Solihull 3
Harriers 2

EXPERIMENTAL Harriers suffered their second pre-season loss after a second half penalty on Tuesday night.

The Aggborough outfit had battled back from two goals down only to fall behind to a Ross Dempster penalty.

As an exercise manager Steve Burr may have had a clearer idea of who would be in his starting 11 even at this stage of pre-season.

Burr had several new trialists hoping to impress for Harriers at Damson Park.

Former Coventry and Darlington defender Stuart Giddings played in Harriers' back four.

Macclesfield striker Kristian Dennis partnered fellow trialist Paul Connor up front.

Matty Blair and Callum Gittings also started in a much-changed line-up from Saturday.

On the bench, new faces were former Birmingham City trainee and Kettering forward James McPike and former Bristol City youth team midfielder Patrick Sayce.

The hosts, which contained former Harriers keeper Jasbir Singh, started the brighter and Junior English saw a delicate lob guided over the bar by keeper Andrew Stevens.

For the away side, right-back Lee Vaughan was dangerous and he delivered a cross that the lively Dennis met first-time and watched flew wide.

The striker then saw a firm headed bounce off the ground over the bar from another accurate Vaughan delivery.

Substitute Adam Cunnington, who replaced the injured Matt West, saw a shot blocked after a jinking run.

Harriers were denied by the woodwork when Nathan Hayward's shot rattled the post after good work by Matty Blair.

But two goals in four minutes near the end of the first half stunned Harriers, who had started to take charge of the game.

First, English raced onto Dean Lea's slick throughball to beat Stevens in the 39th minute.

It got even worse four minutes later, when Ryan Beswick's low free-kick crept past the keeper from 30-yards out.

Harriers' management made radical changes at half-time, making with seven substitutions.

These alterations paid off instantly as McPike flicked David Hankin's cross into the back of the net in the 49th minute.

Dennis levelled the scores in spectacular fashion six minutes later, when he curled in an effort from 20-yards out.

McPike continued too look a threat and he could have put Harriers ahead in the 65th minute but headed over the bar.

Solihull, who themselves made four half-time substitutions, still looked lively and Beswick tested keeper Danny Lewis with a curling free-kick but the shot-stopper had it covered as flew past his left hand post.

But the shot-stopper was beaten in the 74th minute after Mark Albrighton pulled back Dempster as he raced into the box. He calmly slotted the resulting penalty to the left of Lewis.

Harriers' custodian was called into action moments later, when he athletically tipped over Tom Overfield's rising 20-yard shot.

The away side turned up the heat and substitute Sayce beat keeper Jamie Atkins to a high ball and was unlucky to see it roll wide.

Midfielder Tom Shaw then saw a shot blocked by the shot-stopper's legs.

McPike almost capped a promising performance with a leveller in the 90th minute but header over from Hankin's corner.

Harriers: Stevens (Lewis, 46); Vaughan (Sharpe, 46); Giddings (Albrighton, 46); Williams; Byrne (Briggs, 46); Briscoe (Caines, 71); Hayward ( Shaw, 46); Gittings (Hadley, 59); Connor (McPike, 46); Dennis; Blair (Hankin, 46).

Unused subs: Hull; Thompson-Brown.

Solihull: Singh (Atkins, 46); Midworth (Coe, 46); Langdon; Clarke; Streete; Tiernan; Lea (Garvey, 46); English; West (Cunnington, 27); Price (Dempster, 46); Beswick (Overfield, 72).

Referee: M Howes.