As I drove home after a couple swift ones in The Barrels I considered the possibility of simply reporting the score with a short comment reading "Draw your own conclusions".
However, there was a little more to this afternoon's almost record defeat. Firstly, Jamie Pitman did make some brave decisions in his team selection by including the returning Rob Purdie at right back, moving young Will Evans to central defence in place of Michael Townsend and recalling Harry Pell and Sam Winnal to the starting line-up at the expense of Facey – who dropped to the bench – and Colbeck who was reported to be suffering from a virus.
The Bulls started as brightly as the visitors and for the first fifteen minutes there were signs of a workmanlike performance. Rob Purdie showed attacking intent by getting forward at every opportunity to support Barkhuizen and the early movement from Winnal and Arquin showed promise. However, there was always the feeling that The Bulls were a fragile outfit and when Ryan Green slipped to let in West Ham loanee Frank Nouble for the first on eighteen minutes it was only the start of catalogue of mistakes and poor decisions.
Garry Richards added a second six minutes later when he too easily beat Harry Pell to a far post header and when Clist lost possession in midfield, The Gills broke quickly and Charlie Lee’s driven cross was deflected into his own net by Heath.
In between, a Pell effort went narrowly the wrong side of the upright and a promising move down the left came to nothing when Heath's cross failed to beat the first defender.
HT Bulls 0 Gills 3
Early in the second period, Nouble was gifted a free header from 10 yards and although Cornell was able to palm the effort away for a corner, the resultant flag kick produced the forth goal. The ball was cleared only as far as Jackman at the corner of the penalty box and he curled a shot past Cornell into the far corner of the net.
Harry Pell went down in the box and the referee awarded a spot-kick. Pell picked himself up and asked to take the kick but after some squabbling the normally reliable Rob Purdie saw his kick clip the bar and go over. Surely decisions like this should have been made long before kick-off?
Cornell tipped a rasping shot over the bar but contributed to score line when he misjudged a speculative distance effort from Whelpdale and the ball bobbled over him into the net for number five. Payne added the sixth four minutes later before Sam Winnal scored arguably the best gaol of the game when he cracked home a twenty-yard free-kick consolation with three minutes remaining.
The game was watched by 1848 with 255 in the visitors' area.
FT Bulls 1 Gills 6
Hereford: Cornell, Purdie, Green, Evans, Heath, Barkhuizen, Pell, Featherstone, Clist, Winnall, Arquin (Facey 51). Subs unused: Hoult, Rose, McQuilkin, Lunt.
Gillingham: Flitney, Fuller, Frampton, Richards, Martin, Rooney, Lee, Whelpdale, Jackman, Kedwell (Oli 80), Nouble (Payne 75). Subs unused: Essam, Gazzaniga.
There were times, particularly early on, when The Bulls produced little spells of passing football but they were undone by midfield indiscipline that allowed the visitors, all too often, to run mob-handed at a home defence that was no match for the marauding Gills attack. This defeat heaps further pressure on the already under fire Pitman who now has to prepare his shell-shocked troops for the trip to Twaddle Road next weekend.