Report: Rangers 2 v 3 Harlow Hill

KDRAFC Media
Aug 7, 2022
3 min read

An out-of-sorts Rangers side fell to a 3-2 defeat to Harrogate Premier Champions Harlow Hill on Thursday night at Barr Field.

For the opening ten minutes, neither side really threatened, with the only action being a shot from Harlow, which Kieran Arnett beat away from his goal.

A curling cross by Luke Trower saw a poor clearance fall to Phil Turner's feet, but his shot was too close to the visiting goalkeeper, who deflected the ball wide.

Harlow took the lead after fourteen minutes when a pass across the edge of Deighton's area was hooked goalwards, deflecting off a covering defender and wrong-footing several players as it nestled into the corner of the net.

Deighton were passing the ball well in spells. However, their downfall was the absence of players in the box for the final ball, and several promising moves ended with Harlow's defence and keeper dealing with crosses or through balls without any pressure from the home side.

The scores were level on 37 minutes after a tackle by Trower prevented Harlow from breaking through the middle. The ball found Andrew Slinger on the left wing. Cutting across the visitor's area, he curled in a shot past the keeper and into the goal.

Harlow pegged Deighton back, and a ball over the defence saw Arnett hesitate to come and deal with it. Sensing a chance, the striker attempted to chip the custodian, only for the seventeen-year-old to go airborne and tip the ball onto the post.

Chesting down a cross-field pass, James Woodward burst into Harlow's area but couldn't get the ball completely under control before a defender blocked his path.

A weak clearance outside Deighton's area saw Harlow evade the last defender, but Arnett had got his angles correct and produced a good save to deny them from taking the lead.

With the away side exerting all the pressure, Harlow won a corner that a yellow shirt managed to loop towards the far post, only for Arnett to leap up and push the shot wide.

Half-Time: Kirk Deighton Rangers 1 v 1 Harlow Hill

Harlow re-established their lead in the 53rd minute when Rangers failed to pick up the runner at the back post, and he managed to steer his header into the far corner of the net.

Pinning Deighton back again, Harlow appealed for a penalty when Trower tackled their player and diverted the ball away from him. Seconds later, another appeal was heard when Arnett went down to the striker's feet to deny him a shot. On both occasions, the referee was unmoved and play continued.

Deighton weren't doing themselves any favours, and they had two lucky escapes when Harlow could only shoot over the bar from inside the area before Jack Abbott muscled their player off the ball as he was about to shoot.

In a rare appearance in Harlow's half, Luke Dubery showed superb tenacity to win the ball close to the byline. Hooking a cross towards the penalty spot, George Widdows couldn't make up the ground, and a defender headed clear.

Arnett was called into action again in the 71st minute to produce another save to push a low shot wide of his back post.

Another good run by Dubery ended with him finding James Flynn. Gaining the edge on his marker, Flynn aimed for the corner of the goal, but his shot was wide.

The third goal for Harlow came in the 79th minute when a run down the right saw a cross pick out their player, who managed to turn a Deighton player before lashing the ball past Arnett, who got his fingers to it but couldn't divert it over the crossbar.

With the visitors taking their foot off the accelerator, Deighton saw more of the ball in Harlow's half of the pitch. However, a lack of cohesion saw chances limited to a Dubery shot that went wide.

Widdows provided some cheer for the Deighton supporters in the 88th minute after he kept a calm head to shoot through a crowd of players into the corner of the net.

Deighton nearly gained an undeserved equaliser in injury time when Steve Delaney's long shot beat the keeper and the crossbar.

We wish Harlow Hill all the best for the forthcoming season.

Full-Time: Kirk Deighton Rangers 2 v 3 Harlow Hill