Solihull Boro 1

Evesham United 0

THE hoodoo that is Redditch struck again on Monday night as the visitors surrendered a nine-game undefeated sequence.

Solihull's temporary Valley Stadium home has been the scene of a trio of Western Division defeats in the past two seasons and served as the venue for United's last defeat when Redditch gained a 1-0 triumph last month.

It was the same scoreline on Monday when Evesham failed to produce a worthwhile effort on goal as their hopes of a top two finish were severely dented.

The midfield again dominated from the first whistle but, despite territorial superiority, the visitors were poor in attack.

The game revolved around a series of set-pieces, where Solihull proved far more adept, especially in the first half.

Steve McCartan wasted at least a handful of corners and free kicks, while Damien Beattie was called into action three times to keep out Andy Penny headers from dead-ball situations.

The warning, though, wasn't heeded as three minutes into stoppage time the central defender popped up six yards from goal to steer a free kick from Simon Hollis past an exposed Beattie.

Shaun Pratt and Mark Wolsey spurned United's best chances before Penny's clincher, while the wastage continued after the restart.

Substitute Phil Preedy caught the bug after replacing the ineffective Stuart Payne, but a typical Andy Smith run and cross came to nothing with no one on hand to finish in the 81st minute.

Solihull had the clearest chances to settle the contest, while Evesham's discipline deteriorated as usual suspects Wolsey, Steve Taylor and Matt Pendleton joined Russell Parmenter in the referee's notebook.