Match Preview: Solihull Moors vs Burton Albion

Tonight Solihull Moors welcomed Burton Albion to Damson Park for the first home pre season fixture ahead of the 2026/2027 campaign, which gets underway on Saturday, August 8th away to Harrogate Town. After a composed start to the game, Burton Albion scored the first goal on the 8th minute, with the first effort on target for either team. Kyran Lofthouse collected the ball in the middle of the park, advanced towards the Moors box and hit a fine right footed effort into the bottom left corner. Moors 0-1 Burton Albion. On the 35th minute, Albion had a throw which eventually was passed back to the goalkeeper, Corey Addai. On clearing the ball, it went straight to Ben Worman, who had an easy job of tapping the ball into the empty net. Moors 1-1 Albion. A minute into the second half, and the Moors came out lively with the Albion keeper keeping himself big and making a fine double save to deny the Moors from scoring again. In the final minute, a slick one two put through the Albion centre forward who hit a hard low effort in which the Moors keeper made a great save. The follow up effort from 20 yards sailed over the bar. The match ended Solihull Moors 1 Burton Albion 1. Next up for the Moors is the last pre season fixture against League Two side Northampton town on Saturday, August 1st kicking off at 13:00. You can purchase your tickets here Match report written by Bryan Connolly

Following victory against Hereford last time out, Chris Millington’s Solihull Moors side are set to continue their preparations for the upcoming 2026/27 Enterprise National League season by welcoming Burton Albion, led by Gary Bowyer, to Damson Park. Burton’s most recent friendly saw them take on Championship outfit Birmingham City at the Pirelli Stadium, where they would go on to be narrowly defeated 1 – 0 thanks to a first-half goal from forward August Priske. Prior to the Brewers’ formation, several clubs called Burton home: Burton Wanderers, Burton Swifts, and Burton United. Once they had all ceased to exist, a public meeting took place on 6th July 1950 looking to bring football back to the town, and this led to Burton Albion coming into existence. During the early years of the club, they competed in the Birmingham & District League, with the 1953/54 campaign seeing them finish as high as second place whilst also winning the Birmingham Senior Cup by getting the better of Bierley Hill in the Final. They reached the Third Round Proper in the FA Cup in the 1955/56 season, losing 7 – 0 to Charlton Athletic at The Valley. Near the end of that campaign, they beat Tamworth 2 – 0 to win the Staffordshire Senior Cup. By 1958, they had joined the Southern League whilst also moving to a new home, Eton Park, from Wellington Street. They then went on to become the first side to sit outside of the Premier Division to win the Southern League Cup six years later, beating the competition favourites Weymouth 5 – 2. The Brewers were led at the time by the legendary Peter Taylor. Fast forward to 1981, the Midlands side secured the appointment of Neil Warnock as their new boss after departing Gainsborough Trinity. They did lose 6 – 1 against Leicester in the FA Cup thanks to a hat trick from Gary Lineker, though after this result was overturned, they only narrowly lost the replay 1 – 0 behind closed doors at Coventry City’s former home, Highfield Road. In 1997, then Manager John Barton won a cup double after securing the Southern League Cup and the Birmingham Senior Cup. Then came one of the most important appointments in the history of The Brewers – Nigel Clough. Clough joined them in October 1998. In his first years at the club, together with assistant Gary Crosby, Clough’s Burton Albion finished as the runners-up of the Southern League Premier Division, which saw them only just miss out on a long-awaited promotion to the National Conference. Albion then returned to the Northern Premier League in 2001, winning the league title – the club’s first in its history. Promotion to the aforementioned National Conference had been obtained, with them scoring more than 100 goals whilst also having a mean defence that saw them concede just 30. Burton moved to their current home, the Pirelli Stadium, in 2005, facing Chester City in a friendly game. It was then opened officially by legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson, and his Manchester United side would then be drawn against the Brewers in the FA Cup Third Round Proper just weeks later. The Red Devils were held to a goalless draw, which was a historic result for Burton in front of what was a then-record crowd of 6,191. They lost the replay 5 – 0 at Old Trafford. Burton won the 2008/09 Conference title with Roy McFarland in charge after Clough had departed for Derby County midway through the season. They also set a record that term when they won 12 games in a row. The Brewers’ first season in League Two was successful under new permanent boss Paul Peschisolido in charge with Gary Rowett as his assistant. They consolidated in the fourth tier in 2009/10, though