THE 696 fans who passed up the chance of watching Champions League football on the telly in front of a warm fire with a cold beer in hand were given their just rewards by their Harriers heroes, writes Mat Kendrick.

Henry or Hatswell and Rooney or Russell would normally be a non-contest and the hundreds who chose to miss this LDV tie can be forgiven for spending a cold October night away from Aggborough.

But while the crowd was easily the worst attendance at a Harriers home game for some time, the performance was one of the best.

"Tempo" has been boss Stuart Watkiss's buzzword as he has tried to drag his players out of their lethargic lull in recent weeks.

And after bursting out of the blocks against their League Two hosts, Harriers maintained their momentum for most of the 90 minutes to eventually pressure Darlington into submission.

Virtually the entire match was played in the opposition's half and other than the 16th minute penalty that put the Quakers in front and a scuffed counter attack shot from second half sub Akpo Sodje it's hard to recall Darlington fashioning another chance worthy of the name.

Indeed, Dan Lewis, given a rare start in goal to gain some first team experience, will have had busier nights on the bench than he had on the field on Tuesday evening.

True to form Harriers' back four were punished for their only mistake when Mark Jackson hacked down Anthony Peacock for a clear penalty on the quarter hour mark.

And although Lewis guessed the right way, Ndumbu Nsungu's tidy spot kick was just tucked out of reach to the rookie keeper's left side.

But Kidderminster continued to play with character, commitment and a certain amount of class to claw their way back into the game.

It is no coincidence that Kidderminster fare better against teams like Darlington that attempt to get the ball down and allow Watkiss's men more time and space to pass and move.

And although the manager admits they need to come up with a formula for breaking down the "uglier" opponents they are encountering in the Conference, there is no doubting the confidence they will gain from this victory.

Harriers' equaliser came at a perfect time, on the stroke of half-time and it was genuinely deserved after they had served notice of their intent on several occasions.

With Simon Russell and Wayne Hatswell fizzing low efforts just wide and Gareth Sheldon hitting a dipping volley which packed power but lacked the height, the breakthrough came on 44 minutes.

Sheldon swung over a corner from the left which was headed against the foot of the post and when the ginger winger returned the ball into the danger zone, Hatswell was left with a simple header from six yards out.

After the break it was all one-way traffic towards the Darlington goal and even though talisman Martin O'Connor was rested at half-time, his deputy Laurie Wilson produced one of his better displays.

Simon Heslop fired just wide from the edge of the box and was denied by Darlington keeper Sam Russell after being put through by Iyseden Christie when the striker should have selfishly scored himself.

Sheldon fired in several set-piece strikes which were well dealt with by the Quakers stopper but still Harriers poured forward with a refreshing will to win.

Their lucky break arrived on 80 minutes when Shelton Martis handled in the box and Sheldon coolly converted the penalty.

With confidence coursing back into their veins, Kidderminster could have added another goal late on when Russell's dipping volley bounced off the bar.