Another inept performance has seen Evesham drop a place to 20th in the Evo-Stik Southern Premier Division and relegation now a strong possibility after defeat at the Valley Stadium. Matt Clarke’s side were outplayed by their rivals in this derby going down without a fight to their sixth consecutive loss. Redditch, looking for revenge after a 1-0 defeat at St. George’s Lane in December, introduced Lee Hendrie for his home debut and the former Aston Villa midfielder had a hand in Reds opening goal on 19 minutes. Hendrie’s free kick was headed into his own net by the unfortunate Lewis Tasker. The game was as good as over when Redditch scored a second in the 32nd minutes. Daniel Platt failed to hold Tasfa Robinson’s hanging cross and Hendrie was on hand to tuck away the loose ball.
Redditch continued to dominate in the second half and extended their lead to 3-0 on the hour. Poor defending from Joe Halsall’s corner allowed defender Jamie Grimes time and space to beat Platt at his near post. Platt got in a brave block on James Deabill after the Redditch striker muscled his way clear and then saw Lee Osborne fire wide as the home side went in search of a fourth. But it was Evesham who had the final say, Henry Eze turning in Jared Wilson’s cross for a late consolation seven minutes from time.
Evesham: Platt, Winter, Clarke, Eze, Daniel, Connor (Wilson 45), Murphy, Fitter, Lewis (Mackenzie 70), Agbor (Griffin 45), Tasker. Subs not used: Ardallany, Wood.
Attendance: 380.
