Downes gives verdict on penalty claim as Tustin 'barged in the back'

Aaron Downes insisted Hereford should have been awarded a “clear” penalty during their 3-0 win over Merthyr Town – despite his side’s commanding performance.

The Bulls were already in control at Edgar Street when the incident occurred in the first half, with referee Callum Jones waving away appeals after a challenge inside the box on Harry Tustin.

While the Bulls boss said Tustin was barged in the back, it appeared the Cheltenham loanee may have run into his man and gone down.

"For my liking, it's easy for me to say, but it's a penalty in my eyes," Downes said. "It's clear, he's got a touch on it and he's been barged in the back.

"Anywhere else on the pitch it’s a free-kick, so it should be a penalty.”

Hereford were already two-nil up at the time thanks to Lewis Hudson and Mikey Lane, with Matt Preston adding a third before the break.

A professional display from the Bulls saw them comfortably see the game out and end their horrific run of seven straight defeats - a record not seen since 1997.

'We didn't show up': Merthyr manager slams team for bottling derby

Merthyr boss Paul Michael has apologised to the travelling fans

Merthyr Town manager Paul Michael has apologised to fans after his team 'lost their bottle' and fell to a humbling 3-0 defeat against Hereford on Easter Monday.

He slammed his side for being bullied, making poor decisions, giving silly fouls away, being weak and lacking a cutting edge as their play-off hopes fade.

Despite clinging onto the last play-off place by a point, the Martyrs have only won three of their last 15 games and three points from Edgar Street would have been crucial as they now only have four games left of their season.

Speaking to the club's media after the game, the former Cinderford and Yate Town boss, who masterminded their promotion from step three and a positive start to this season's campaign, apologised to the 593 supporters who made the trip.

"We just don't seem to deliver in the big moments," he said, adding: "They welcomed us on the pitch brilliantly. It was fantastic to see so many of them here and I just apologise that we didn't show up on pitch.

"Secondly, credit to Hereford. They were right up for the game and they absolutely bullied us. In that 21-minute spell, we've lost our bottle.

"Making poor decisions which brings pressure on us like giving silly fouls away, giving corners away when we don't need to.

'That's exactly the opportunities that they were looking for and then they executed them really well.

"They were physically bigger, stronger in winning duels in that first half. They ran all over us, which is really disappointing to see."

Michael was quick to praise Hereford, who ended their seven-game losing streak thanks to goals from Lewis Hudson, Mikey Lane and Matt Preston, but said his side "defended poorly".

"It's very rare that we've been run all over in the way that we were in the first half, so credit to Hereford," he added.

"They had some quality and some pace out there as well which hurt us. Second half was a little bit better, we won a few more duels, we ran around a bit more, but we had no cutting edge and didn't really look like scoring.

"That's a big issue for us at the moment."

First Half Pictures Hereford v Merthyr

A selection of pictures from the first half of this afternoon's game.

 

Before Kick-Off Against Merthyr

A lovely spring day and a local derby against Merthyr.

Some pictures from before kick-off at Edgar Street. 

 

Lane's First Goal For Hereford

On loan striker Mikey Lane scored his first goal for Hereford against Merthyr this afternoon.

Cue celebration in front of the Meadow End.

Match report: Hopes of a great escape boosted as Bulls cruise to derby day win

Hereford's hopes of a great escape have been boosted with a professional 3-0 win over Merthyr Town at Edgar Street on Easter Monday.

The vital win ends the horrifying run of seven defeats and the crucial three points means the Bulls haven't lost anymore ground on the teams above them.

First-half goals from Lewis Hudson, Mikey Lane and Matt Preston saw Aaron Downes's side surge into the driving seat and they remained resolute into the second half to send the 3,080 Bulls fans at a sun-drenched Edgar Street home happy.

Making two changes to the side that suffered the late defeat at Kidderminster on Good Friday, Lewis Hudson returned from injury to replace Aaron Skinner, while Lawson D'Ath - injured celebrating his goal at Aggborough - made way for Harrison Sohna after serving his three-match ban.

Having warmed up in front of the 593 travelling Merthyr Town fans, Hereford attacked the Meadow End in the first half though were under pressure from kick off. As Joseph James conceded a corner inside the first minute, Merthyr failed to capitalise with their early set piece - though four minutes later, Theo Richardson was called into action to deny Jordon Garrick after he burst into the area and got an early shot away.

