Pitching in Southern League Premier Division Central

Saturday 27th December 2025  3:00pm

      Referee:  Mr Cartwright               Assistants: Scott Hoskin and AN Other

A small contingent of Kettering supporters travelled up the A6 to witness this return fixture at Market Harborough restricted by the parsimonious allocation of tickets by the hosts. Kettering would be looking to extract some revenge from the side that inflicted the team’s first defeat of the season, 1-0, on a hot August Bank Holiday Monday. With a different manager, and with only 4 players that started that day doing so today, a mere four months later. The Kettering supporters would be hoping for a better performance than the corresponding fixture of last season some 360 days previously when an abject and clueless tactical performance by the team saw the side slump to defeat and the seemingly unassailable position at the top of the division be frittered away as the wheels came off ending in defeat at Latimer Park in the play-off final.

Harborough Town currently sit in second place on 45 points, three points behind leaders Spalding but with three games in hand due to FA Cup and Trophy commitments.

For the first time since taking over as manager of Kettering, Mr McDonald would have a full complement of defenders available to play a back four of players in their recognised position. Liam, however, decided to play with three central defenders with the return of Levi Andoh and electing to play Blaine Rowe a right back as a left sided centre back with Will Glennon in the middle. In a 3-4-3 formation, Ben Isaacson and Preston Bitemo would play wide as wingbacks either side of captain for the day Andi Thanoj and Alfie Lewis in the middle, with Ethan Fitzhugh dropping to the bench. Callum Powell would retain his starting spot on the left wing with Eddie Panter on the right with Ismael Fatadjo supporting them from a slightly deeper central position.  The bench was as it was against Royston apart from Eddie Oppong who missed out due to the return of Andoh.

It was a cold and grey day with a biting wind blowing lengthwise up the pitch from the clubhouse end. A wind that would during the game would bring banks of drizzle to enhance the experience of those in attendance and leave the artificial surface with a sheen of water.

Kettering, in their away kit, kicked off playing down the slight slope towards the clubhouse with the hosts in an all-yellow strip. Kettering moved the ball forward working the ball down their right before playing the ball into the feet of Fatadjo who advanced with purpose before he was tripped by Kelly-Evans giving Kettering a free-kick some 30 yards out in a central position. With Glennon and Powell over the ball, Callum lifted the ball over the wall but straight into the arms of Elliott Taylor for a easy catch.

The ball was kicked long by Taylor and the Kettering defence played a spot of head tennis with Harborough before the hosts lifted a hopeful ball into the Kettering penalty area. The defence allowed the ball to bounce, where it spun up off the surface, and Glennon who should have been experienced of the surface after playing for St Ives looked astounded at ball and stood watching the ball rather than committing to action. Alexander expecting his defender to do something was also flat footed but not so Kamara who could barely believe his good fortune and gratefully poked the ball home from close range past the keeper. 1-0 Harborough 2 mins

Harborough must have been checking their calendar as two days after Christmas morning Kettering were still in the giving spirit gifting them the lead with only two minutes played.

Not everything was going Harborough’s way as shortly after Josh Walsh went to the floor. With no Kettering player near him it must have been a pre-exisiting injury flaring up enough for him to be needed to be substituted with Alex Morris replacing him after five minutes.

 A minute later, Isaacson was on the recieving end of a rash challenge by Arlott-John. It was a forwards challenge, heavy on comitment, light on technique, catching Ben painfully on the ankle. Mr Cartwright had words with the Harborough man warning of the possible consequencies if he did not moderate his behaviour but offered no further sanction other than stern words. The resulting free-kick was moved square by Thanoj who fed the ball to Andoh who tried a long range shot which tested the Harborough keeper but Taylor was equal to it. Taylor was called into action two more times in quick succession as first Bitemo, and then Fatadjo, sent the keeper diving to his left to preserve the host’s lead as Kettering sought an equaliser.

Just before the quarter hour mark, Alexander in the Kettering goal produced a fine double save to keep his team in the game. Firstly, Kamara fired in a shot from the edge of the area which Jason batted away but it only fell to Kennedy who hit a first time shot goalwards. Alexander who had not regained his feet, stretched up and pawed it away before catching the third ball into the goalmouth.

