Match Report: Moors 2 -1 Kidderminster Harriers

Chris Millington's Solihull Moors side beat Kidderminster 2-1 in the National League, blowing off the early season cobwebs to record back-to-back wins for the first time this season, in what was a Halloween thriller at Damson Park. The Moors got off to a horror start, when The Harriers scored with their first attack of the game, with Lewis Walker tapping in from a few yards out after 3 minutes. Ben Wodskou then equalised for Solihull with a header just 3 minutes later, assisted by Marvin Johnson. Kidderminster's Ben Crompton then diverted into his own net on 41 minutes, with his own goal proving to be the final nail in the coffin for the away side in an action-packed display that saw plenty of blood, sweat and tears from both sides. The very first action of the game was a monstrous header by Alex Whitmore, followed by a brave clearance by Andrews, that saw the midfield man wiped out with bone-crunching challenge in a feisty first 30 seconds. Goal - 3' Kidderminster. Paul Wotton's side got off to the perfect start, when a nice ball over the top by new Kiddy loan-signing Maz Kouhyar fell to Callum Stewart, who looked dubiously offside at first glance, before the attacker squared across goal for Lewis Walker to tap into an empty net. 0-1 GOAL - 6' Moors. Not to be disheartened by the early setback, The Moors won a free-kick in what's fast becoming 'Marvin Johnson territory' on the left-wing. Johnson curled the set-piece into the box, and Ben Wodskou, who's been in deadly form lately, made no mistake, planting his header past Jack Wint in the Kidderminster goal. 1-1 The equaliser galvanised the home side, with Millington's men playing some lovely football and dominating large chunks of the game. The home side were unlucky on several occasions, when they were unable to find the killer final ball. A lapse in concentration at the back allowed the Harriers to break down the left, but Oscar Rutherford did well to close his man down, and Jevon Mills got into the right place to block the cross. Elias Kachunga was a split second away from getting in the end of a loose ball following a mistake at the back for Kidderminster, with just getting enough on the ball to deny the Moors attacker. Solihull continued to push Wotton's side back, and were almost rewarded for their efforts less than a minute later, Wint this time misjudging from a similar situation, which allowed Jacob Wakeling to nip in and collect the ball around 20 yards out. The goal was at his mercy, but the number 9 rolled agonisingly wide of the post to let Kidderminster off the hook. Down the other end, Ryan Woods got himself in the way of a powerful effort that looked to be going on target, as the Reds looked to catch Solihull on the break. Then in typical Wodskou fashion, he won a ball out of nowhere, and laid it off to Wakeling, who was fouled on the left. Marvin Johnson took the free-kick, which was headed a yard wide by Tyler French. Carrying on from Tuesday's battling performance, Jevon Mills produced a flying block after Kiddy burst down the right and Kouhyar looked to get a shot away. David Davis sliced wide from 20 yards during Kidderminster's best spell of possession. Whitmore then blocked a powerful shot from Callum Stewart and the visitors won free kick 25 yards out, after Solihull couldn't properly clear their lines. The Moors fans were beginning to become agitated by some of the ghoulish decisions made by the linesman during the first half, with a number of blatant offside calls that were missed. With Solihull back on the attack again, Wodskou then let fly from around 25 yards and saw his stinging effort go just over the bar. More frustration was then aimed towards the official running the line, when a Kidderminster player clearly knocked the ball out of play for a goal kick, but was then awarded a corner with another ghastly decision. The corner eventually led to another corner, which was only half cleared, and landed at the feet of Maz Kouhyar, who struck an effort from outside the box, but it was well saved by Sam Johnson. Johnson was straight back up and made an even better second save from a Crompton attempt, that was lashed at goal from an angle, before Marvin Johnson won a free kick and took away the Kidderminster momentum. A penalty appeal for Solihull followed moments later, when Kachunga was hauled down in the box, but the ref instantly waved the penalty calls away. GOAL - 41' Moors. Wodskou, who was terrorising the away defence, collected the ball and held off a defender as he tore through on the right-hand side of the box. The former Birmingham City man fired a low ball across goal, which was turned into his own net by the unlucky Ben Crompton, and the travelling fans Halloween began to turn into a nightmare, as Solihull went into a deserved lead. 2-1 Second half Kidderminster came flying out of the blocks at the start of the second half, only to find a resilient Moors backline holding firm. An important Whitmore header was followed up by a big block by Jamie Andrews, before Whitmore headed another dangerous ball clear, and Andrews blocked again. Superb stuff from both players. Shortly after, a great chance then came and went for Solihull, when a Johnson cross was too high for Wodskou, who couldn't get enough on a header, the ball