HARRIERS 1, HULL 1

ADRIAN Viveash has been one of the key men behind Kidderminster Harriers' turn in fortunes but left Aggborough a disappointed figure on Saturday.

The reason was his uncharacteristic slip-up which provided the move for Hull's equaliser, meaning Harriers have failed to hold onto single goal leads in their last two games.

Loan star Simon Brown put them ahead at Lincoln and he did the same against Hull with another impressive finish which promises much for the future.

Though Viveash's mistake led to Ben Burgess' leveller at the weekend, it must be remembered the Swindon centre-half's spell has co-incided with a run of just one defeat in seven games.

That form has effectively left Jan Molby's men on the verge of closing the trapdoor on two of the teams below them but they need at least another win to completely shut out their relegation rivals.

Molby will in fact be disappointed not to have beaten two of the promotion chasers over the last week but the performances of Viveash and Wayne Hatswell at the back have been a major contributory factor.

They made Hull's highly rated strike pairing of Burgess and former Man City man Danny Allsopp look pretty ordinary.

Neither defender misses much in the air which is obviously a boost when long-ball tactics so often come into play in Division Three and you normally find them in the right place at the right time.

Unfortunately, that was not the case for poor Hull right-back Lee Marshall, like Brown on loan from West Brom, who lasted just 10 minutes on Saturday.

In a heavy challenge with Scott Stamps in front of the main stand, Marshall suffered a horrific compound fracture of both the tibia and fibula, forcing the visitors into an early re-shuffle.

Hull already had to contend with a strong wind which was carrying keeper John Danby's bigger clearances all the way through to his opposite number.

But they showed plenty of character and promotion potential to bounce back after Brown found the net again on 22 minutes in only his second senior start.

The right-sided forward brought Adam Murray's superb through-ball into his stride and tucked an instinctive 20-yard finish with lethal accuracy past one of the division's best keepers in Boaz Myhill.

Once again this season, the wind was making good football difficult but Harriers used their admirable batting qualities to secure a good slice of possession.

But Hull were so close to equalising on 35 minutes when midfielder Stuart Green, probably their best player, clipped the top of Danby's crossbar with a 20-yard free-kick, moved forward due to a display of dissent from Murray.

Burgess half volleyed over from the edge of the box soon after and winger Ryan France's low drive was well gathered by an alert Harriers keeper.

But midfield workhorse Mark Yates nearly increased Harriers' lead just before half-time, picking up Brown's miscued drive and seeing his deflected shot creep past the left-hand post.

The hosts were to suffer their own selection poser on 54 minutes when Dean Bennett twisted his knee in a challenge and was replaced by Matt Gadsby.

With Harriers fighting to stay in the game, Danby plunged down to his left to deny Stuart Elliott before Hatswell bravely blocked Burgess' attempted follow-up.

Viveash was close with a header from Stamps' corner that needed a clearance from Green by the foot of the post but the experienced defender had a nightmare moment on 68 minutes.

He was caught in possession by Northern Ireland international Elliott, a Molby signing from his brief time at Hull, whose pass allowed top scorer Burgess to slide home a 16th goal of the season.

Molby's hopes of a sweet win over the team that sacked him and his assistant Gary Barnett appeared to be dashed but there was almost a late twist at Aggborough with a moment of class from John Williams.

The former Premier League player flicked a pass from sub Ian Foster beyond the defence and unleashed a terrific strike that crashed off the bar.

A draw was a fair result though as Harriers again showed their ability to match one of the division's best teams and the biggest spender at that.

HARRIERS: Danby 7; Hinton 7, HATSWELL 8, Viveash 6, Stamps 6; Yates 7, Bennett 6 (Gadsby 54, 6); Murray 7; Brown 7 (Christiansen 85), Williams 6, Clarke 6 (Foster 82). Subs not used: Brock, Parrish.

HULL: Myhill; Marshall (Wiseman 12), Hines, Delaney, Thelwell; France, Green, Lewis, Elliott; Allsopp (Walters 65), Burgess. Subs not used: Musselwhite, Forrester, Holt.

ATTENDANCE: 3,853.

SHOTS ON: Harriers 3, Hull 5.

SHOTS OFF: Harriers 4, Hull 7.

CORNERS: Harriers 8, Hull 0.

GOALS: Brown 22, Burgess 68.

YELLOW CARDS: Harriers 4 (Yates, Viveash, Murray, Brown), Hull 3 (France, Allsopp, Green).

SHUTTLE STAR MAN: Wayne Hatswell. A brilliant block to deny Ben Burgess was typical of another superb defensive display from Harriers' skipper who was again a rock at the back.