the following season was more of a struggle, surviving only after going on a significant run of wins in the final months and weeks of the season. They had reached the Third Round Proper of the FA Cup, only being knocked out by Burnley after beating Middlesbrough in the previous round. Following Peschisolido’s departure, the aforementioned Gary Rowett then took charge in 2012, where he was caretaker before taking on the job on what was a permanent basis. The 2013/14 season saw them achieve a very credible 4th place finish in League Two under Rowett, losing 5 – 4 on aggregate to Bradford City on aggregate in the semi-finals of that season’s play-offs. They were then beaten in the 2015 League Two play-offs final by Fleetwood Town at Wembley Stadium after the Brewers were beaten 1 – 0 by the Cod Army. Burton Albion had a strong start to the following season, and despite Rowett’s mid-season departure for Birmingham City, they were still able to go on to be promoted to League One following a victory over Morecambe in April 2015. Under then-boss Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, they had lost only 3 of their last 30 games that term. They secured promotion by winning the title, which they secured by beating narrowly beating Cambridge United 3 – 2. After Hasselbaink left for QPR in December 2015 with Burton top of the tree in League One, club legend Nigel Clough made his return to the club, and he went on to take them to promotion to England’s second tier, the EFL Championship. One step below the Premier League, they shocked many in the world of football by securing survival in the 2016/17 season, though they were relegated in the season that followed, finishing 23rd and being relegated to League One, even though they had managed to secure wins against the likes of Fulham, Birmingham City, and Sunderland. It was a first relegation for 40 years, only going down after Bolton completed a dramatic turnaround to beat Nottingham Forest. A League Cup campaign in 2018/19 saw them beat sides including Shrewsbury Town, Aston Villa, Burnley, Nottingham Forest, and Middlesbrough; they then met Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City over two legs in the semi-finals, where they were beaten ruthlessly by what was an aggregate scoreline of 10 – 0. Nigel Clough departed in 2020 before being replaced by Jake Buxton. Then, in January 2021, Buxton was replaced himself by Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, who returned to the Pirelli Stadium hotseat. The 2020/21 League One season saw them end up in 16th place by the season’s end before finishing in the same position the next campaign. After a disastrous run of form that saw them not win any of their first eight games in 2022/23. Hasselbaink was dismissed from his position in September 2022; he was succeeded by Dino Maamria. Maamria led them to recover form for what was a 15th place finish in the end before departing at Christmas in the 2023/24 season. Form then improved again under Martin Paterson, who steered them to a 20th place finish, only just avoiding relegation. They finished 20th again in 2024/25, finishing only three points above the drop. Last season, 2025/26, was again spent in League One. This time they finished up in 17th place after being able to secure safety and a total of 54 points after accumulating 13 wins, 15 draws, and 18 defeats in 46 games in the third tier. They will be hoping to finish higher in the League One table by the time that the 2026/27 campaign comes to a close. In the opposition dugout – Gary Bowyer Gary Bowyer is the current Head Coach of Burton Albion Football Club, having taken charge back on 17th December 2024. He led them to safety in League One in the 2024/25 season after he joined the club, where the Brewers were sat in 23rd place, with them being a total of 9 points away from safety at the time. Ahead of his time with Burton, he has previously been in charge of the likes of Blackburn Rovers (Caretaker & Permanent Manager: 2012 – 2013; 2013; 2013 - 2015), Blackpool (2016 - 2018), Bradford City (2019 - 2020), Salford City (2021 - 2022), and finally Dundee FC from 8th June 2022 to 10th May 2023. Bowyer also had a playing career lasting for 8 years between 1989 and 1997, representing Hereford United (1989 - 1990), Nottingham Forest (1990 - 1995), and finally Rotherham United from 1995 to 1997. Key Player – Tyrese Shade Tyrese Shade is one of Burton Albion’s standout players, and last term he was their leading goal scorer in all competitions, scoring a total of 14 goals overall. Shade joined Burton Albion on 30th July 2025, doing so on a permanent basis from National League side Eastleigh. He began his career at Solihull Moors in 2016 before joining Leicester City in 2017. He then had a loan spell with Walsall in the 2021/22 season before becoming a Swindon Town player on a permanent basis in 2022. After spending two years with The Robins, he re-joined Solihull Moors this time on loan in February 2024 before going on to join Eastleigh ahead of his move to Burton in 2025. Opposition preview written by Adam Holt

