Recap: Harriers promoted to National League

---

HARRIERS achieved a first promotion in 23 years by capping a remarkable, unthinkable end-of-season charge to storm into and win the National League North play-offs.

Back on April Fool’s Day 2023, Harriers went to Farsley Celtic eight points off the play-off points with more games played than their rivals – and in fact only nine points off the bottom four.

The Reds would go on to win at The Citadel to start a chain of six stunning victories that saw the side fly into the play-offs on the final day of the regular season.

Harriers knew that, in all likelihood, they’d still need three away wins in succession at higher-placed play-off rivals to secure an unlikely promotion back to the top table of non-league football. With Alfreton Town first to fall, and title runners-up King’s Lynn ruthlessly swept aside at their own fortress, it was on to Brackley Town for the grand finale.

Brackley is far from a favoured hunting ground for Harriers or their fans. The team have, in fact, only ever won there once. Typically, it was in the now all-but-meaningless ‘COVID season’ – a 2-0 success that nobody but the players and staff of each team ever got to witness. Safe to say and even with eight wins on the reel under their belt, Russ Penn’s men still had a huge job on their hands.

It was a cagey beginning to a cagey game. Amari Morgan-Smith side-footed wide inside 90 seconds as Harriers threatened another early goal, and Shep Murombedzi lashed one at Christian Dibble that needed a safe hand to turn over the bar.

On 13 minutes the decisive moment came. Alert and on it like a flash, Ashley Hemmings pounced as one Brackley player cleared the ball off another to leave it spinning free, Hemmings taking it forward and rolling it expertly past Danny Lewis.

It seems easy to say so after the event, but at that point an air of calm swept over the Harriers performance. The visitors were given a shot in the arm of the same confidence that’s surged them toward so many recent weeks and, from then on, the result rarely looked in any doubt.

Harriers went within inches of a second goal on 52 minutes when an outstanding delivery by Joe Leesley was met by Amari Morgan-Smith, the striker’s header wayward and wide.

Seven minutes later, though, 700 Harriers fans in the ground and one in a tree were delirious as Hemmings made it two. Morgan-Smith started it by nudging the ball to Zak Brown, who deftly turned it around to the Harriers No. 10 who swivelled and angled a great effort, low into the bottom corner with Lewis well beaten.

Hemmings might have, unbelievably, secured a Promotion Final hat-trick – on 77 minutes he strode confidently toward the are and let fly, a rising shot driving just wide of the angle of bar and post.

As if to underscore the importance of clean sheets in this run of games, an outstanding goal line clearance from Kyle Morrison effectively rubber-stamped the victory. Brackley had, for the first and only time on the day, got past Dibble and Matwasa looked to angle into an empty net, only for Morrison to slide in and turn the ball aside.

After five minutes of added time, the final whistle arrived to spark scenes that we’ll all remember forever. Promotion back to the National League it might ‘only’ be, but the scenes of Brackley 2023 can stand alongside Woking 2000 in memorable days in the history of Kidderminster Harriers.

Get full team line-ups and key match facts at The Match Centre.

Get more:

Harriers win promotion at Brackley – Match Highlights

---

---