Angry Mob

King's Lynn Town 0-1 Kidderminster Harriers (National League North)

Speaking of road signs (see last night's visit to Chelmsford)... As I pass the sign for Norfolk on the A17 it says 'Nelson's County' in homage to the great explorer, Lord Horatio Nelson, who was born in Burnham Thorpe near Hunstanton (23 miles from King's Lynn) and also has his own column in London.

I'm knackered today. Home well past midnight from a cracking game in Essex, I'm heading East again as tonight's viewing takes me to King's Lynn Town who face Kidderminster Harriers in a tasty National North encounter between two of the division's high riders.

The Linnets won 4-0 against Merthyr Town on Saturday. Kiddy beat Curzon Ashton 1-0. Both sides are going well on eleven points in the playoff places with near identical records having lost just one of their six games so far.

Last season, Kidderminster finished third after losing their last match of the campaign, had they won against Southport, they would have won the league and gained promotion, instead they fell in the playoffs and Phil Brown lost his job, replaced by former Mansfield Town legend Adam Murray who has started his tenure well at Aggborough.

King's Lynn also flirted with promotion and reached the playoffs before being knocked out by Chorley, they too have a new Manager after Adam Lakeland left to join Halifax, James Rowe, who has previously managed Gloucester City, Chesterfield and AFC Fylde, taking over in May.

The Venue

I've arrived in good time, after a spot of KFC at the Hardwick Industrial Estate Retail Park on the edge of town, my usual parking spot on Goodwins Road is out of sought as traffic cones and temporary lights line the streets near the stadium, I finally manage to find a quiet spot on York Road and walk up the Vancouver Avenue where the Kidderminster supporters bus is holding up the traffic as it pulls in to the Walks to let their fans off the coach.

It's leafy and suburban, a lovely area, Tennyson Avenue has some big Victorian houses on it and you feel as far away from a football ground as you can be until turning the corner where the thin floodlights appear. A long fence runs along the back of the ground, high trees, then suddenly you see the huge grandstand hidden away, one of my favourites in all of English football, apexed, corrugated metal roofing, wooden floors, blue and yellow plastic seats.

I'm inside the stadium with a scan of my screen capped barcode, walking up to the grandstand to my seat in the Directors Box, it's perched as the pitch down below looks flat, across the way a small standing area roofed, each end open, to my right, tonight, a huge post covers the entirety of the goal. Nothing that a bit of ducking and diving can't fix.

The Game

The sky is darkening as kick off approaches, Kidderminster in their 'famous' red and white halves, King's Lynn in AFC Wimbledon like blue with yellow trim. The ball bounces from end to end without a real foothold, Kiddy look committed, Lynn look the better in possession, the Referee wants to stamp his authority, the start is stop start until the end of the first half, ugly bitty, players feigning injury, others getting booked for things like taking too long with throw-ins, the crowd is an angry mob, fuming every time a Kidderminster player does something they disagree with.

The enforcers are certainly the home side, I'm impressed with their right side, Reece Hall-Johnson a decent acquisition from Barnet in the summer, linking with the agile Joseph Nyawhema who looks a tricky customer just 20, signed from Spalding, up front they have Gold Omotayo and the speedy Michael Gyasi but Kidderminster defend well and throw themselves in front of everything that moves.

It's a half of half chances before a set play into the hosts box is headed down by Thompson, the ball looks to be going into the bottom corner but big Emeka Obi slides home to make sure it does, Kidderminster one up on 25 minutes.

The Score

That irritates some locals, one woman in the stand down from me squeals high pitched abuse, the goal only encourages Kidderminster to break up play, take their time, go down with injury, they have an experienced make-up and know all the tricks of the trade.

By half time there's boos, as the second half starts there's more of the same irate, King's Lynn coming at Kidderminster who's plan is to fend off, slow down, irritate, which they do exceptionally well.

