The sides meet this evening for an immediate rematch after Avenue took maximum points at Kidderminster’s expense last Saturday. This time, the league rivals are vying for a place in the play-off semi-finals where Brackley Town await.

The injured duo of Adam Nowakowski and Nicky Clee remain doubtful but Adam Smith and Javan Vidal are both in line to feature after being named as substitutes in Saturday’s win. Matt Hill could return after being ruled out of Saturday’s victory.

FORM:

 The wind is very much in Avenue’s sails following a run of five straight wins that included victories over play-off contenders Brackley Town, Harrogate Town and tonight’s opponents, Kidderminster Harriers.

Harriers’ unbeaten run stretched to six before Mark Bower’s side caused an upset and will be keen to return to winning ways.

BEEN THERE, DONE THAT

Both manager Mark Bower and defender Shane Killock have alluded to the experience in Avenue’s side in the run-up to the game and they certainly boast one of the most seasoned squads in the division.

Three years ago, Guiseley clinched promotion to the top tier of non-league football in the play-off final, defeating Chorley 3-2. Between the sticks for the Lions was current Avenue stopper Steven Drench, who was protected by a backline that featured Ryan Toulson. Danny Boshell and Wayne Brooksby both featured in the midfield, in behind a front two of Oli Johnson and Adam Boyes. The latter got on the scoresheet as Mark Bower’s side reached the dizzy heights of the Conference Premier. There was also a familiar face in the Magpies’ line-up that day, as Mark Ross completed 90 minutes for Chorley.

Captain Nicky Wroe has tasted play-off success in the Blue Square Premier in 2009. The combative midfielder completed 90 minutes for Torquay United as they saw off Cambridge United to seal promotion to League Two.

Defensive lynchpin Gianluca Havern has been a mainstay of Avenue’s side this season and has two sixth-tier promotions on his CV after helping Hyde United and Altrincham achieve top tier status. The injured Nicky Clee also featured as the Robins clinched promotion in 2014.

Shane Killock’s impressive form has made him one of the first names on the team sheet at the Horsfall in recent weeks and he captained AFC Telford United to promotion from the sixth-tier in 2011.

February signing Adam Smith is another name on the list of Avenue players with play-off experience having featured for York City in their play-off semi-final first leg win over Luton Town in 2010.

On-loan defender Rob Atkinson replaced Matt Hill in Avenue’s starting eleven last Saturday following an injury to the veteran full-back and has also achieved a non-league promotion. He was an integral part of the Fleetwood Town side that earned promotion to the Football League in 2012.

John Eustace has one of the most youthful squads in the league at his disposal but he has players that boast experience at the business end. Imposing defender Kennedy Digie played a vital role in helping Stourbridge reach the Norther Premier League Premier Division play-off final last season and fellow defender James O’Connor helped Sean O’Driscoll’s Doncaster Rovers reach the Championship via the League One play-offs in 2008.

THE OPPOSITION GAFFER:

 John Eustace:

 38-year-old Eustace stepped into management with Kidderminster in 2016, a year after hanging up his boots. He plied his trade in the Premier League and Football League during his career, operating as a midfielder after graduating from Coventry City’s academy. The Solihull-born battler recorded 98 appearances for the Sky Blues and won Dundee United’s ‘Young Player of the Year’ award following a loan spell in the 1998-1999 season. He then moved to Stoke City where he spent five years before being snapped up by Watford for a reported £250,000 in 2008. Eustace made 157 appearances for the Hornets before finishing his career with Derby County.

ONE TO WATCH:

 Joe Ironside

 The prolific forward was rested during Kidderminster’s defeat to Avenue last Saturday but would be a surprise omission if he didn’t feature in tonight’s game. The 24-year-old progressed through Sheffield United’s academy and made 16 appearances for the first-team before his release in 2015. Having gained non-league experience during loan spells with the likes of FC Halifax Town, Harrogate Town and Alfreton Town, he joined the latter on a permanent deal following his departure from Bramall Lane. He struggled to find his feet at the Impact Arena but rediscovered his goal scoring after joining Nuneaton Town in 2016. After impressing at the LDJ Solicitors Stadium, Ironside sealed a move to the Harriers and has scored on 19 occasions already this season.

Tonight’s play-off elimination round match kicks-off at 7:45pm but if you can’t make it, you can follow all the action on Twitter. Find us at @BPAFCOfficial!

What a way to finish our season on Saturday! Without playing particularly well, the lads dug in and kept their composure to get us the victory we needed to get in to those play offs. It has been a surreal last few weeks where for most of it we’ve felt like we’ve been playing for pride, but for us to put five successive wins together to put pressure on the teams around us at this stage of the season is a remarkable achievement.

Spennymoor pushed us all the way on Saturday and I must give them credit for the way they came from a goal behind to win in their game against Southport despite all the games they have played recently and so soon after the disappointment of their draw at home to Ferriby on Thursday night. They have had a great season and I’m sure they will be even stronger next year.

We now face a trip back to Kidderminster on Wednesday night and I hope as many Avenue fans as possible can travel down to support the lads and enjoy the occasion. Saturday’s result will have no bearing on the play off game and we know Kidderminster rotated their squad and will make changes for this game, but our lads can approach the game with a different pressure to that which we experienced on Saturday. Nobody expected us to be in this position and nobody expects us to get promoted, but we’ve been on a great run and the players are playing with confidence and in a one off play off game, anything can happen.

