A week may be a long time in
politics, but it sometimes feels a lot longer in football. Over the last seven
days, Hereford FC have finished, and lost, a match with nine men, lost to a
team three leagues lower than themselves, and defenestrated manager Pete
Beadle. To quote the man himself, he’s been more than just ‘a little bit
crucified’.
It would appear to have come as a
surprise to the board that the National League North would be a big step up,
and that Beadle isn’t the right man for the challenge. Perhaps with a bit of
foresight they could have come to this conclusion in the summer, rather than 48
hours before a match.
I suppose a cynic may suggest that they came to this
conclusion, or at least the Beadle aspect of it, after he had the temerity to
comment in public about the playing budget he was presented with in the summer.
Events this week don’t seem to
reflect what was believed to be a brave, democratic new dawn of significant fan
involvement in the running of the new club when it started, whether one agrees
with the Beadle decision or not. Perhaps that aspect isn’t included in the ‘business
plan going forward’, which seems to be the current mantra we’re expected to
swallow and follow
If the board’s idea of involving
fans in decision making is listening to random shouts from people at games who
may or may not be stuffed full of Stowford, we’re only going to get out of this
division one way.
However, enough conjecture. We
are where we are, and this is supposed to be a match preview.
Tomorrow’s match against
struggling Ashton United at Edgar Street, kick off 3pm, looked like an
opportunity to start a rebuilding exercise with a win. However, with all the
uncertainty that inevitably follows a managerial sacking, everything now seems
up in the air.
Undoubtedly everyone will be
fully behind caretakers Gareth Davies and Ryan Green, and it’s to be hoped that
the players can focus on the game rather than the politics. Certainly, they’ll
need all the support they can get from the crowd.
Amid all the furore, nothing
looks to have been done in getting Marlon Jackson signed, so the Bulls squad
remains unchanged. It’ll be interesting to see whether any changes to the team
that started at Brackley are made by the new management team, and indeed
whether they line up as a 4-4-2 or a 4-3-3, but I suppose it’s safe to assume
that Greener will start if fit! It’s also a racing certainty after Tuesday’s
debacle that Martin Horsell’s place in the team is reasonably safe!
With Eliot Richards and Calvin
Dinsley starting their three match suspensions, a case could be made for Billy
Murphy and Mike McGrath pulling the strings in a 4-4-2, with Bird and Lam out
wide, with perhaps Lance Smith starting up front with Harry White.
Like Hereford, Ashton were
promoted last season, winning the Northern Premier League play-offs, but have
found life difficult so far this season, sitting one place above the dreaded
dotted line.
Managed by ex-Sloppie Jody Banim, The Robins come into this game on the back of
a heavy 5-0 home defeat to league leaders Chorley, although away from home so
far they’ve only lost one in four, and that was against a strong-looking
Telford team.
The Bulls have, of course,
already beaten one team from Ashton-under-Lyne this season, emerging as 1-0
winners against Curzon. Here’s to the start of a successful post-Beadle era
with another win tomorrow.
A sincere thanks to Beads for
everything he’s done for both HUFC and HFC. History will, I’m sure, judge him
very kindly indeed on his achievements at Edgar Street.
COYW.