AFC Telford 0 Kidderminster Harriers 0 - Report and pictures

In front of a healthy crowd of 1,995 at the New Bucks Head, Rob Edwards' side gave a good account of themselves.

It was not a footballing masterclass or a fixture that will live long in the memory of Bucks supporters but they battled hard, were robust at the back and created a couple of decent chances.

Because of those opportunities, some fans may be disappointed not to have won it.

Had they been offered a draw before the game, though, they would have took it.

Telford made two changes from the 1-1 draw at Brackley Town this past weekend as Henry Cowans and Anthony Dwyer came into the starting-line up, with Max Leonard and Elliot Newby dropping to the bench.

In the Harriers set-up were three former Bucks - James McQuilkin in the XI, and Lee Vaughan and Sam Austin among the substitutes.

The pitch was quite boggy and a few players got stuck in the mud early on.

Telford top goalscorer Marcus Dinanga did not, though. He had the game's first big chance, four minutes in, rising high after Ross White's pinpoint cross from the right-hand side and seeing his header sharply palmed away by Brandon Hall.

The condition of the surface was there to be taken advantage of. Passes were rolling very slowly over certain parts of grass, and the ball hardly bouncing in other areas.

That unpredictability led to the Bucks, again, going close to taking the lead. Ryan Wilson managed to beat Harriers full-back James Pearson to a loose ball and cannoned a left-footed effort off the crossbar.

It seemed the the visitors were attempting to be too intricate - looking to play football that the heavy pitch would not let them to.

As the half-hour mark drew near, they adopted a direct approach - aiming to release the pacy pair of Andre Brown and Manny Sonupe behind the home side's full-backs.

Telford still appeared more comfortable, though, and had Sylvan Ebanks-Blake agonisingly fail to get on the end of Cowans' through-ball.

The Bucks would have been happy going into the half-time break as they had been assured in possession, and quick to close down.

And aside from a McQuilkin free-kick that was tipped over by Jas Singh, Harriers did not manage to create anything meaningful in the final third.

They were below par in the first period and made a change for the start of the second, bringing on Liam Truslove for Joe Ironside.

As the game progressed, unsurprisingly, the state of the pitch worsened. It was becoming a real scrap, with plenty of hearty challenges flying in.

Referee Sam Mulhall was being fairly lenient, though. He avoided pulling out his cards, even though some of the tackles seemed to warrant bookings.

With the hour mark approaching, Telford were seeing a lot less of the ball.

Elton Ngwatala was pulling the strings for the away side and a sensational run from him almost brought an opener.

The former PSG youngster weaved his way past White on the left before rolling the ball across the face of goal, where Brown's close-range attempt was expertly denied by Singh.

Brown had his head in his hands following that superb stop. Soon after, at the other end, Dinanga was the same too.

He was found by White once again but, this time, headed the ball over the bar from six yards out. The Bucks' 13-goal striker does not usually sky those sorts of openings.

The next to fire too high was Telford skipper Shane Sutton. Perhaps half-expecting the assistant's flag to be raised, his volley was well off the mark.

Looking to find a cutting edge and catch Harriers cold, Edwards brought left-footed Newby on for Dwyer at right-wing.

One man who was not seeing any of the ball was Ebanks-Blake. He cut a frustrated figure as the Bucks were relinquishing possession too easily, too often.

The home fans then had the same feeling after substitute Newby, instead of pulling the trigger, tried to take on multiple Harriers defenders and saw a fine opening go to waste.

Telford made another switch for the final few minutes as Jordan Murphy, formerly of the Aggborough outfit, came on for Dinanga.

Just prior to second half added-on time, a flare was thrown on the pitch from the David Hutchison Stand. Newby threw it back off the field and play soon resumed, with the culprit being escorted out of the stadium by stewards before the final whistle.

It may have been goalless, but it was not boring. The big plus for Edwards' charges was they kept a clean sheet, which have proved a little hard to come by this season.

This was only their third league draw of the campaign and the reverse fixture takes place on New Year's Day.

Teams

Telford (4-3-3): Singh; White, Johnson, Sutton (c), White; Cowans, Lussey, Marsden; Dwyer (Newby, 66), Ebanks-Blake, Dinanga (Murphy, 85)

Subs not used: Hayden, Leonard, Martinez (gk)

Harriers (4-3-3): Hall; Pearson, Horsfall, O'Connor, Taylor; McQuilkin, Ngwatala, Croasdale (c); Sonupe (Austin, 74), Ironside (Truslove, 56), Brown

Subs not used: Wright, Vaughan, Digie