Kidderminster are a fantastic team with some top quality young players and play with a style that any true football fan would appreciate and admire. I have great respect for their management team of John Eustace and Matt Gardiner who give their players licence to express themselves and pass the ball. They had a great season finishing second last year and have been strong again this time, particularly at home, so we know how tough it will be for us to come away with a win. But our players know their jobs and if we can carry them out to the best of our ability we have a chance.

It’s been an amazing season with a few highs and lows and its still not over yet!

Thanks for your amazing support, bring on Kidderminster!

Mark

This is the last opportunity for Supporters to secure their seat on the coach to Kidderminster tomorrow.  Seats cost £10 for Adults and £8 for Under 18’s. Pick up times are 15:15 from The Horsfall Stadium and 15:30 from Ceder Court. To book your seat please contact Neil Fawcett on ‭07811959003‬

After the excitement of securing a play-off spot on Saturday its back to business for Mark and the boys in preparation for Wednesday’s return trip to Kidderminster.

Tonight Mark and the team will have a light training session at Horsfall which you, the fans, are invited to come along and show your support.

The bar will open at 5.30 and you can register to secure your spot on the coach travelling to Kidderminster on Wednesday. Alternatively please contact Neil Fawcett on ‭07811959003‬. Prices for the coach will be £10 for Adults and £8 for Under 18s. Pick up will be at 15:15 from Horsfall and 15:30 from Ceder Court.

After the excitement of securing a play-off spot yesterday its back to business for Mark and the boys in preparation for Wednesday’s return trip to Kidderminster.

On Monday evening Mark and the team will have a light training session at Horsfall which you, the fans, are invited to come along and show your support.

The bar will open at 5.30 and you can register to secure your spot on the coach travelling to Kidderminster on Wednesday. Alternatively please contact Neil Fawcett on ‭07811959003‬.

I would like to wish the absolute best of luck to Mark and the lads on Saturday. They have done a great job this season to put us within grasp of the playoff places.

As you are aware we are in the process of transferring the club back to my ownership and have, finally, received some guidance from the FCA that will enable us to move forward for FA approval.

When the transfer is complete this will leave me as the sole Director and shareholder but alongside our new charity which will take over much of the community work that we were doing under the old structure. Also after some thought we have decided that it will be best to keep the club at Horsfall next season along with some improvements to the ground.

The club will obviously require management and leadership in order to move forward in a sustainable manner and I have appointed Rob Stanley to take full control of the all club matters with immediate effect.

The club’s current deficit is unstainable, and it is unfortunate that we will have to make cuts, as well as looking at ways to increase revenue streams, in order to compete in the National League. Rob is tasked with these decisions and I am sure he will be open to discussions regarding ideas to increase revenue and improve the general match day experience.

Volunteers are the life blood of our club and we hope that those who have assisted the club in the past will continue to do so in the future.

The current community work will continue as a registered charity and will be managed by Joe Mosley and Jayne Spencer who will work alongside Rob to investigate ways to develop our current ground.

The intention is for the charity to take the long term lease of Horsfall and we are in discussions with the council to this end and hope to be able to reach an agreement in the next few months.

The academy, Horsfall College of Sport, will still be based at the stadium next season and we hope that this will develop and produce the stars of the future.

The hard work for next season will start as soon as this one ends, which might not be Saturday!!

Thank you for your support for Bradford Park Avenue

Gareth

Spennymoor Town’s poor form has left the promotion door open for Avenue but Bower was cautious, saying: “We’ve given ourselves a chance. We’ve just got to do our job and win our game.

We take on Kidderminster Harriers tomorrow, knowing that they could be facing the same opponents in a play-off clash in less than a week’s time.

“I don’t think it’s any extra motivation for us to play Kidderminster. When you come in with a late run like we have, you just take whoever you get!

“It will be a strange one for Kidderminster though because they could effectively influence who they face in the play-offs.

Bower admitted that he was unsure at first about the two extra play-off places this season, but he had been won over by the idea.

“I think it’s really good how it’s kept the season going. Nearly every game last weekend had something riding on it and I think that’s fantastic for the league and the supporters.

“I was a bit sceptical at first, and obviously it helps that we might benefit from it, but I do think that it has made the league more competitive and interesting.”

Avenue have had availability problems this season but the squad is returning to full-strength now, which would be ideal if they were to reach the play-offs.

Bower was able to start his three deadly strikers, Frank Mulhern, Oli Johnson and Adam Boyes, last weekend and he was delighted as they spearheaded the 3-1 win over Harrogate Town.

He said: “Frank’s done well in that wide position in a front three. His physical strength and ability in the air is a good outlet for us. “There are few better than Oli in this league when he’s on form. He’s back in the swing of it after his suspension and we saw a top-drawer performance in the second half.

“And Boyesy works hard, it’s like having two strikers up front! The formation worked well against Harrogate but we’ll probably look to rejig one or two things against Kidderminster to suit that game.”

Bring On Saturday

Mark

The league we are in gets tougher each year though and today’s visitors Harrogate Town are an example of just what we are up against.

They have had a fantastic season and really benefited from turning full time last summer and having the financial clout to sign some excellent players in the close season and to add to that significantly with some quality players as the season has progressed. They have been challenging for top spot all season long and having seen them play a fair few times, I’ve been impressed by the way they play at a high intensity with some very good footballers. They have spent heavily over the past 5 or 6 seasons without much success, but this season they look the real deal and we wish Simon Weaver and his team well for whatever remains of their season. Finally, a big thank you to all our supporters who have backed us this year both home and away. We are not the biggest club in this league, but our supporters make themselves heard especially away from home and I know this is much appreciated by everyone in the dressing room. I hope we can finish on a Saturday with a good result and performance.

Mark