Kettering swiftly surged forward through Panter on the right advancing deep into Harborough territory. On reaching the 6 yard box, he squared the ball back across the goal to Thanoj whose goalbound effort was once again blocked by Taylor.

Three minutes later, Harborough were awarded a free-kick a few yards outside the Kettering penalty area in front of the Kettering supporters. Kelly-Evans lifted the ball across the area towards the far post where Kamara ghosted in unmarked for a free header. Only the forward will know how he failed to doubled both his and his team’s tally as he completely missed the target and sent the ball wide.

 Ketterin responded well and moved the ball to the opposite end down the right flank with the ball being crossed in towards Powell who tried an ambitious overhead kick which well narrowly wide. It was an indication of how well Kettering were pressing the Harborough defence that before taking the resulting goal-kick Taylor went down with an “injury” to enable his team mates to crowd the home dug out to receive tactical instruction from the coaches with twenty minutes played. The treatment the keeper received must have been spot on as when Taylor took the goalkick he showed no ill effects nor for the rest of the game.

With twenty-two minutes played, Morris played the ball forward down the Harborough left for O’Sullivan to chase. The forward got in front of the defender and there was some shirt tugging before O’Sullivan stopped causing the chasing defender to run into the back of him causing both players to go to the floor winning the hosts a free-kick. While O’Sullivan was on his knees, he lashed out with his fist at Bitemo who was caught in the groin causing him to fall to the floor. With play already stopped for a Harborough free-kick, Mr Cartwright checked on the condition of Bitemo before consulting with the Assistant on that side. He then called over O’Sullivan and completely bottled the decision by only showing the forward a yellow card. With the only questionable action from the Harborough man being that of raising an hand to an opponent in retaliation and striking him the only possible sanction could be a red card for violent conduct but inexplicably the Referee only cautioned the player. It would be interesting to know for what offence the official issued the caution for. The resulting free-kick was put behind earning Harborough the first corner of the game. The Kettering defence showed some resilience with Glennon heading the initial cross away before blocking a follow up attempt. The attack was not cleared though and Andoh had to head another ball into the box away before a Harborough  player tried to chip Alexander who plucked the ball out of the air to stem the attack.

Shotly after, Alexander was called into action again. Thanoj misplaced a return pass to Bitemo which went straight to Kamara who carried the ball to the edge of the area before squaring it to Kelly-Evans whose fierce shot was parried by Jason but squirmed underneath him and trickled towards the line but Glennon was on hand to clear the ball upfield where it carried to the feet of Panter. Eddie, with his back to goal, was bundled over from behind by Morris and fell over the ball. The defender with a total disregard to the opponents safety then attempted to kick the ball away with Panter curled over the ball catching the Kettering man on the side of the head with a shin. The Referee awarded the free kick but took no further action against the aggressor.

The free kick was taken sideways to Powell who ran at the Harborough defence but could find no way around the imposing Dolman and he played the ball inside to Fatadjo who managed to make room for a fierce shot but once again Taylor managed to beat the ball away.

With a little over five minutes left in the half, Harborough won a corner on Kettering’s left. Kelly-Evans lifted into the middle where Glennon looked to nod the ball on it’s way towards the touchline. However, McAuley, Harborough’s recent signing from Corby, was directly behind him and got a faceful of Glennon’s head causing the Harborough man to go to the floor. The Harborough player was bleeding badly and play was held up while the blood flow was stemmed, a bandage applied to his head and his blood contaminated shirt and shorts changed.

Approaching half-time, Kettering were more than equal to the hosts having slightly the upper hand but let down by the defensive frailty shown in the first minute with both keepers doing their part in keeping the game to a single goal.

