Poppies flounder as they slip to an opening-day defeat at Stamford

The new-look Poppies led 1-0 and 2-1 in conditions more akin to deepest darkest autumn but they allowed the newly-promoted Daniels back into the game.

And once Graham Drury’s team had taken the lead for the first time in the second half, the final outcome never really looked in doubt as Kettering seemingly ran out of steam and ideas.

In his first league game at the helm, Andy Leese gave four players their full debuts with goalkeeper Billy Johnson, Stevenage loanee Owen Cochrane, Huw Dawson and Kelvin Langmead all making their first official appearances for the club while academy graduate Luca Miller was among the substitutes.

And the Poppies made the sort of start that Leese would have dreamt about when he laid his head down on Friday night.

Having defended an early Stamford free-kick, captain Gary Stohrer led counter-attack and it eventually led to Joe Burgess handling the ball in the area.

Referee Haydn Lavender was in no doubt and, much to the delight of the healthy band of travelling supporters, Sam Bennett stepped up to beat home goalkeeper Ben Whiting from 12 yards despite him going the right way.

And it could have been even better just a few minutes later when, again, Stohrer got forward after robbing Ashton Offler. He squared to Tyrone Lewthwaite but instead of shooting first time, he lifted the ball over Whiting and a defender got back in time to clear the danger.

Things settled somewhat for a period and the Poppies hadn’t really been threatened until Stamford levelled with their first meaningful attack.

There was a touch of controversy as the ball struck referee Mr Lavender in the build-up but he let the play go on and centre-half Offler found himself on the left wing.

He sent in a wicked delivery that Johnson could only push out as far as Jack Duffy and the home striker made no mistake with a firm finish.

The Poppies came close to producing an immediate response as Rhys Sharpe took aim from 25 yards and his effort skidded off the drenched surface but Whiting was equal to it.

The Stamford goalkeeper, however, was given no chance as Kettering did regain the lead eight minutes before half-time.

Offler’s pass back to his goalkeeper wasn’t strong enough and Lewthwaite nipped in to take the ball past Whiting and then score into the empty net.

But, in what ended up being a highly entertaining first half, Stamford drew level again two minutes before the break when captain Rob Morgan directed a fine header into the far corner from Connor Bartle’s left-wing cross, although the marking of the home skipper was certainly questionable.

And it could have been even worse for the Poppies as an offside flag came to their rescue in first-half stoppage-time when Ollie Brown-Hill diverted Duffy’s low strike into the net.

Kettering started the second half on the front foot and Sharpe drove an effort across goal but wide of the target while Harry Reilly also failed to test Whiting after he was played in by Bennett.

But a huge chance to regain the lead arrived just past the hour.

Whiting tried to play out from the back but the Poppies pressed him and he eventually presented it straight to Cochrane but the right-back lost his composure and sent his shot over the crossbar when he really should have hit the target.

Just seconds later, Sam Bennett drove the ball in from the right and Dawson flicked it wide but his momentum resulted in a sickening collision with the post.

A lengthy delay followed but there was a bit of relief as he was eventually able to walk away of his own accord before being replaced by another debutant James Carvell.

But the game turned for the Poppies just a few minutes later when they fell behind for the first time in the game.

A corner from the right had to be headed off the line by Cochrane but then, from the one that followed, James Blunden arrived at the far post to head low into the net.

That seemed to knock the stuffing out of the Poppies and Johnson was forced to back-peddle to push away Joe Burgess’ cross from the right.

Leese changed to a 4-3-3 formation as Kai O’Keefe came on to replace Lewis White and Charley Barker also came on for his full debut.

But the Poppies floundered and Whiting wasn’t tested again as Stamford were able to see the game out with a fair bit of ease.

It was a match, which will have told Leese plenty about the squad he has assembled.

It wasn’t all bad. Indeed, for the majority of the first half Kettering looked a useful side.

But the defensive frailties and the inability to take chances at crucial moments ultimately proved costly and will have to be addressed quickly if the Poppies are to make an impact on the division this season.

Stamford: Whiting; Burgess, Offler, Blunden, Bartle; Vince (sub Armstrong, 18 mins), Morgan, Brown-Hill; Charles (sub Shaw, 72 mins), Duffy, R Miller (sub Bennett, 82 mins). Subs not used: Munns, Wood.

Poppies: Johnson; Cochrane, Langmead, White (sub O’Keefe, 82 mins), Toseland, Sharpe; Reilly (sub Barker, 85 mins), Dawson (sub Carvell, 68 mins), Stohrer; Lewthwaite, Stohrer. Subs not used: L Miller, Williams.

Referee: Haydn Lavender.

Goals: Bennett pen (4 mins, 0-1), Duffy (28 mins, 1-1), Lewthwaite (37 mins, 1-2), Morgan (43 mins, 2-2), Blunden (71 mins, 3-2).

Bookings: Burgess, Morgan (both fouls), Stohrer (dissent).

Northants Telegraph man-of-the-match: Sam Bennett – the striker made a nuisance of himself and opened the scoring with a penalty.

Attendance: 818.