There are chances for a leveller, Crane heads inches wide before Williams tests Dibble's palms from a fizzing free kick, Collins hits a post and there's ten minutes extra time added, as Kidderminster players go down with cramp, some of it real, most of it fake, late on the sub is subbed as Riley Reynolds a half time introduction is taken off hobbling towards the dugout for big centre half Jordan Tunnicliffe, Harriers heading everything out their box, and clearing their lines with bodies behind the ball. They've taken a few bookings, a few too many blows, they have dug deep, ran down the clock, ground it out scrappy doo, and are deserving of their clean sheet.

As the whistle finally brings down King's Lynn's gallant attempts for a leveller, a chorus of boos rings around the Walks, cries of 'cheats' as one fan walking out confronts a Kiddy fan waiting for his son who's having a piss... "If I supported your team I would be ashamed" he says.

The Stars

Nothing shameful about the way Kidderminster defended, man and boy they put in a real heroic shift, the sort of perfect away day, winning ugly, up against it, snatching a goal and clinging on. No better player on the pitch than goalscorer Emeka Obi, a towering centre half over 6ft5in tall. He's superb, heads everything and marks another big lad, Gold Omotayo, out of the game.

Obi stars in a three man defence including Kam Kandola and Pierce Bird, wing backs Alex Penny and Joe Foulkes, often penned in against their wingers, Foulkes in particular is gutsy, a player I really like, one who I think should be playing in the Football League. Up front is the ever green Amari Morgan-Smith who's certainly worth a mention, he didn't win much up against big Tom Wilson but he fought for the cause and used all his knowhow to get the odd free kick, to take pressure off his team, and to leave late on with an injury which I'm sure he'll recover from, in time for Saturday. "Still shit Amari" is one cry I chuckled at during the game. You don't say that if you aren't annoyed, by his antics of experience.

For King's Lynn, they gave a debut to experienced 6ft8in 35 year-old goalkeeper Aaron Chapman who had a decent pro career, but in the last two seasons, has had spells at eight different teams, which questions what is going on with him? He did well behind a ball playing defence that weren't really exposed, which often had the neat looking Morgan Williams dropping deep to get on the ball from midfield, Michael Clunan doing the same, looking for those slide rule passes to set the likes of Nyahwema, Gyasi and Ross Crane away.

The Verdict

Like it or not, King's Lynn Town met their match, against good, organised, up for it, opposition. I think Kidderminster, are the kind of side, with the right credentials, to go one better than last season, but they may lack goal threat, as Morgan-Smith as a lone front man, was often very isolated. They do however have the likes of Dan Mooney, Kurt Willoughby, Jason Adigun, all waiting in the wings, how long can Adam Murray keep them all happy, whilst sitting them on the bench?

With South Shields currently flying high at the top of the table, it'll be a tough ask to finish above the North East outfit, whilst Kiddy can certainly do it, King's Lynn probably won't, but another playoff push is a real possibility, to help them, they could perhaps do with something big and ugly to mix it with those nasty teams, something they lacked in this match, which was in the end the difference, a set play aside, they were schooled by physical power and in-game naughtiness, something which this relatively young side don't really have in their locker.

The Teams

King's Lynn Town: Aaron Chapman, Reece Hall-Johnson, Bailey Clements (Sam Collins 71), Tom Wilson, Michael Clunan (Adam Marriott 88), Gold Omotayo, Michael Gyasi, Joseph Nyahwema (Jack Lambert 90), Tom Dickens, Morgan Williams, Ross Crane.

Kidderminster Harriers: Christian Dibble, Alex Penny, Kam Kandoola, Emeka Obi, Seb Thompson (George Walker 57), Amari Morgan-Smith (Reece Devine 88), Joe Foulkes, Kuke Spokes, Kai Innocent, Zanda Siziba (Riley Reynolds 46 (Jordan Tunnicliffe 90)), Pierce Bird.

7:45pm Kick Off. Tuesday 2nd September 2025, The Walks Stadium, King's Lynn (att 1,284).