As the game entered the final minute of regulation time, Kettering looked like they would go into the break still very much in contention. It was not to be though as another example of deplorable defending by Kettering allowed Harborough to double their lead. The ball was played up toward the edge of the Kettering penalty area where O’Sullivan collected the ball running parrallell to the edge of the box with Glennon tight on his back his progress was blocked by Andoh and the ball bounced of the back of Levi’s leg and into the path of Kennedy. Thanoj was on hand but could not put in a tackle as Kennedy moved to his right and threaded the ball past Rowe and Alexander and into the net. 2-0 Harborough 45 mins

As the teams were lining up for the restart an additional five minutes of play was announced. Kettering had the only real chance of the additional time when Kettering pressed forward down the right. The ball was played across the face of the Harborough goal but Powell spurned the opening when he sent his shot a couple of feet wide of the near post with the whole goal to aim at. There was enough time for Morgan to over extend himself stretching for the ball and require some treatment.

    Half Time: Harborough Town  2   Kettering Town 0

Harborough made a single change at halftime with Brady Hickey coming on for Rob Morgan.

There was a distinct felling of Deja vu about the start of the second half as once again the Kettering defence gifted Harborough a goal inside the first minute. Harborough played the ball towards the corner along the floor. Rowe looked to have the situation under control looking to ease up on his run to the ball but Kamara was quickly on him and physically pressured him from behind. Blaine starting to lose balance stepped forward to keep his footing stepped over the rolling ball and managed to back heel the ball into the space behind him. Arlott-John quickly latched onto the loose ball and looking up fed a simple ball to Hickey 5 yards out who calmly picked his spot with his first touch of the ball. 3-0 Harborough 46 mins

With a comfortable three goal lead Harborough looked to play out the remainder of the game sitting deep in a 4-4-2 formation confident of their ability to keep Kettering at bay for the rest of the game content to soak up any pressure that Kettering could generate.

After fifty-three minutes, Kettering’s steady passing movement saw a ball in from Isaacson sent behind for a corner. Kettering lofted the ball into the box but the Harborough defence cleared the ball. Kettering retained possession but the defence of the hosts was solid and eventually, the play was broken down when McAuley was adjudged to have been fouled.

Just before the hour mark the game got it’s second caution when Arlott-John was penalised for another foul on Isaacson catching him from behind very similar to his first-half foul and subsequent warning. The foul was right on the corner of the penalty area and another yard would have seen a penalty. Fatadjo took responsibility for the kick aiming for the far top corner but it passed high and wide of the goal.

Shortly after, Kettering made their first changes withdrawing Bitemo, and the largely ineffective Powell, to be replaced by Kai Williams on the right wing and Kai Fifield on the left with Panter moving into the middle.

The introduction of the substitutes injected more purpose as they started to move the ball with more confidence or maybe Harborough were content to concede possession but not territory. However, within three minutes of coming on, Williams had generated a shooting opportunity for himself but saw his shot deflect behind for a corner. The corner was delivered towards the far post where it was put behind for another corner on the opposite side. This set piece was punched clear by Taylor.

With twenty minutes to go, Harborough made their third change with the cautioned Arlott-John being replaced by  Luis Rose.

On the left-wing Fifield was showing an attacking mentality giving Carline a harder afternoon linking up well with Isaacson in support. The free-kick count was starting to rise as Harborough were starting to use their physicality to blunt the Kettering attack with Panter, Fatadjo and Thanoj on the receiving end.

With fifteen minutes to go, Glennon with no options on carried the ball forward before trying a shot from distance. It struck a defender and deflected wide to Fifield who carried the ball into the penalty area from wide shaping up for a shot reminiscent of his goal in the corresponding fixture last season, but rather than shooting he lifted a perfect ball to Andoh to stride onto and power in a header. Taylor got a hand to it but it was too powerful and Levi notched his fourth goal in four consecutive appearances. 3-1 Kettering 74 mins

Before the restart, Harborough made another change bringing on Ben Stephens for David Kamara.

Kettering were looking for more though and with just under ten minutes to go, Williams managed to get beyond the full back and send a tantalising low ball across the face of the Harborough goal  that could not be reached by a Kettering player to pass harmlessly by the far post. Despite appeals from the Kettering players that it deflected behind off a Harborough player a goal-kick was awarded.

