Leyton Orient 2 Harriers 1

ALL season Kidderminster Harriers have struggled to get started. Now they're failing to finish.

If Harriers are to have any hopes of staying up they must begin taking their chances and killing teams off.

Just one of the handful of decent opportunities they created after Ian Foster's early opener would surely have been sufficient to seal a much needed three points at the Matchplay Stadium.

But Harriers' failure to turn another bright first half away performance into a comfortable winning margin came back to haunt them after the break.

Away at Yeovil, Cheltenham and now Orient, Harriers have burst out of the blocks, only to allow their hosts back into the game.

And it is no coincidence that their only victory on their travels this term came came at Oxford when they managed to add that all-important second goal.

It was frustrating enough when Harriers could not muster any kind of form away from home earlier in the season. But to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory after raising their performance level 10-fold is simply unforgivable.

Foster's predatory strike on 11 minutes after Blair Sturrock's shot was blocked gave Stuart Watkiss's men the perfect platform to build upon against the League Two promotion hopefuls.

And had Dean Keates, Sturrock or Gary Birch converted scorable chances it would have been game over by half time.

Keates rattled a post with a low drive and Sturrock saw his follow-up palmed away by Lee Harrison before making a mess of a one-on-one with the Orient keeper after dispossessing a defender.

Birch also came off second best to Harrison who produced a brilliant point blank save to deny the former Walsall striker his first Harriers goal just before the break.

With Orient improving in terms of territory and tempo after the interval and the windy conditions working in the home side's favour it was only a matter of time before Kidderminster were punished for their profligacy.

As the Brisbane Road crowd began to get behind Martin Ling's men, Harriers continued to get 10 men behind the ball with Sturrock surviving on scraps as the lone frontman.

Led by Jonny Mullins and Simon Weaver in the heart of defence they did a sound job of repelling the incessant Orient attacks but it was only going to be a matter of time before the Londoners made the break through.

After Daryl McMahon and Derek Duncan fizzed efforts just off target and John Danby raced off his line to save at the feet of Eche Echanomi, Orient finally found a way through.

Andy Scott was the man who broke Harriers heart when he held off to challenges to find space top beat Danby with a right foot drive for the equaliser on 74 minutes.

And the Harriers keeper had no chance when the O's winger was allowed time to lash in the winner on 84 minutes after Alan White flicked on Matt Lockwood's corner.

ORIENT: Harrison, Lockwood, Simpson, White, Mackie (Hunt 70), Scott, Miller, Duncan (Steele 62), McMahon, Chill-ingworth, Echa-nomi (Barnard 77). Subs not used: Morris, Newey.

HARRIERS: DAN-BY 8, Jenkins 6, Beswetherick 6, Weaver 7, Mullins 7, Russell 7, Foster 7, Bennett 7, Keates 7, Birch 6 (Gleeson 87), Sturrock 7 (Beardsley 79). Subs not used: Lewis, Burton, Burns.

REFEREE: Paul Melin (Surrey)

ATTENDANCE: 3,573 (161 away).