Yes, there is still a game to play this season.
While the Bulls were dragging time out from February last year, this time round we've left only one meaningless game to round out the season - entertaining Grimsby in the battle of who could care less.
The Mariners certainly don't appear to. Their end of season record shows them coming to Edgar Street with seven straight losses, last winning against relegated Mansfield six weeks ago. They do, however, come to Herefordshire having won all three encounters since the Bulls return to the League. Back in September a misfiring Grimsby won 2-1 at Blundell Park, with Trevor Benjamin's goal coming after the Mariners were two up.
The Bulls will probably lean towards the eleven players that look most sober rather than having any injury doubts, or at least that's how it been looking from the video interviews! With a number of contracts out a few of the fringe players are expected to get a run out as Graham Turner mulls over the final names on the retained list. Last season the final match saw the only senior appearance for Jordan Fitzpatrick, while the previous game saw Marcus Palmer get his only start. Twelve months on neither have made much inroads into the first XI, and Saturday may be their final chance to impress.
The Mariners have had one eye on next season since this one started so badly. A poor start and dismal finish were seperated by a season saving run of only two losses in sixteen games that gave them brief hopes of a play-off spot. A number of long serving players, including captain Justin Whittle, have been told their futures lie elsewhere with only the younger members of the squad, like forwards Danny North and Nathan Jarman, earning new contracts in recent weeks. Their goalscoring record of four goals in the last seven games would be unlikely to worry the Bulls defence under normal circumstances, but a bleary-eyed backline of Beckwith and Broadhurst may just be clearing the wrong one of the balls they see.
Hereford United vs Grimsby Town, Edgar Street, Saturday May 3rd, 3.00pm.