Enterprise National League North
Saturday 12th September 2026
Harborough Town 0 – 0 AFC Telford United
Report – Chris Lander
Photo – RB Media
Man of the Match – Prince Mancinelli
Attendance – 978
A hard-fought goalless draw played out in South Leicestershire as hosts Harborough Town earned a point following two consecutive defeats, while AFC Telford United recorded their third clean sheet on the bounce.
The visitors made the brighter start and pressed high during the opening exchanges, refusing to give Harborough time to settle on the ball in difficult, gusty conditions. Despite Telford’s early pressure, it was the home side who had two penalty appeals waved away in quick succession.
Callum Powell’s cross appeared to be charged down by a hand inside the area before the Harborough forward was pushed and tripped as he attempted to regain possession during the follow-up. Referee Oliver Noonan remained unmoved on both occasions and allowed play to continue.
Clear opportunities remained limited as the two sides competed for control of a closely fought contest. Telford enjoyed their best spell of the opening half around the 30-minute mark, creating a flurry of chances as they looked to turn their pressure into the opening goal.
Mal Benning was the first to go close with a fizzing left-footed effort which narrowly missed the target. Remi Walker then had two opportunities in quick succession for the visitors.
Walker’s first came after he had evaded challenges from George Carline and Devon Kelly-Evans before directing a shot towards the right of Elliott Taylor. The Harborough goalkeeper reacted well and produced a strong save to deny him.
Moments later, Walker was presented with another chance from a free-kick around 25 yards from goal. His strike moved noticeably in the air but continued to rise and eventually cleared Taylor’s crossbar.
Harborough responded before the interval and almost broke the deadlock through Carline. The defender rose to meet the ball with a powerful header which appeared destined for the top corner, but Brandon Hall in the AFC Telford United goal was equal to it and made an important save to keep the scores level.
That proved to be the closest either side came during the opening 45 minutes, with the teams heading into the break locked at 0–0.
The second half belonged almost entirely to Harborough as the home side pushed forward with greater purpose and spent longer periods inside Telford territory. Connor Kennedy, Sam Osborne, Prince Mancinelli and Carline all tried their luck from distance as the Bees searched for a breakthrough against a well-organised visiting defence.
Midway through the second half, Osborne came agonisingly close to opening the scoring. The attacker turned sharply on the proverbial sixpence and, while everyone looked towards the left, sent his effort towards the opposite corner. Hall was rooted to the spot, but the ball scraped the outside of the right-hand post and went behind.
Although Harborough continued to apply the majority of the pressure, they still had to remain alert to Telford’s threat at the other end. Taylor and Carline both worked hard to clear dangerous situations and ensure the visitors were unable to take advantage on the counterattack.
Harborough introduced Michael Jacobs for Kennedy with 15 minutes remaining as they continued searching for the goal which would secure all three points. Josh Walsh had earlier replaced Osborne, while Ben Malone was brought on for O’Sullivan during the closing stages.
One final opportunity arrived as the game moved towards full-time. The ever-battling O’Sullivan released Jacobs through on goal, but the substitute’s effort was well saved by Hall, who once again stood firm to protect Telford’s clean sheet.
Neither side was able to find a decisive touch before the final whistle, leaving the points shared after a competitive but goalless afternoon. Harborough stopped a run of two defeats with a point, while AFC Telford United extended their sequence of clean sheets to three matches.