Shortly after, Kettering made their final substitution with Ethan Fitzhugh replacing Andi Thanoj.

The other Kai, Fifield, was having success on the wing and made a probing run down the left before cutting into the penalty but saw his shot deflect off a defender to go behind for a corner. Fitzhugh lifted a beautifully placed corner into the penalty area leaving the defence with little option but to put it behind for safety with all the Harborough players in and around their own area. Kettering kept the pressure on with another corner with Fitzhugh delivering precisely into the middle far enough away from the keeper to prevent him venturing off his line but the towering Morris and savvy Dolman had enough about them to opt for safety conceding corners rather than goals. After three successive corners Harborough made their final substitution with Paul Malone a defender coming on with O’Sullivan finally leaving the pitch an hour after he should have done if the Referee had followed the Laws of the game. The fourth corner was delivered closer to the goalmouth and Taylor came out to punch the ball away but it was gathered by Lewis on the edge of the penalty area. With a mass of players in front of him he slipped the ball to Andoh who lifted the ball back into the scrum of players. For once Dolman was not dominant and failed to clear the ball. It bobbled around the penalty spot before it was lifted goalwards b a Kettering player. Williams, behind the last defender, latched onto the ball but could only lift the waist high ball over the bar but it mattered not as the Assistant had raised his flag for offside.

With the ninety-minute mark fast approaching Harborough looked to play the game out and sent a long ball deep into the Kettering half. Glennon being chased by the fresh legged Stephenson put the ball into touch for a throw in adjacent to the Kettering penalty area. Carline sent a long throw-in into the area where a forward and Isaacson challenged for the ball with Glennon caught in no-mans land marking nobody just behind. The ball passed over the heads of the front two players and struck the unprepared Glennon and rebounded off him to the feet of Rose who had the simplest task of side-footing the ball home from close range with Alexander unable to react.

4-1 Harborough 90 mins

It summed up Kettering’s afternoon of poor defending, coupled with poor officiating, topped off with poor fortune. It was announced that the Kettering contingent would have to suffer an additional five minutes. 

During the added time, Lewis picked up a caution for tripping an opponent right in front of the Referee out of frustration which the official wasted no time in flashing the yellow card showing none of the leniency he had to Harborough players earlier in the game when a talking to was considered suitable punishment. The humiliation was completed by the announcement that the Kettering supporters were to be held back at the final whistle to allow them to be taunted by witnessing  the Harborough fans celebrating at the end with no intention of leaving as it was at Latimer Park.

Kettering had one last hurrah in the closing moments as the players played for pride as first Taylor produced a good save to deny a Kettering shot from the edge of the area. A clearance off the line followed from the follow up effort. Kettering perseivered though and forced a corner as time was close to expiring. The corner was not adequately cleared by Harborough and fell to Fitzhugh 18 yards out who picked his spot well and threaded the ball through the crowd of players to send the ball into the corner of the goal with the last kick of the game. 4-2 Kettering 95 mins

Full Time: Harborough Town  4   Kettering Town  2

Another game where the scoreline was not a true reflection of the game. The first half was book ended by two horrible defensive errors which detracted from the fact that Kettering were more than equal to the hosts. Harborough named Rory McAuley as their man of the match but the solid performance by their keeper Elliott Taylor dealing with a succession of testing shots from Kettering meant that his team went in at half time with a lead. Another goal gifted to Harborough through another defensive error ended the game as a contest as the home team were happy to sit behind two banks of four confident in their ability to defend a three-goal lead with Kettering needing to make all the running. Kettering managed to pierce the Harborough defence once with the introduction of the two Kai’s making a difference but at the death another defensive error this time by Glennon gifted another gilt-edged chance to Rose who gladly took it.

Harborough Town yellow cards: O’Sullivan – violent conduct  Arlott-John – foul

Kettering Town yellow cards:  Lewis – foul

Attendance: 1723

Kettering Town Man-of-the-Match – Ismael Fatadjo –  Outshone his predecessor in the Kettering team, Kelly-Evans, by some distance. Was industrious and never stopped running but was fighting a losing battle by being let down by some atrocious defending.