Harriers Need Home Help But Penn Feels Big Lift Is Nearing

14 Sep 2023 By Sam Elliott

Kidderminster Harriers are getting very close to coming up with the Aggborough answers according to manager Russ Penn.

Played four, drawn four. At least they’re consistent in front of their fans, and at least on Saturday they finally saw the ball hit the net.

After a goalless treble against Woking, Bromley and then Maidenhead United, a 1-1 draw against Rochdale saw more positives than negatives for the Kiddy boss.

Could they time their first home win perfectly? Harriers face Solihull Moors in front of the TNT Sports cameras on Saturday and they’ve got good memories of the live games.

The last time they were on the box was at Brackley and the National League North Promotion Final, pictured, in a performance the manager described as ‘as near perfect as possible’.

He will need the levels to be near to how it was on the day they secured their first promotion in 23 years if they if there’s to be a first win since the trip to York City on August 12.

Their fans know not to read too much into anything before the business end of the season. Sitting stranded in 14th with a few weeks to go last year, they decided to get their season going on April 1 and it ended in an incredible promotion.

Penn said: “We’re not far away, on Saturday it was a case of just not finishing the game off when we had the chance. It was frustrating.

“In a way we’re struggling to know how to win games. But there’s a lot to be pleased about. We had the best 60 minutes of the season so far, we were just missing that final piece of the jigsaw.

“We’re getting closer, and hopefully that next win isn’t far away from arriving. We’ve got some difficult games coming up but we need to start putting chances away.”

The bad news is Solihull Moors are away day experts and have taken 10 points from a possible 12 on the road so far.

Unbeaten under Andy Whing, the new manager lamentied getting “caught on our heels” against Woking last weekend in the 1-1 draw, ending their perfect record on the road.

“We were outstanding in the first half,” the Moors boss said on Saturday. “It’s a shame we switched off but it’s been a good start to the season.”

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