Harwich stave off Hackney Wick's challenge to claim victory

Harwich started well with a good move initiated by Nicky Palmer and Ryan Heath ending in goalmouth action that saw Tyler Rose tap in to give them the lead. The game was only 10 minutes old when Kevin Coyle was pushed and Ryan Heath converted the penalty kick to put Harwich 2-0 up. For the first half hour the Shrimpers were on top and Hackney Wick were not allowed to show their mettle. With half time approaching there was a mix up in the Harwich defence and their failure to clear their lines was punished by Joel Appiah reducing the arrears.
After the break Hackney Wick showed their passing ability and speed of tackle to gradually get on top with the Shrimpers lucky to survive when the ball thudded against the crossbar with keeper Sam Felgate beaten. When Harwich tried to reasert themselves they found the Wick defence astutely marshalled by the impressive Appiah. Harwich needed a goal to give them breathing space and it came from a free kick just outside the penaltyarea superbly struck by Shaun Kioussis into the corner of the net. With a quarter of an hour remaining Wick were not done yet and Appiah strode forward to go through the home defence and reduce Harwich lead to one goal again. It was a nail biting finish but Harwich stood firm to earn maximum points against a very good side