Kidderminster Harriers 3 Chorley 1: Battling Magpies beaten on the road
Chorley delivered a spirited, battling display at Aggborough, but left empty-handed after a 3-1 defeat to Kidderminster Harriers on Saturday.
Despite the scoreline, the Magpies were the better side for the majority of the game.
An own goal brought them level shortly after the break, but two late strikes from the hosts ultimately sealed all three points for Adam Murray’s team.
Kidderminster took the lead against the run of play on 17 minutes when Michael Gyasi finished past Matt Urwin from close range.
Chorley responded well and thought they were level shortly afterwards, only for Jack Sampson’s effort to be ruled out for offside after he followed in Tom Carr’s saved header.
Andy Preece’s players came out firing after the restart and their pressure told when Tom Walker’s inswinging cross glanced off a home player’s head and found the far corner of Christian Dibble’s net.
With the game finely poised, Chorley looked capable of taking at least a point – and possibly all three.
However, Kurt Willoughby restored the hosts’ advantage on 78 minutes as he scrambled the ball home after the Magpies failed to deal with a corner.
Substitute Luke Spokes added a third five minutes later to put the game beyond reach, following in from deep after George Walker’s pinpoint cross.
It was a frustrating end to a performance full of effort and opportunities, but Chorley will now regroup and turn their focus to next week’s trip to Worksop Town.
Chorley: Urwin, Moore, Ellis, S Wilson, Clarke, Walker (Griffiths 75), Calveley, M Wilson, Lalkovic (Blakeman 83), Carr, Sampson (Ibbitson 42). Subs not used: Henley, Smith, Bird, Drench.