then fell nicely for Wakeling who smashed over the bar from 8 yards. There were then a couple of penalty appeals in quick succession, as Kiddy broke through on goal, Walker ghosted into the box and went down with a blood-curdling scream, but nothing was given other than a goal kick. Then down the other end Solihull wanted one when Marvin Johnson crumbled under a challenge, again nothing given as the referee looked unwilling to dish out any treats to The Moors. DISALLOWED GOAL - 51' Kidderminster. The away side break through the middle, and as the ball is laid across for a tap in, the linesman raised his flag. Andrews and Whitmore were again at the centre of the defensive action, combining to block and clear a dangerous attack when under considerable pressure. Chris Millington made his first substitutions of the game just before the hour mark, introducing Joe Sbarra and Tyrell Warren for Kachunga and Rutherford in an effort to turn the tide back in his sides favour, after Kidderminster's attacks became more frequent. Sbarra's first contribution since coming on was to burst down the left and win a corner, which was taken by Johnson. Whitmore tried to get a touch on it, but his effort lacked power and trickled wide. Not for the first time in the match, a lovely move involving Woods, Wodskou and Wakeling in the middle of the pitch, saw Woods dink a beautiful ball over the top to send Wakeling through into the box, but just as the attacker was about to strike, Kiddy defender Richard Faakye flew in with a vital block. Another crucial save from Sam Johnson followed, as Walker broke through one on one, Whitmore had enough strength to slow his momentum, then Johnson did brilliantly to get down and block the strikers shot. As the game became more end to end, a wonderful reverse ball over the top from Sbarra sent Johnson through on the left, before the ex-Sheffield Wednesday man weaved in on his right foot, then onto his left again before finally pulling the trigger with a shot that was blocked and Kidderminster went back on the attack. An absolutely brilliant challenge to prevent a shot on goal followed, again by Andrews, who came sprinting back and had to time his sliding challenge perfectly. The Solihull-born midfielder jumped to his feet and passionately threw his arms into the air towards the crowd, showing just how much this result would mean for the team and our supporters. From the resulting clearance, Wakeling broke up the other end and gained some much-needed respite for his side, before winning a free-kick. His effort was applauded by the home fans, who recognise the strikers tireless running and work-rate at both ends of the pitch, which is rare trait for such a talented attacking player. The only thing his impressive performance lacked was a goal, but he's provided them on more than enough occasions to be let off with missing a chance or two. With the game now becoming even more open, Scott High was brought on for man of the match Wodskou, who left the pitch with another goal and an assist as The Moors tried to gain back some more control in the midfield. Yet another penalty appeal was then waved away for The Moors, as Sbarra's short was nearly ripped off his back, but again, the referee remained unmoved. Kidderminster, who were now throwing everything at the resolute Solihull defence, had a decent opportunity when Kouhyar blazed over from long-range. Kouhyar again drove towards the box, before sliding the ball through to young attacker Minaker, who's curling effort was palmed away fantastically by Sam Johnson. Minaker then regained possession, but his second effort is deflected and collected comfortably by Johnson as Damson Park breathed a huge sigh of relief. Another questionable decision was made by the referee when Solihull broke out on the counter attack after clearing a Kidderminster free-kick. Wakeling raced through the middle and towards the opposition's half, alongside Sbarra, who was busting a gut to keep up, and with only the goalkeeper to beat, Davis pulled Wakeling down to deny him a goalscoring opportunity. With everybody in the ground expecting him to be sent off, the referee brandished only a yellow, perhaps due to it being in the final seconds of the game. Yet another potential penalty for Solihull, as this time Wakeling is bundled over, but at this point, it wasn't even worth asking for one. The referee then blew the final whistle of a pulsating game, as The Moors finally won a 3pm game, to exorcise the Saturday demons, having previously only won Tuesday night games so far in the league. We already knew Solihull weren't afraid of the dark, but a torrid season now begins to rise from the dead after an incredible win at a Spine-tingling Damson Park. Man of the match Ben Wodskou Attendance 1333 (including 595 travelling away fans) Thank you, as always Moors fans, for the incredible support you provide. We hope you have a safe journey home, and we will see you soon. Come on you Moors!💛💙 Next up We now have a short break, before we make the trip to Sutton in our next league game. The fixture will be on Saturday 14th November, with a 3pm kick-off. To purchase a coach ticket for the game, please visit the link below - https://solihullmoorsfc.ticketco.events/uk/en/e/sutton_away_coach_travel_2627?version=m Match report written by Scott Cattell