Hereford United defeated Lincoln City 3-1 this afternoon at Edgar Street. The victory was helped by an early red card handed out to Gary Croft for deliberate handball in the penalty area. Theo Robinson scored, but Lee Frecklington pounced to equalise soon after. Trent McClenahan restored the advantage on the stroke of half time before a late Ben Smith goal sealed the win.
After the late comeback at Wycombe in mid-week, Simon Johnson was handed a first league start after his goal. Kris Taylor was the unlucky party, as he made way for Johnson. Steve Guinan was preferred up front to Trevor Benjamin, who was on the bench. Former Rangers youngster Danny N'Guessan started on the right wing, whilst experienced marksman Jamie Forrester led the Lincoln attack. Lining up in goal was Ben Smith for Lincoln, the goalkeeper, on loan from Doncaster Rovers, is no relation to Hereford's Smith.
A slow start was experienced by both sides, as they adapted to the windy and wet conditions. The first incident was a major one, as United took the lead. Sam Gwynne whipped a corner into the box, and Robinson headed goalwards. The ball was stopped on the line, but when Guinan attempted to score, his shot was blocked by the hand of Croft. The defender was given his marching orders, and Robinson stepped up from the spot to send Smith the wrong way and hand Hereford the early advantage. Lincoln though weren't over-rawed by the challenge facing the 10 men, as N'Guessan crossed for Frecklington to nod past the post, and the French winger also went close himself with a low shot, held by Wayne Brown.
Lincoln found an equaliser mid-way through the half. It all started after Dean Beckwith had mis-timed a tackle, handing an opportunity on the edge of the box. Frecklington smashed the lay-off goalwards, but Brown managed to tip it over. The resulting corner was cleared, but then Owain Warlow crossed from deep, and Brown failed to catch. The bouncing ball fell loose and Frecklington pounced to equalise. Afterwards neat footwork and a touched pass through from Toumani Diagouraga allowed Guinan to shoot, but Smith blocked, whilst a John McCombe header was held. Robinson looked for his second, and on three occasions threatened. Twice, he neatly turned on the edge of the box, but good blocks denied him, whilst a good leap in the area saw him meet a Gwynne corner, but his header went wide.
Jamie Forrester's opportunist strike from outside the box failed to trouble Brown, and soon after, Lincoln found themselves behind once more. Beckwith slipped a pass to Smith, who fooled two defenders with a dummy in the middle of the park. He progressed goalwards, and slipped in McClenahan, who had made a fine over-lapping run on the right hand side. The Aussie took his shot early, and finely placed it into the top corner and past the diving Smith. The goal couldn't have come at a better time, with just a minute remaining of the first period.
The second half saw Hereford playing towards the Blackfriars End, and against the wind. Despite this, Robinson's lifted pass found Guinan's run but the former Cheltenhan man sent a half-volley past the post. At the other end, Hamza Bencherif met a head-back with a head of his own but he was denied by a fine diving save from Brown. Gwynne, who looked lively with his quick-feet and pace, slipped a pass through to Diagouraga. The on loan Watford midfielder shot from a tight angle, and forced Smith to push past the post. Lennel John-Lewis was bought on for Forrester, as Lincoln added some more pace to their wings, in order to try and find another equaliser.
N'Guessan was the danger man; firstly he dragged a shot wide before his cross was met by tall striker Ben Wright, but after towering above Beckwith, his head was pushed away by Brown. Gwynne's low shot was deflected past the post, before a flurry of substitutes were used to try and change the game. Lincoln bought on Jamie Hand and Louis Dodds for Paul Green and Scott Kerr, whilst Benjamin replaced Guinan for United, and it was the Hereford man who made the impact immediately. Diagouraga played the ball into Benjamin's feet, and he layed the ball onto Johnson, who went into the box. The winger was tackled, but the ball was picked up by Smith, who beat his name-sake at the near post with a left footed finish. Deep into stoppage time, Robinson nearly added a fourth after he had ran onto a long Collins clearence, but he could only lift the ball past the post, after beating Smith with ease. Lincoln also nearly grabbed a late goal, with Dodds curling shot pushed onto the upright by Brown.
After a couple of draws in the league, the injury hit Bulls will be relieved to have picked up three points against a lively Lincoln side. 2528 saw the match, with 209 making the journey from Lincoln, who played well and looked to have renewed confidence after Peter Jackson's arrival. Next up for United is a trip to Bury, in seven days; the time without a game will do The Bulls good as they aim to get players fit.
Hereford: Brown, McClenahan, Beckwith, McCombe, Collins, Gwynne, Diagouraga, Smith, Johnson, Guinan, Robinson.
Subs: Ingham, Taylor, Jones, Palmer, Benjamin.
Lincoln: Smith, Green, Bencherif, Hone, Croft, N'Guessan, Kerr, Frecklington, Warlow, Forrester, Wright.
Subs: Marriot, Watt, Hand, John-Lewis, Dodds.