HARRIERS 0 DARLINGTON 1

THIS was a great opportunity for a money-spinning FA Cup run but Kidderminster Harriers blew it.

With three wins from four Division Three matches, a much more confident Harriers were the form team.

And with Darlington missing more than 11 players through injury and suspension, this was not far off their reserve side.

But football has a habit of springing surprises and along came Harriers' fourth 1-0 defeat in a month.

Boss Jan Molby was not helped by losing the whole of the three-man front-line which has worked so well lately.

With Colin Larkin and Ian Foster already ruled out, big target-man Drewe Broughton was hit by flu on the morning of the match.

It meant full debuts for loan men Ritchie Appleby and Bo Henriksen who despite showing promise clearly need longer to settle in.

Saturday was a disappointing first round cup tie and the nature of the visitors' goal was in keeping with that.

A right-wing throw-in that obviously should have been awarded to Harriers went to the opposition on 54 minutes.

But it was no excuse for the lack of concentration which saw Molby's men, still upset with the decision, allow Paul Campbell to head home Richard Hodgson's far-post cross.

If not for this mishap, Harriers would at least have taken a replay in the north-east next week.

As it is, they missed out on £20,000 for victory in the first-round tie and a very winnable trip to either Altrincham or Lancaster.

This result looks all the worse when you consider Harriers could quite easily have booked a place with the big boys in the third round.

They lacked the sharpness of previous weeks though Quakers keeper Andy Collett had a good game.

Though their Division Three rivals posed a few early problems, Harriers went on to enjoy the best of the first-half attacking moments.

Henriksen, a player who attracted the Danish television version of Grandstand on his home debut, quickly looked a class act.

In trying to work space for himself in a crowded penalty area, he put two efforts off target.

Darlington midfielder Campbell responded with a 20-yard drive that Stuart Brock collected at the second attempt on 17 minutes.

But then Harriers began to up the pressure with Tony Bird, filling in for Broughton, having an effort disallowed for offside.

The striker then volleyed a Danny Williams cross into the side-netting before his best chance on32 minutes.

Bird met Bennett's right-wing cross at the far post and headed back only for experienced defender David Brightwell to hook the ball off the line.

Henriksen gave another glimpse of his ability with a tremendous turn and shot from 25 yards which brought the best handling out of Collett.

But the keeper had a problem collecting a more straight-forward Bird effort on 40 minutes before comfortably gathering an Appleby shot.

At the other end, Harriers switched off briefly and were only saved by a tremendous block by Craig Hinton as winger Neil Wainwright aimed for goal.

However, Campbell - in for the injured Neil Maddison - struck with a controversial effort early in the second half and Harriers seemed to lose the plot.

Stamps was booked for arguing with referee Alan Butler and Williams was later cautioned for a high challenge on Hodgson.

Henriksen, with barely a trace of back-lift, hammered a 25-yarder just wide on 70 minutes.

But the home side knew their luck was out seven minutes later when Stamps headed Williams' cross against the post with the ball running agonisingly across the goal-line.

Sub Sam Shilton, introduced along with fit-again Andy Ducros, struck a useful effort at Collett late on but Harriers just did not do enough to progress.

They had even played 45 minutes against a Darlington youth team centre-back, David McGurk, who was making his debut.

The result will hopefully just be a minor setback in Harriers' recent revival.

HARRIERS: Brock 5; Clarkson 6, Sall 5, Hinton 6, Stamps 5; Bennett 6, Williams 6, Blake 5 (Ducros 71); HENRIKSEN 7, Bird 6, Appleby 6 (Shilton 83). Subs not used: Smith, Murphy, Corbett.

DARLINGTON: Collett; Betts, Reed (McGurk 46), Brightwell, Heckingbottom; Wainwright, Campbell, Brumwell, Healy, Hodgson; Jackson (Convery 83). Subs not used: Ford, Van Der Geest, Sheeran.

ATTENDANCE: 2,471.

SHOTS ON: Harriers 5 Darlington 4.

SHOTS OFF: Harriers 15 Darlington 4.

CORNERS: Harriers 10 Darlington 3.

YELLOW CARDS: Harriers 2 (Stamps, Williams), Darlington 1 (Jackson).

SHUTTLE STAR MAN: Bo Henriksen. In a game of below-par individual displays, Henriksen showed his undoubted ability at times. There should be more to come from the Dane if his first touch and ability to get into a shooting position are anything to go by.