Kidderminster Harriers v West Ham United
Emirates FA Cup fourth round, Aggborough Stadium, Saturday 5 February 2022, 12.30pm
West Ham United travel to Kidderminster Harriers for just the second time in the Club's history for an Emirates FA Cup fifth round tie this weekend.
The BBC cameras will also be in the Worcestershire town, no doubt hoping for an upset, as the Premier League Hammers take on their National League North hosts in a Saturday 12.30pm kick-off. There will also be a 6,444-strong crowd present at Aggborough Stadium, with the vast majority eyeing a home win.
Kidderminster have enjoyed an outstanding FA Cup run which began in the second qualifying round back on 18 September 2021. Kiddy have beaten Sporting Khalsa, Ware, Bedfont Sports, National League Premier opponents Grimsby Town and FC Halifax Town and EFL Championship side Reading (pictured) to reach the fourth round proper.
West Ham, meanwhile, have contested just one FA Cup tie, beating fellow Premier League side Leeds United 2-0 at London Stadium on 9 January.
Saturday's tie marks the second season in succession that David Moyes' side have faced non-league opposition in the FA Cup, as Craig Dawson's header took them past National League outfit Stockport County in the third round in January 2021.
It is also the second time West Ham have been drawn to face Kidderminster in the FA Cup, as Lee Chapman's header saw Billy Bonds' side edge past Harriers in the fifth round in February 1994 - the only time Kiddy have gone that far in the competition, and the hosts will hope to shock West Ham and emulate that feat this time around.
Moyes, who was part of the Preston North End team beaten by Kidderminster in the fourth round back in 1994, will of course hope his West Ham side can safely avoid their banana skin and make it safely through to the last 16.
You can watch a West Ham TV feature focusing on that tie 28 years ago by clicking here.
Ticket news
Unsurprisingly, West Ham United's allocation of 1,690 tickets sold out to Bondholders and Season Ticket Holders with 54+ Priority Points.
If you are travelling up to Kidderminster, check out our guide for travelling fans here.
However, tickets are on General Sale for the home Premier League ties with Watford on Tuesday 8 February, Newcastle United on Saturday 19 February and Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday 27 February. Secure your seats now for those games now by clicking here.
Season Ticket Holders and Bondholders can also secure their seats for the UEFA Europa League round of 16 second leg at London Stadium, which will be played on Thursday 17 March.
Click here to watch West Ham United in action live now!
COVID guidance
For information about the COVID guidelines in place at Aggborough Stadium, click here.
How to follow
Saturday's 12.30pm kick-off will be broadcast live in the UK by BBC One, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website from 12noon. If you are based overseas, you may be able to watch the game in your territory. Click here for overseas broadcast listings.
We will also be covering the game live with a blog and audio commentary on whufc.com and our Official App and across our social media channels, with goals, highlights and exclusive reaction to follow after the final whistle.
Team news
David Moyes will be without Angelo Ogbonna (knee), while Michail Antonio is also set to be unavailable after only playing in a FIFA World Cup qualifier for Jamaica in the early hours of Thursday morning. Jamaica were beaten 1-0 at home by Costa Rica to end their hopes of reaching Qatar 2022.
Saïd Benrahma is available again after representing Algeria at the CAF Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon.
A number of young professionals have been training with the first-team squad this week and could be included in Moyes' matchday squad.
FA Cup fourth round information
In the event the scores are level after 90 minutes the match will go into extra-time and if the scores still remain level then the match will be decided on penalties. Neither VAR and Goal line technology will be in operation for this fixture.
Each manager can name nine substitutes, of which five can be used (different from Premier League). Managers have three occasions during open play to make substitutions (excluding half-time) – multiple substitutions can be made during each occasion. An additional (fourth) opportunity to make a substitution is provided if the match goes into extra-time (excluding the break between full-time and extra-time and half-time during extra-time).
Each Club shall also be permitted to utilise up to two ‘concussion substitutes’ and/or two ‘additional substitutes’ (as appropriate) from those substitutes listed on the Team Sheet.
The opposition – Kidderminster Harriers
Founded in 1886, Kidderminster Harriers hail from the Worcestershire town made famous by its textiles industry - hence one of the club's nickname of The Carpetmen.
Founder members of the Birmingham & District League, Kidderminster FC entered the Midland League in 1890, but then folded. Kidderminster Harriers FC were formed in their place as an amateur club and rejoined the Birmingham & District League, before ultimately winning the title for the first time in 1938.
A decade later, Kiddy joined the Southern League, before again dropping down to the Birmingham & District League in 1960. After winning that League four times, the club rejoined the Southern League in 1972, before being promoted to the Alliance Premier League (later the Conference and now National League Premier) in 1983 - got all that?
Kidderminster won the FA Trophy in 1987, defeating Burton Albion in the final, before winning the Conference in 1994, only to be denied promotion to the Football League due to the condition of their Aggborough Stadium. The same year, they had beaten a Preston team (pictured) including David Moyes on their way to the FA Cup fourth round, where they were edged out 1-0 at home by West Ham United in front of a capacity 8,000 crowd.
Kiddy won the title again in 2000 under former Liverpool midfielder Jan Mølby and were promoted to the Football League for the first time. The remained there for five seasons before being relegated into the non-league again in 2005.
Kidderminster were relegated to National League North in 2016, and have remained there ever since.
This season, however, under manager Russell Penn, not only have the Carpetmen excelled in the FA Cup, but they are also third in the table, just four points behind leaders Gateshead with 19 games still to play.
Previous meetings
As mentioned, West Ham United have visited Aggborough Stadium just once previously for a competitive fixture.
That FA Cup fifth-round tie was contested on 19 February 1994, when Billy Bonds' Premier League newcomers edged out their Conference hosts 1-0 through Lee Chapman's looping 69th-minute header.
You can watch a West Ham TV feature focusing on that tie 28 years ago by clicking here.
West Ham would go on to lose to Luton in a sixth round replay at Kenilworth Road, while Kidderminster would win the Conference title, but be denied promotion due to the state of their home ground.
Match officials
Referee: Jon Moss
Assistant Referees: Marc Perry & Timothy Wood
Fourth Official: Leigh Doughty
Born in Sunderland in 1970, Jon Moss won a football scholarship at Central Connecticut State University in the United States but completed his studies with a degree in teaching and physical education at the University of Leeds.
Moss played Academy football for Sunderland and Millwall before opting to become a physical education teacher, teaching future Liverpool and England star James Milner at Westbrook Lane Primary School in Leeds!
Moss’s refereeing career began in the Northern Counties East League and Northern Premier League before he was promoted to the National Group of assistant referees in 2003.
He became a Football League referee in 2005 and a Premier League referee in 2011, before taking charge of the 2015 FA Cup final at Wembley.
The 51-year-old has refereed West Ham United 32 times in total since a 2-1 Championship defeat at Derby County on New Year’s Eve 2011.
He was in charge for the Hammers' 1-0 Carabao Cup third-round win at Manchester United in September 2021, and our most-recent Premier League fixture, a 1-0 defeat by the Red Devils at Old Trafford a fortnight ago.
As an aside, Moss famously runs a record shop in Leeds called... Vinyl Whistle!