A look to Saturday’s journey to Oxford…
By Matty Paddock - 24/01/2025
Posted 2 weeks ago

PHIL Brown says he wants his team to ‘put right the wrongs’ from the defeat to Darlington when Harriers travel to Oxford City on Saturday.
The Reds fell to a frustrating 1-0 defeat to the Quakers in midweek and weren’t at their flowing best, the boss feeling the showing fell below recent standards.
It meant a missed chance to extend a lead at the top of the table for Harriers but, for now, that’s of little consequence to Brown who knows nothing is won in January.
In fact, he fully expects the lead to chop and change between now and the term’s end – just as it has in the months so far – as a competitive campaign continues to ebb and flow.
He noted: “As I’ve said before, the table’s been topped by four or five teams already this season and probably will be again between now and the end of the season. Nobody is going to run away with it.
“I’ve no illusions that we’re going to run away with this division – it’s too brutal, it’s too hard, it’s too difficult. But we will be a match, and we will give everybody a game.
“There’s no doubt in my mind we’ll be tactically aware of what the opposition can do against us, starting this Saturday against Oxford City.
“We’ve trained again on the astroturf to try and acclimatise ourselves to whatever is going to be thrown against us on Saturday.”
Our weekend opponents have, heading into 2025, pieced together a run of just one defeat in six National League North games to pull themselves clearer of trouble near the bottom.
They’d beaten Farsley, Spennymoor and Rushall in that stretch, recording an impressive goalless draw at promotion chasing Chorley in midweek.
Brown added: “They’re playing a similar system to us, and it could be a case of man against man – win your battle. And if we win enough of those battles, we win the game of football.
“It could be a system versus system game, it could be a tactician’s game. But we’ve got to put right the wrongs of Tuesday night, and the wrongs on Tuesday night were that for the first time in a long time, we didn’t turn up to the standards that we’re used to.”
Harriers will be without the injured trio of Ben Beresford, Alex Penny and Luke Summerfield, but came through Tuesday’s game without any further issues on that front.
The Reds will be hoping for a similar performance level to the one that earned them a 4-0 victory over City in the return fixture at Aggborough earlier this season.
In last term’s National League, Harriers twice came from two goals down to snatch points – a 2-2 draw at Oxford and a 3-2 victory in the Aggborough tie [Watch].
Kick off at Oxford City is at 3:00pm.
Away travel is available from Harriers up to and including Friday afternoon, while the hosts have urged away fans to buy tickets online in advance.
SUPPORTER CONDUCT
Harriers again strongly supports The National League and Football Association in delivering their antisocial conduct message.
Please review the following information before visiting Aggborough or following the team on the road, and remember that your entry into Aggborough Stadium, or any other venue, is subject to the acceptance of the National League’s Ground regulations and adherence to the Smoke No Joke policy. Both documents are clearly visible and available on entry turnstiles but are also available for download below.
Specifically, we would like to remind supporters that the club will not tolerate supporter misconduct of any kind. This includes but is not limited to:
- Discriminatory behaviour. This means conduct or language that is aggravated by ethnic origin, colour, race, nationality, faith, gender, gender reassignment, sexual orientation or disability.
- Entering the field of play or its immediate surrounding area without permission
- The throwing of missiles towards the pitch, technical area or dugout
- The possession or use of pyrotechnics such as flares or smoke bombs
Please support Kidderminster Harriers responsibility. Should you be concerned by any of the above conduct you may witness, please report it to your nearest steward at any venue, to the Club Office or Safety Officer or by e-mail to security@harriers.co.uk
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