Fast-starting Kidderminster fire Kings Lynn play-off warning

Harriers head to Norfolk to face the Linnets in the National League North semi-final after victory at Alfreton in the eliminator stage.

Russ Penn’s side repeated their trick from recent wins in Derbyshire on Tuesday night by making a fast start count as Amari Morgan-Smith headed in the winner after just 33 seconds.

The visitors, whose six-match winning run saw them gate-crash the play-offs on a dramatic final day, defended strongly from a barrage of long throws to book a final four place – and are now gunning for second-placed Lynn.

“We go to statistically the best team in the league that are in the play-offs, who were unlucky not to go up,” said Aggborough No.2 O’Connor.

“It’s up to us to go to their place and put on a good performance and hopefully get the win.

“We’ll do our homework like we always do, be well organised ad prepared and full of confidence as well, we should be, because when we do our basics well we’re a good side and have been for three months now. Performances were getting better and stronger, we’ll enjoy Alfreton but we’re not getting carried away at all, we’re just getting started and want our season to keep going after Sunday.”

Harriers maintained their remarkable recent record of flying out the traps and have now opened the scoring inside five minutes in six of their seven straight wins. Four of those were goals in the opening minute.

“It was a great start, you always try to do that, it doesn’t always happen,” O’Connor said. “It’s something that has been happening for the last couple of months and that’s down to our mindset. We want to start games on the front foot.

“It was a great ball into the box and a great header from the big man that sets us off well.

“But to be fair, the rest of the half is one of those, stop start, stop start, you can’t get into any real flow, the pitch was really poor, it wasn’t really conducive to playing, it was all about mindset and doing things right. The group took responsibility and all bought into it.

“We played at the right times, tried to play into areas and in the second half we looked more dangerous, we were brave and tried to get men forward.”