Extract From Ben Smith's New Book

An extract from Ben Smith's book, Journeyman, about his time with Hereford United has been released.

We were in good form leading up to the replay at Elland Road and, because Karl Broadhurst was out injured, I led the team. We scored early on and we were expecting a bombardment thereon, but we were toe to toe with them throughout. It was not your average 'David v. Goliath' clash. Leeds had chances to score but so did we.

In the end, we - and, I can say, relatively comfortably - saw the game out to add another victorious chapter to Hereford United's glorious giant-killing history.

Afterwards I had that lovely post-game sense of satisfaction both with my own and the team's performance. The following day I found out none other than Chris Waddle had named me 'Man of the Match' on BBC Radio 5 Live. That gave me a real buzz as I had grown up watching and admiring Chris and his style of play.

The mood in the camp was great when we returned to work on the Thursday. After training, John Trewick asked me to come into his office. That wasn't always something to be celebrated as John's meetings had become legendary: he would just talk and talk while whoever was listening would simply nod their head in agreement as it was the only sure way of getting out within half an hour. However, on this occasion, it was short and sweet. John said he had watched the Leeds game on DVD and thought my performance had been brilliant. That was pretty much all he said, but it made me feel a million dollars. I floated out of his office feeling like the best player in the world.

The only downside was the fact that we lost Lionel to Watford; the transfer window was closed for permanent moves but the Hornets used a loop-hole that allowed them to sign him on a temporary loan, which turned permanent on January 1st. It was a blow but we had a readymade replacement who had been waiting patiently in the shadows - Simon Johnson. He was a child protege at Leeds and was chomping at the bit to play.

The book, which comes with photos taken by Steve Niblett and James Maggs, can be purchased by BN readers direct from the publishers at a discounted price. Go to: www.bitebackpublishing.com

Simply scroll down to the promotion input field – half way down the right hand side of the home page – and type in the code: BNEWS. .

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