Our latest pre-season friendly saw us come away with a solid 3-0 victory. We visited National League North side Hereford at the MandM Edgar Street stadium, as we ramped up our preparations for the upcoming season against tough opposition. A welcome return to the starting lineup for attacker Jacob Wakeling was short-lived, taking a knock early on, before been replaced just before the half-hour mark by Charlie Footes. Tyrell Warren made his first start for The Moors in defence, looking solid and assured just a day after signing for the Club. The first half was an even affair, with not much to note in terms of chances on a difficult, slightly sloped pitch in windy conditions. Hereford came closest to opening the scoring, with Keziah Martin forcing a good save from Nat Ford, palming the ball away for a corner. The second half started much the same, and it took until the 56th minute to break the deadlock. Junior Tiensia showing tremendous pace to beat Kyle Howkins to a long ball down the left flank, before driving inside and firing past goalkeeper Theo Richardson to put us a goal ahead, with what his first goal since returning to The Moors. 0-1 Shortly after conceding, Hereford made a host of changes, bringing on several of their under-18's, giving them invaluable experience of senior football. The tempo understandably dropped after so many changes, but with 5 minutes of the 90 remaining, a Moors corner led to Callum McFarlane having a good header well saved by Hereford keeper Ollie Lewis, only for Kian Ryley to be in the right place at the right time, to rifle home. 0-2. A minute later, with the result now beyond doubt, The Moors managed to put a bit of gloss on the scoreline, forcing an own goal after good work down the right-hand side. A Hereford defender glanced the ball into his own net under pressure. 0-3. Game over. Full time saw Chris Millington's men secure back-to-back wins in pre-season after previously not tasting victory in the first three fixtures. All in all, a good afternoon's work, more minutes in the tank, a clean sheet, 3 goals and a run out for several the new signings and youngsters. Bulls manager Aaron Downes praised his sides mentality and work rate against higher division opponents, and despite the eventual scoreline, had a lot to be positives to take away. We'd like to wish Hereford all the best for the new season. Next up, we host League One outfit Burton Albion at Damson Park on Tuesday, 28th July at 7pm. Don't miss out on our penultimate fixture before our National League campaign begins. Tickets are priced: Adult - £9.00 Under 18 - £6.00 To purchase yours, visit the link below https://solihullmoorsfc.ticketco. events/uk/en/e/solihull_moors_vburton?version=m Match report written by Scott Cattell

Solihull Moors are delighted to announce the signing of defender Tyrell Warren ahead of the 2026/27 National League season, subject to league & FA approval. The 27-year-old arrives at Damson Park following his departure from Grimsby Town, bringing with him significant Football League and National League experience. A product of Manchester United's Academy, Warren began his senior career with Salford City, gaining valuable experience during loan spells with Radcliffe, Boston United and later FC Halifax Town, before securing a move to Barrow in 2022. After two seasons in League Two with Barrow, Warren joined Grimsby Town ahead of the 2024/25 campaign, where he made over 50 appearances across all competitions and established himself as a regular in the Mariners' defence. Now, Warren joins Solihull Moors as Chris Millington continues to strengthen his squad ahead of the new National League season. Chris Millington added: “Tyrell is a very effective defender who also has the ability to create and support attacks. As a person, he has a professional, no-nonsense way about him which will be a great value across the course of the season. I'm thrilled to welcome Tyrell to the Moors." Everyone at Solihull Moors would like to welcome Tyrell to the Club and wish him every success in blue and yellow.

TICKETS Season Tickets Season tickets are not valid for this fixture. All tickets can be purchased here Opening times and turnstile access The car park will open at 5:00 pm The box office for ticket collection will be open from 5:30 pm The turnstiles will be open from 5:30pm for home and away supporters to gain entry into the stadium. When you purchase a match ticket, you must sit or stand in the area where you bought your ticket. The main bar and the Trevor Stevens Bar will be open at 5:30 pm. Hospitality/Executive Boxes Hospitality doors for this fixture will open at 5:30 pm. Junior Tickets 14-year-olds and under must be accompanied by a full-paying adult on the day of the match; otherwise, U14 ticket holders may be refused entry to the venue: to turn up to the match without a full-paying adult is a safeguarding issue. SAFEGUARDING RE ADMISSION: Note for reference, those supporters aged 14 and under MUST be accompanied by an adult to enter the ground, i.e. individual must be 14 or over. REFRESHMENTS Supporters can purchase alcohol and refreshments from the Main Bar and the Trevor Stevens Suite. There will be food available at: Hot Food Bar in the old reception GETTING HERE PARKING The Car Park is open from 5.00 pm Please do not park on the Damson Parkway dual carriageway – this is a red route and parking here is strictly prohibited. Supporters will receive tickets for parking illegally, so we stress the importance of utilising the NCP Car Park and planning your journey well in advance. If fans forget to pay before leaving, they will still be able to pay via Post Pay within 24 hours of exiting the car park however this will charge them the original tariff. Failure to pay will result in a Parking Charge. To learn more, including tariffs and PostPay, please visit: https://www.birminghamairport.co.uk/parking/freeport-car-park . Any supporters' coaches must drop fans off at the NCP parking point, as the Damson Parkway dual carriageway is a red route. It is at the coach driver’s discretion to drop supporters off on the red route; supporters must then walk from the NCP Car Park to the stadium. Travel by Bus The X12 bus runs to the ground every 15/20 minutes from Solihull Town Centre, the NCP and Birmingham International. In night matches, this increases to every 30 minutes. Click here to view the X12 bus route, stops and full timetable . Travel by Train Solihull Railway Station is served by trains from Birmingham Moor Street and London Marylebone. The ground is situated two and a half miles away from the station in a roughly north-easterly direction. Birmingham International Station is roughly one and a half miles from the ground and is on the Euston to Birmingham New Street line. Kick It Out You can report an incident of discrimination via the Kick It Out App, which can be used on iPhone and Android devices. Phone – 0800 169 9414 Twitter - @kickitout , or by contacting the organisation’s Reporting Officers on @kickitoutreport. Solihull Moors Supporters Association Click here to find out more about the Solihull Moors Supporters Association.

