Cunnington, is it 0-4 and out?

JUST when Kidderminster Harriers thought the season from hell could not get any worse - along came the heaviest home defeat in their Football League history.

And the embarrassing Boston debacle offered a stark warning to potential bosses that the job of managing at Aggborough is getting harder by the minute.

One man who is finding that to his cost is Shaun Cunnington whose hopes on filling the post on a permanent basis all but disappeared with most of the Harriers squad at half-time on Saturday.

One minute Harriers were holding their own during an evenly-matched first half, the next they were emerging from the tunnel a pale reflection of themselves to toss another match away.

Cunnington scolded his players at the final whistle, describing their second half capitulation as unacceptable and warning them their livelihoods were at stake.

But when a week of hard work and meticulous planning can go down the drain inside three-quarters of an hour, it's difficult to know where Harriers turn next.

Quite what the calibre of managerial candidates Kidderminster are currently sifting through, only the under-pressure directors will know.

But at this rate - and after angry chants of "Sack the board" - they need a multi-talented motivator-cum-miracle worker to drag them out of this worrying mess. Harriers have used a staggering 27 players so far this season, including Saturday's debutants Darryn Stamp and John Beswetherwick, yet still they are no closer to finding a successful formula.

True, they are still getting the ball down and playing some decent passing football at times, but it doesn't take a genius to work out what's going wrong.

Harriers have scored just eight goals all season, easily the worst record in the Football League, and have conceded 30, giving them a depressing goal difference of minus 22.

Against Boston, first half Harriers had a couple of decent chances to increase the goals for tally, while second half Harriers generously bumped up the goals against column.

Kidderminster began brightly and James Keene should have set them off to a winning start when he dragged a golden chance wide of the post from close range after a mistake by Pilgrim skipper Paul Ellender.

The Portsmouth striker also smashed a swift snapshot just off target after displaying quick feet, while Simon Russell forced a smart tip over from Nathan Abbey with an effort from the edge of the box.

That duo looked bright and dangerous before the break and it begs the question of just what some of Harriers talented youngsters could achieve in a confident team.

Another youngster who excelled before the break, only to dip after it was on-loan stopper Ben Foster, who stood up well to deny eventual match-winner Andy Kirk from a first half one-on-one.

After the interval however, Foster, and the hapless Abdou Sall were at the centre of Kidderminster's crushing second half collapse.

Lee Beevers started the rout on 50 minutes when he was given the freedom of the penalty box to head in David Noble's corner from close range and Harriers committed their usual sin of allowing their heads to drop.

Kirk made it 2-0 from the penalty spot on 56 minutes when the referee harshly-awarded a penalty after Foster's momentum saw him inadvertently pole-axe Beevers.

A confusion between the keeper and Sall on 80 minutes led to another penalty with the clumsy centre half upending Kirk who dusted himself off to score with a carbon copy kick.

And Kirk completed his hat-trick in the dying seconds when he pounced to poke in the loose ball after Lee Thompson's effort was blocked.

It meant another depressing Saturday night for the Aggborough faithful after Boston followed Shrewsbury in getting their first away win of the season at Kidderminster.

HARRIERS: Foster 6, Cooper 6, Beswetherick 6, Sall 5, Hatswell 6, Russell 6, Christiansen 6 (Diop 66, 6), Keates 6, Jenkins 6 (Foster 72, 6), Stamp 6, KEENE 7. Subs not used: Lewis, Advice-Desruisseaux, McHale.

BOSTON: Abbey, Beevers, Ellender, Greaves, McCann, Thompson, Thomas, Noble, West, Lee, Kirk (Rusk 90). Subs not used: Melton, Holland, McCormick, Pitt.

REFEREE: Eddie Evans (Manchester)

ATTENDANCE: 2,208 (124).