While Thomas Handley couldn't control his vicious eight-minute strike, which sailed over the target, the Bulls soon started causing the visitors problems. With Freddy Willcox threatening from a corner as his shot was blocked, leading to a second, Kyle Howkins couldn't keep his header down as Jaimie Cogman watched it clear the bar.

But in the 13th minute, the Bulls drew first blood. In a crowded box, Sohna's free-kick was knocked down by Howkins for Hudson to drive home.

Buoyed by scoring early for a change rather than conceding, Downes's side pushed on as Cogman had to be alert to tip a Sohna corner from the right over his bar. From the second set-piece, Howkins flicked it on towards Lane who saw his shot blocked. Good defending from the hosts saw Willcox steal the ball from the feet of Garrick before he could pull the trigger, and they then kept up the pressure on a shaky Martyrs defence. A stunning 30-yard strike from Willcox forced Cogman into punching the ball over the bar, with Hereford doubling their lead from the resulting corner in the 23rd minute. With the ball knocking around in a crowded box as Merthyr defended it with 11 men, Lane was on hand to sweep home.

Two minutes later and referee Callum Jones refused to give a soft penalty, with Harry Tustin throwing himself to the floor under pressure from Merthyr's defence, having chased down Lane's through-ball.

While the Bulls looked content with their two-goal cushion, Handley got a powerful shot away for the Welsh side as a dithering Richardson watched it flash wide of the upright.

But it was in the 34th minute when the Bulls netted their third, as Preston tried to get a clean header to direct a cross from a throw into the danger area, the ball fell to his feet and he calmly fired home.

While Merthyr had a trio of chances, Handley's 25-yard effort once again missing the target, Lewys Twamley's strike stinging Richardson's palms and Lee Lucas failing to find the back of the net from a free-kick, the Bulls looked to make it four before the break. Munday, low on confidence and desperate for a goal, fired wide in the 39th minute before finding the target but being denied by Cogman after finding space on the stroke of half-time.

Half time: Hereford 3 - Merthyr Town 0

Knowing the key to the win would be not conceding an early goal in the second half, two decent chances after the break could have seen Merthyr reduce the deficit. As Jac Thomas got the better of Tustin, he burst forward only to see his shot blocked by Hudson, having a sterling game on the left after his return from injury. The best chance of the game for the Martyrs then fell to Lewis, but after a defensive mix-up by Hereford, he got the ball stuck under his feet at point-blank range and somehow poked the ball wide.

As livewire Daly continued to cause problems down the left, his cross to Sohna saw Cogman called into action to stop the midfielder getting his name on the scoresheet in the 66th minute, before his free kick eight minutes later was knocked down into the area by Preston, only for Cogman to pounce on it before anyone in a white shirt could get a shot away.

As both sides rung the changes, albeit for different reasons, substitute Tate Xavier-Jones fired across the goal as his side looked to hit Hereford with a quick counter-attack, though the centre-back pairing of Howkins and Preston - both having good games - were well placed to deny any real threat.

Into stoppage time and Lane could've bagged a brace after his determined run ended in a shot being well-saved by Cogman, but moments later Richardson had to make a smart save with his feet to deny a late consolation goal for Merthyr. Ultimately, Hereford were able to confidently see the game out to secure the much-needed win.

Full time: Hereford 3 - Merthyr Town 3

Attendance: 3,673 (593 away)

Sponsors' man of the match: Mikey Lane

You couldn't have hoped for a better Easter Monday as a Hereford fan. While any would have taken an ugly win where the team ground out the result, the Bulls were creative, organised and grew in confidence throughout the match. The spirited performance did a lot to raise the hope among the Hereford fans of pulling off a great escape and while it's still a big ask and the odds are stacked against them, if they perform like that for the remaining six games, survival would almost certainly be guaranteed. Harrison Sohna could well be the difference - his calm, creative presence in midfield makes a huge difference - and the fact the Bulls were shooting more regularly today compared with Friday meant they had a greater chance of scoring.

Hereford: Richardson, Hudson, Preston, Sohna, Lane (Quansah 90+2'), Munday (Williams 80'), Daly (Martin 84)', James (Skinner 70'), Willcox (D'Ath 78'), Tustin, Howkins

Subs not used: Lewis, Hamilton.

Merthyr Town: Cogman, Ryan-Phillips (Williams 80'), Handley, Garrick (Xavier-Jones 54'), Twamley, Spiers (Cox 54'), J Evans, M Harris, K Evans, Thomas, Lucas (Maddox 72')

Subs not used: A Harris