manage to beat us tomorrow, or in a replay on Tuesday, then the 1st Round Proper will be the furthest they have ever gone in the competition. Last season we started our Cup campaign against Bradford PA, beating them in a replay after getting held to a draw up there, Sutton Utd came in the 1st Round with a tie against Newport County in the following round. Then came the two games against Peterborough that saw the exit of former manager Steve Burr in between. The replay was probably a highlight in any season for the fans that went and saw us beat the League 2 side 3-2 and the triggering of the eventual sale of Joe Lolley (above) to Huddersfield a few days later.
We managed to go all the way to the 4th Round where a Lolley less Harriers finally lost at Sunderland and the obvious thoughts that if Joe had still been with us we would surely have beaten such weak Premiership opposition.
We'll be wanting to do the same this season please Harriers
Photo © KHFC
Teams:
Harriers from:
Lewis, Singh, Hodgkiss, Green, Storer, Dunkley, Nicholson, Grimes, Williams, O'Keefe, Obeng, Johnson, Verma, Blissett, Gittings, Gash, C Reid, Styche, Hales.
Eastleigh from:
Flitney, Noice, Helm, Spence, Green, Collins, Beckwith, Todd, Odubade, Stanley, Constable, Reason, McAllister, Midson, Fleetwood, Strevens, Smith, Evans, P Reid, Weeks, Wright, Peacock, Lee, Connolly.
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