HARRIERS 0 WREXHAM 2

THE writing was on the wall for Kidderminster Harriers when Wrexham striker Lee Trundle fired home a superb 20-yard strike seven minutes before half-time on Saturday.

Harriers rarely looked like scoring from then on against their third-placed opponents who are homing in on automatic promotion.

They were unable to call upon the class of top scorer Bo Henriksen, the midfield magic of John Melligan or the sheer physical presence of Drewe Broughton.

And it proved too much for Harriers' small squad to cope with, especially as Adie Smith came off injured early on after being a doubt before kick-off.

Boss Ian Britton, who called up rookies Inderpaul Khela and Nick Heath to the bench, really had his hands tied for the weekend's crucial play-off encounter.

Just to rub salt into their wounds, there was an embarrassing 10-minute delay when the empty TV gantry was knocked over by a strong wind close to the touch-line by the east side construction site.

An hour or so later, Harriers' play-off hopes seemed much closer to being blown away after weeks of uncertainty.

Scott Stamps, making his first start since November following a groin operation, wasted little time getting into the action and was booked on seven minutes for chopping down roving wing-back Carlos Edwards.

Harriers fought off five corners within the first 15 minutes but were lucky to escape when Scott Green wastefully chipped over the bar from Andy Morrell's pull-back.

They switched from a 4-4-2 formation back to their favoured 3-5-2 as Smith's injury meant the recall of Ian Foster from the bench and Dean Bennett dropped into midfield.

The lively Bennett quickly created a chance only for Andy Bishop to flick his header wide with Sean Parrish seemingly better positioned.

Stuart Brock had to make an excellent one-on-one save from Wrexham top scorer Morrell on 24 minutes but Harriers still looked capable of completing the double over the Welshmen who they defeated 2-0 in December.

That was until Trundle thundered the ball home from distance, giving Brock no chance, after defender Dion Scott had stood off and invited him to shoot.

Only a smart Brock save from former Southport striker Trundle six minutes from half-time gave Harriers hope before the interval.

The home side emerged from the dressing room in an attacking frame of mind and keeper Andy Dibble saved well from Foster on 48 minutes after Williams' assist.

Harriers' transfer-listed striker then gave the former Man City veteran more to think about with an awkward cross-shot from the left that he helped over his bar.

But Trundle's scrappy second on 63 minutes from a Green corner ensured three vital points were heading back to the Racecourse Ground.

The forward fired his 12th goal of the season into the roof of the net after the ball rebounded kindly to him in the six-yard box.

Brock displayed good handling to keep out a close-range header from giant Wrexham defender Dennis Lawrence soon after.

A consolation goal seemed to be beyond Harriers until Parrish met Stamps' left-wing cross in injury-time but Dibble pulled off a great stop to keep a clean sheet.

HARRIERS: Brock 7; Smith 5 (Foster 21, 5), Scott 5, Hinton 6, Stamps 6; Flynn 5, WILLIAMS 7, Parrish 6, Shilton 6; Bennett 7, Bishop 5 (McAuley 75). Subs not used: Danby, Khela, Heath.

WREXHAM: Dibble; Roberts, Carey, Lawrence; C Edwards, Whitley, Ferguson (Barrett 48), Green, P Edwards; Trundle, Morrell. Subs not used: Rogers, Holmes, Jones, Morgan.

ATTENDANCE: 3,689.

SHOTS ON: Harriers 3, Wrexham 7.

SHOTS OFF: Harriers 5, Wrexham 1.

CORNERS: Harriers 7, Wrexham 10.

GOALS: Trundle 38, Trundle 63.

YELLOW CARDS: Harriers 3 (Stamps, Williams, Hinton), Wrexham 1 (Roberts).

SHUTTLE STAR MAN: Danny Williams. Stood out again in midfield against his former club, despite a generally poor team display.