Bromsgrove Sporting suffer home defeat to Coalville Town

Half an hour before kick-off, Callum King-Harmes suffered a serious knee injury while warming up, requiring an emergency call and a postponement of the kick-off time writes Shaunna Grace Murphy.

It was unfortunate for the youngster as he was set to make his first league start since last October. There was no fracture and only ligament damage, but he will probably be out for a few months.

Sporting recognized from the start that they were dealing with a good team as the Ravens had several good moves into the Bromsgrove area.

Then, with just seven minutes left, Coalville winger Luke Shaw fired a shot straight into the box that keeper Ollie Taylor had covered, only to be deflected by Ayo Lekuti and land in the back of the net.

At the other end, Jack Tolley made a brave attempt to get the Rouslers back in the game and could have equalized in the 17th minute had not Paul White made a save.

Moments later, Coalville’s Tom McGlinchey managed to get past Sporting’s back four by thundering a shot against the post, but Sporting’s relief was short-lived as the winger calmly pocketed the rebound to give his side a two-goal lead To provide.

The third for the Ravens came minutes before halftime and again it was McGlinchey on goal, pushing home from the center of the box after retrieving a pass from Timothy Berridge.

Sporting played well in the second half and although coming from a 0-3 deficit was a big challenge for them, they worked hard and played good football.

Although they looked good up front, a combination of solid defense against Coalville and bad luck with 50/50 balls landing at the opposition prevented them from making the scorers’ list.

Brandon Smalley continued his fine form with set pieces, forcing White to make a decent save from a free kick in the 52nd minute.

However, frustration boiled over with 20 minutes to go when referee Mr Nicholson issued a straight red card to the home defender after a tackle by Ammar Dyer.

Despite a lack of men, it looked as if Sporting would be able to prevent the goal line from deteriorating, but at the last minute Ravens substitute Tendia Chitiza headed in Eliott Putnam’s cross.

A miserable afternoon for Sporting, with player/manager Mike McGrath missing more players for next week’s visit to second-placed Leiston in Suffolk.

Final Score: Bromsgrove Sporting 0 (0) Coalville Town (3) 4 at the Victoria Ground

Sporting line-up: Ollie Taylor, Ammar Dyer, Ayo Lekuti, Kartell Dawkins, Tom Taylor (captain), Mike McGrath, Conor Tee, Mo Sebbeh (Joe Curtis 84 mins), Miro Pais (Lewis Wright 71 mins), Brandon Smalley, Jack Tolley (Dewain Sewell, 68 minutes). Unused substitutes: Adam Marusiak, Dewain Sewell

Referee: Mr. D. Nicholson

Quantity: 511

Sporting man of the game: Cartel Dawkins