KIDDY’S LOWE IS ON A HIGH!
JOHN EUSTACE hailed his troops as Kidderminster came from behind at the expense of Darlington 1883 in a full-bloodied affair at Aggborough to register a fourth straight league win.
Goals from Tyrell Waite and Keith Lowe, after Dave Syers had given the Quakers an early lead, ensured that Harriers sit second in the table at Christmas, seven points behind runaway leaders AFC Fylde. A happy Eustace told The
NLP: “I’m delighted with the three points. Every game is difficult and we have a very young squad, but I couldn’t be prouder of the way these young lads stood up to the fight today.
“They are learning and they are progressing all the time and that’s what we want them to do.”
Darlington were unlucky not to have taken the lead a minute before they broke the deadlock as Lowe had to clear Terry Galbraith’s effort off the line.
The Quakers’ opener was an impressive forward move. Mark Beck controlled a long ball forward before laying off wide to Josh Gillies, who provided a slide-rule cross for Syers, who arrived late to smash the ball past Sam Hornby from close range in the seventh minute.
Harriers had the perfect immediate response for the visitors.
Elton Ngwatala’s clever ball presented James McQuilkin with a one-on-one chance and as he threaded the ball past Peter Jameson, the ball cannoned back off the post and Waite was on hand to finish decisively into an open goal.
The game continued at a frantic pace but neither side could carve out as good a chance as they did in the opening ten minutes until Syers latched on to a long ball but steered the ball well over Hornby’s bar seven minutes before the break.
If the bulk of the first half action came in the first quarter of an hour, it was the last fifteen minutes of the match that provided the better second half entertainment.
With 13 minutes remaining, McQuilkin curled a deep free-kick from the left for Lowe to head in the eventual winner, a downward header for which he was left unmarked.
Almost immediately Harriers missed the chance to put the game to bed.
Substitute Mani Dieseruvwe was barged over by Gary Brown in the box and referee Robert Massey-Ellis pointed to the spot, but Ngwatala’s penalty was easily smothered by Jameson, diving low to his left.
Darlington threw everything forward in search of an equaliser and Leon Scott must have thought his 25-yard shot would find the net through a melee of defenders, but an unsighted Hornby pulled off an excellent reaction save.
Quakers boss Martin Gray was left to rue the quick equaliser.
“We started the game well, and I was delighted with the game plan which worked well enough, but conceding within 40 seconds of scoring was the biggest mistake we could make,” he admitted. STAR MAN: Keith Lowe (Kidderminster) ATT: 1,710 ENTERTAINMENT: ★★★★★ REFEREE: Robert Massey-Ellis