McDermott inspired by Wembley bid

Kidderminster Harriers winger David McDermott is using the carrot of a possible Wembley appearance as the force to get match fit during his loan spell at Halesowen.

The 22-year-old is on the comeback trail at the Grove after two months out and two spells in hospital with ulcers in his stomach and colon, and was due to make his debut in last night's home game against Nuneaton.

His time with the Southern League Premier club is due to come to an end after the trip to Leamington on March 20 - the same day Harriers face a Wembley decider at Stevenage in the second-leg of the FA Trophy semi-final.

Should his parent club progress to the final, the scramble for places in the showpiece match would start as soon as his spell out on loan was up, and McDermott takes inspiration from what could develop.

He said: "I will be looking to come back to Harriers fit and ready to fight for a place in the team, with a good month at Halesowen I can do that.

"It would be a massive ask for me to come straight back into a side that could be heading to Wembley, but it's a definite goal to have."

Harriers boss Steve Burr will also be able to continue to monitor the player, who is still training day-to-day with the club as well as twice a week with Halesowen.

McDermott will be as busy as they come over the next month but reckons it's no pain, no gain.

He said: "I am basically trying to do as much as I can, I may be ahead of schedule but I have been sent out on loan because I am not fit enough to play for Harriers at the moment. They reckoned the best thing for me to do was to come to Halesowen for a bit, it's not ideal but it's the best thing for me at the moment.

"There is only a certain amount you can do in the gym and on the training field, I need game time to get that fitness back."

Damian Spencer's time at Aggborough is also over for the season, after the on-loan striker returned to Kettering at the end of his third and final month on loan with Harriers.