After securing our first victory of pre-season, Solihull Moors are back in action this weekend as we travel to Hereford for our latest pre-season clash. Saturday’s victory over Hednesford Town ended a three-game winless run in pre-season, after some difficult outings against Birmingham City, Knowle and Alvechurch. Goals from Kian Ryley and Conor Wilkinson saw the Moors come from behind to secure a narrow victory and finally end their winless run. Saturday will see us make the short but difficult trip to National League North side Hereford, with the game beginning at 2pm. Ahead of Saturday’s clash, here is everything you need to know for our trip to Hereford. —— An overview of Hereford: The 2026/27 season will be Hereford’s ninth straight season in the National League North, with the club narrowly avoiding relegation on the final day of the campaign. Back-to-back victories over Radcliffe & Marine as well as a draw with Peterborough Sports ensured that Aaron Downes’ side will stay in the sixth tier next season. Hereford have had three pre-season friendlies, beginning with a 1-1 draw against Hereford Pegasus before being beaten by Bishop’s Cleeve. Their last outing was a 3-1 win in mid-week against Worcester City. —— Head-to-head: The two sides haven’t met in a competitive fixture since October 2021, when we defeated them 1-0 during a fourth-round qualifying match in the FA Cup. One year prior, Hereford beat the Moors 1-0 themselves – meaning the previous two games have been narrow score-lines with clean sheets in each too. —— Tickets: Tickets for Saturday’s clash against Hereford are available to purchase online right now and are available on the gate. The prices are as follows; Adults (16-64): £16.00 Senior Concessions (65+): £14.00 Under 16s: £3.00 There are no booking fees to pay when purchasing your tickets, but tickets must be purchased here . —— Getting to the Stadium: Hereford play their games at Edgar Street, located north of Hereford town centre. The 492 bus service does serve the stadium, giving supporters a chance to hop on public transport to reach the stadium. Likewise, Edgar Street is a 13-minute walk from Hereford train station or a six-minute drive. Edgar Street Stadium is located on Edgar Street in Hereford. The postcode is HR4 9JU. —— In the dugout – Aaron Downes The man in the Hereford hot-seat this weekend is Aaron Downes. The 41-year-old is a former EFL footballer with the likes of Bristol Rovers, Chesterfield and Cheltenham Town before retiring in 2018. Downes has had interim roles throughout his career thus far, but finally landed his first permanent position with Hereford in February 2026. Since taking the role, Downes has won nine of his opening 21 matches – earning a win percentage of 42.9%. —— Familiar faces: There is one familiar face for Solihull Moors fans to welcome this weekend, with summer signing Fin Holmes now with Hereford. Holmes joined the club after impressing on trial, but despite a lack of game time – he continued to standout with a memorable goal against Everton U21s in the National League Cup. However, he was sold to Halesowen Town last summer but continued to impress with an increased amount of first-team exposure – leading to a move to Hereford this summer. Likewise, Moors winger Kian Ryley was previously a loan player with Hereford – as was Callum McFarlane. —— We hope to see as many of you as possible, ahead of Saturday’s clash with Hereford. COYM 🟡🔵 Written by Callum Moseley

