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It's derby day next Saturday, as the Bulls host the Harriers for the first time since December 1999.
The last three Conference matches between these sides have all ended in 1-1 draws, the last at Aggborough in October when an early Jamie Pitman goal was cancelled out by Taiwo Atieno.
While the Bulls extended their unbeaten run to 16 matches on Saturday, Kidderminster are scratching their heads wondering where it's all gone wrong. A 4-1 defeat at the hands of an inconsistent Aldershot side showed all was not well at Aggborough with winger Michael Blackwood making his feelings at being substituted well known to boss Mark Yates.
Several high-profile departures in the January transfer window, including central defensive pair Mark Jackson and Wayne Hatswell and striker Iyseden Christie, were forced as money became tight with falling gates and goals have become hard to come by. The top scorer amongst the current squad has just two league goals, and their top three scorers this season have all left the club.
The make up of the squads is surprisingly similar, with mostly youngsters with a few older heads thrown into the mix, and both sides fielded a starting XI with an average age of 23 on Saturday. The major difference is the front line. On Saturday Kidderminster played midfielder Gareth Sheldon, with two league goals all season, and untried debutant non-contract signing Luke Reynolds up front with a major shortage of strikers at the club. At the same time, the Bulls Andy Williams and Stuart Fleetwood played their sixth successive game together - producing seven goals between them in that time.
Bulls fans will hope, with a slew of new signings yet to gel for the Harriers, they can repeat the 4-1 win in 1998 when Richard Leadbeater scored a hat-trick. Harriers fans will hope for a repeat of the 3-1 win twelve months later when John Snape was dismissed for the Bulls. Whatever happens, it won't be dull.
