With Ben Smith's first book being published tomorrow (Tuesday), BN took the opportunity to ask the former Hereford United player a few questions about it.
Ben - I’ve always been an avid reader and especially football biographies. However I often found that a lot of these books were quite bland and didn’t really give the reader any great insight to what it really takes to be a footballer and what goes on in the confines of the dressing room. Initially I wrote the book with no real intentions of getting it published but as I went through the writing process I thought I would circulate it to a few publishers and see where that took me.
BN - After Ron Jukes approached you about playing for Hereford, what were your first impressions of both Graham Turner and Edgar Street?
I had played against Hereford a few times during my time with Yeovil with some success and had always enjoyed those games as there was a bit of rivalry between the teams. I remember back then thinking that if I was to leave Yeovil that Hereford would be a good team to play for. I liked the rickety old ground and the atmosphere those type of stadiums produce when near capacity. When I played at Yeovil Michael McIndoe always spoke very highly of Graham and my opinion didn’t change when I met him. He was and still is a very knowledgeable football man. During our first meeting we just talked about football and different players. After that meeting I thought that he was the sort of man I would like to play under.
BN - Were you surprised to be asked to return to Edgar Street for a second spell and for a fee, knowing GT didn't often spend any more than he needed to?
I was not surprised that the club wanted to re-sign me as they had already tried that once before when I left Shrewsbury. However at the time I wanted to have a totally new start away from the area and instead opted for Weymouth. The fee was a bit of a surprise. Initially Weymouth had said I could leave for free but after the amount of interest they had from other clubs they went back on that and said they wanted a fee. This concerned me and I thought that might jeopardise the deal. However Hereford, Cheltenham and Macclesfield all agreed a fee and this meant the decision was down to me. The financial offers from the other two teams were better and I was tempted to join Cheltenham as they were in League 1 but the fact that I had unfinished business at Hereford and the respect I had for Graham meant I was always going to come back to Edgar Street.
BN - After your second spell at Edgar Street had your impressions of Graham Turner and Edgar Street changed? Out of all the managers you've played under, how did GT rate in your opinion?
No not really. I thoroughly enjoyed my time playing for Hereford. I was disappointed with the way my exit was handled. I had a clause in my contract entitling me to a new contract if I played a certain amount of games. Coincidentally I missed that target by one game! I think I was due the respect of a sit down to discuss this. I had overall done well for the club and think we could have come to an agreement moving forward. However I had a disappointing season in League One and hadn’t performed to the levels I expected of myself. I was happy to stay at the club for the rest of my career but unfortunately that wasn’t to be.
Regarding the best managers I played under Graham was probably the best. I think I played the best football of my career especially in the promotion season from League 2 and a lot of that was down to the way he set the team up and let me play.
BN - Can you remember your first game for Hereford?
My first game was a friendly against Tranmere where I played crap! However my first competitive game was against Barnet in November of 2002 after recovering from a shoulder injury. I remember it well as I scored in a 4-0 win. I’m pretty sure I was robbed of the man of the match award after a Steve Guinan hat-trick!!
BN - Your 'best' game for Hereford?
I had a lot of really good games for Hereford but my favourite is most definitely the FA Cup replay win at Elland Road against Leeds. I was lucky enough to captain the team to not only a great team performance but as a really strong individual performance from myself. To play so well against such a huge club with some very talented players was a great thrill in what was an unbelievably enjoyable season.
BN - Shoulder injuries meant you missed some games. How did you manage not playing when injured?
It was frustrating as you never really feel part of the team when you are injured. However a shoulder injury is a little different from a normal football injury as it allows you to still do a lot of physical work. I used this time injured to work really hard to try and get myself as physically fit as possible. Around this time was when the penny really dropped for me and I started looking after my body.
BN - Whilst with Hereford were there any particular players you made longlasting friendships with and why?
Football is strange as when you are in the dressing room with someone everyday you build up some really strong bonds.
However when you leave these bonds can fade quite quickly. In saying that I made a lot of friends there who I still speak to now. During my second spell at the club Steve Guinan, Kris Taylor, Karl Broadhurst, Simon Johnson and I travelled in together so built up some really good relationships. During my first spell I spent a lot of time with Matt Baker, Jamie Pitman, Michael Rose, Rob Purdie and Matt Clarke.
BN - You returned for Steve Guinan's charity game a few weeks ago - what do you think the future holds for Hereford FC
I know the club and people of Hereford have gone through a lot of pain over the last few years. However, I think that in 20 years time we will look back at this period and say that it was the best thing that ever happened to the football club. We now have in place people that really care and have the best interests of the club at heart. Although from a far, I am now a Hereford United supporter and hope they go on to have the success that they and the supporters deserve.
BN has two copies of Smith's new book to give away.
To win a copy simply answer the following question - Looking at the picture when was the game and who was it against.