Chris Millington and his Solihull Moors side are set to continue their preparations for the upcoming 2026/27 Enterprise National League season with a trip to face Hereford FC at Edgar Street on Saturday afternoon. The Moors will be facing a side led by Manager Aaron Downes, who finished in 20th place last term in the National League North. Their pre-season started with a 1 – 1 draw with Hereford Pegasus, before making the trip to Kayte Lane to take on Bishop’s Cleeve, losing 2 – 0 in the end. Worcester City were next in what was their most recent friendly before facing Millington’s men, winning 3 – 1 at the aforementioned Edgar Street. It is well known that Hereford FC are a phoenix club founded following the demise of Hereford United in 2014, starting life in the Midland Football League for the 2015/16 campaign, while keeping the nickname and club colours. The Bulls went on to sensationally win the League and Cup double, whilst also going on to win the Herefordshire FA County Challenge Cup, and playing in front of 21,000 of their fans at Wembley for their appearance in the FA Vase Final in the English Capital. They then continued that success in the following season, earning an incredible total of 107 points as they lifted the Southern League South & West title, whilst they also retained the Herefordshire FA County Challenge Cup, and beat Royston Town in the Champions v Champions clash at the end of the season. Hereford then completed what was an extraordinary third promotion in a row in the 2017/18 season, winning the title with as many as three games to spare, going on to earn a total of 113 points overall by the time that the season concluded. In the FA Cup that season, they got to the First Round Proper and were only narrowly defeated in a replay by Fleetwood Town of League One. After a difficult first season in the National League North, the 2021/22 season saw a mid-table finish with a view of venturing into the upper echelons of the table the following season. We now rewind time to the origin of the original club, Hereford United, who were formed all the way back in 1924. Over their extensive history, they spent a total of 31 seasons in the English Football League, with the highest division they reached being the Second Tier when it was known as the Second Division, spending a single season there back in the 1976/77 campaign. In the third tier, League One, they spent 25 seasons there cumulatively, whilst they had 5 years in League Two. They are also responsible for producing a number of top players, chief amongst them being West Ham United forward Jarrod Bowen, who began his professional career there back in 2014. Hereford FC now look forward to what they hope will be a successful and fruitful 2026/27 season in the Sixth Tier, the National League North, as they meet with Chris Millington’s Solihull Moors at Edgar Street as both sides prepare for the campaign ahead. In the opposition dugout – Aaron Downes Aaron Downes, the current Manager of Hereford FC, only recently joined the club. The Australian was appointed by The Bulls back on 16th February 2026. His coaching career began as the assistant manager of Torquay United back on 13th December 2018 before going on to be appointed as the interim boss of The Gulls a few years later in February 2024 following the departure of Gary Johnson. However, he did leave in May of that year after he had guided the club to safety in the National League South. Then, in June 2024 became assistant manager of Cheltenham Town, returning to the club after having spent time there as a player. He then departed on 30th September that year following the appointment of permanent boss Steve Cotterill. His appointment at Hereford then followed early the following year. As previously mentioned, Downes did have a playing career before going into management, with his time as a professional player lasting for as many as 15 years between 2003 and 2018. He played for the likes of Hampton & Richmond (2003), Frickley Athletic (2003 - 2004), Chesterfield (2004 - 2012), Bristol Rovers (Loan, 2012), Torquay United (2012 - 2015), before retiring at his final club, the aforementioned Cheltenham Town, with whom he spent three years between 2015 and 2018. Key Player – Aaron Skinner After a string of exceptional performances last term, defender Aaron Skinner was named as the Bulls’ player of the season after his efforts on the pitch played a vital role in Hereford’s survival in the National League North. He began his youth career with Bury, spending 5 years there before departing for Bolton Wanderers in 2019. He only spent what was a short time with The Trotters before being snapped up by Tottenham Hotspur, with whom he played for their youth teams until his departure from the North London club in 2021. From there, he went to Bamber Bridge, where in the 2022/23 campaign he was their player of the year before making the move to Hereford FC on 24th May 2023. He also recently signed a new contract with The Bulls in order to remain at the club for the duration of the upcoming 2026/27 season. Preview written by Adam Holt

Tickets for our match away at Hereford FC on Saturday are available to purchase via the link below & on our website. We have been advised that supporters will NOT be able to purchase tickets through their website. https://herefordfc.ticketco.events/uk/en/e/hereford_fc_v_solihull_moors_away_supporters_only

Solihull Moors can confirm that our away National League fixture against Forest Green Rovers has been rescheduled. The match, originally due to take place on Monday 28th December (3:00pm kick-off), will now be played on Tuesday 29th December, with kick-off at 7:00pm. Any further ticket information will be communicated in due course.