York City kicked off the festive program with a deserved victory over Kidderminster, at a sub-zero Bootham Crescent. The win lifts the Minstermen to ninth in Division Three as the season enters an important stage, with plenty of points to play for over the coming days. Make no doubt about it, a good Christmas campaign could see City well in the promotion mix, a bad one could see the supporters gazing anxiously downwards. The division is that tight at the moment and the three points today, most welcome.

The first half was one of those forty five minutes of dire football where you wish it were windy, so you could blame the conditions! City perhaps shaded it, but only because the home side offered little, whilst Kidderminster offered nothing. The half was scrappy and disjointed, with the only decent football being played involving the Bullock and Nogan partnership, but sadly the ball reached them too seldom.

On nine minutes, a fine through ball from Nogan found his striking partner on the edge of the box, but the low shot missed Brock's left hand post comfortably.

On twenty-seven minutes a free-kick was pumped into the Kidderminster area onto the head of first Bullock and then Parkin, only for the big city defender to find only the keeper's hands from about three yards out.

If York were poor in the first half, the visitors were worse. They managed not a single shot on goal and the only danger came from a couple of runs by Bennett and Shilton on either flank, which threatened to get behind the York defence.

So half time came, with supporters praying for a game of two halves and something to warm frozen hands.

Kidderminster started the second-half the brighter, with an accurate sweeping cross by Hinton onto the head of Bennett, who hit the side netting rather than the goal with Ovendale struggling to cover. Indeed, the visitors were continuing to press, when the ball broke to York in midfield. A pass to Edmondson found the City defender in some space towards the right side of the area, he squared the ball to Nogan, whose scuffed shot was only weakly parried by the keeper. Bullock following in, was then able to take the ball on and tap home from two yards. One - nil to City, fifty-one minutes gone.

There then followed a wonderful fifteen minute spell by York when they could and should have put the game well beyond the reach of the visitors. A bizarre three man substitution by Kidderminster saw a change of tactics, which gave City acres more space on the counter attack. They made full use of this, especially through the pace of Shaw to create chance after chance. For this golden quarter of an hour, City impressed and swaggered.

First, Shaw was put through on the left and with the goal beckoning and Nogan in support, he shot tamely wide. Then Cooper charged down the left flank, put in a superb whipped cross from the by-line, met by the head of Shaw right in front of goal. However, the city loanee failed to connect properly and the ball looped wide.

Minutes later, Shaw and Cooper combined to tee-up the city assistant manager, but Nogan's twenty yard drilled shot was saved on the second attempt by Brock.

City continued to press and on sixty-two minutes, the impressive Cooper should really have made it two-nil. A left wing cross was cleverly flicked on by Nogan, only for Cooper to head inches wide from point blank range.

On sixty-nine minutes the city faithful were almost celebrating again, when a Dunning twenty-two yard pile driver looked certain to burst the net. However, with Brock stranded the ball passed the wrong side of the post by a whisker.

As always when so many good chances go begging, nerves and uncertainty started to come into play. Slowly but surely Kidderminster weathered the storm and looked to steal the game themselves.

On seventy-six minutes, a free kick deflected on its way towards Ovendale in the City goal, almost looping into the City net. There then followed four consecutive Kidderminster corners, the last of which almost brought the equaliser, as Brass scrambled the ball clear of a packed penalty area.

City held on and even threatened once or twice on the counter attack, usually through the tireless running of Shaw. However, on eight-eight minutes, the visitors almost stole a point. A thunderous shot following yet another corner was bravely headed off the line by the blonde locks of Parkin, from under his own crossbar.

As the game entered a tense last three minutes of injury time, Merris broke free down the City left. He showed good pace before whipping in the cross of the match for Nogan, who should have done better than head wide from eight yards out. Never mind, as the seconds ticked down and City survived a last gasp Kidderminster free kick on the edge of the area, the final whistle blew and the oh so precious points were secure.

Overall, City deserved their win, with the balance of the game turning on the Bullock goal. Kidderminster, defensive up until that point had to push forward and City looked a different side with the room to play in, creating chance after chance. They will worry again at the lack of a goalscorer to convert these chances and again City fans had to nail bite when the match should have been long dead.

However, three points is all that matters in the end and City can still look upwards to promotion rather than down towards danger. Bring on the Tigers, Boxing Day.

Report by Mark Willis.

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