HARRIERS maintained their 100% record at the start of the National League North season with a resolute 1-0 win over Brackley at Aggborough.
Ashley Hemmings converted for his second goal of the season to hand Phil Brown’s side a third successive victory of the term to follow successes against Darlington and Radcliffe.
It keeps them in touch with the early pace-setters – Buxton, Curzon Ashton and Scunthorpe United all also have perfect starts to their name, with the Iron topping the pile after three games.
With the announcement of the team news at Aggborough was the confirmation that skipper Amari Morgan-Smith was forced to miss out after sustaining a concussion in the home win over Radcliffe. His place in the eleven was taken by Ben Beresford.
In a steady start to the game it was Brackley who made most of the early territory, forcing Christian Dibble into a seventh-minute save from Morgan Roberts as he held an angled effort from 20 yards.
Harriers moved into the ascendancy and took firm control of the tie, 20 minutes played when Zak Brown slotted wide from a low cross, the opening goal coming just seconds later, an intelligent run from Hemmings rewarded with the ideal ball that he was able to divert past Jonny Maxted.
Four minutes later, Swansea loanee Maliq Cadogan almost bagged Harriers a second when he reacted to the ball spilling into his when Maxted blocked a Hemmings effort, recovering quickly to deny the youngster, too.
Maxted extended himself twice further before the break. On the half hour, a quick counter-attack saw Maz Kouhyar and Hemmings combine, the latter seeing his attempt patted away decisively by the shot stopper. The goal scorer once again found himself thwarted in his search for a second; four before prior to the interval a diving save across goal was needed to keep out a rising effort from 20 yards.
Cadogan struck a distance effort over Maxted and the target five minutes after the interval, Roberts doing similar for the visitors with a fizzed. Curling effort towards the top corner five further on.
With 20 minutes left to play, former Harriers Captain Shane Byrne was introduced for Brackley and immediately contributed to a chance, nodding across for Zak Lilly to test Dibble with a header of his own that Dibble held.
Not long after, Brown shot weakly after crip build-up featuring Kouhyar and Hemmings, before Hereford loanee Kouhyar nodded a sub Seb Thompson cross wide in his search for a third goal in as many games in what was voted as a Man of the Match display.
Harriers have a double header over the Bank Holiday weekend, travelling to Warrington Town on Saturday before hosting Oxford City at Aggborough on Monday, both at 3pm.
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