Following Tuesday’s hugely
encouraging and professional win at Leamington, Hereford FC return to that
Birminghammy sort of area for an FA Cup tie with Tamworth at The
Lamb, er, nope, the CR MOT Centre Community Stadium apparently, on Saturday, kick off 3pm. The pitch is artificial, very much like the nearby ski resort, which traditionally gives the home team an advantage and leaves the away team with a couple of season-long injuries to contend with, but here's hoping that everyone comes through unscathed and another win is secured.
With the Bulls coming into a
bit of form, and the added attraction of the magic of the Cup, a decent away
following can be expected to make the trip to cheer on our heroes. I’ll be
impressed if the Cup can somehow wring any magic from a day out in Tamworth away from the actual match,
mind.
The clubs have regularly
crossed paths in the past of course. I vividly remember resembling a tinned sardine in a packed away end on that baking hot day way back when, as Hereford United embarked on a
season of seven-goal wins and total football. It’s unlikely to be
either as hot or packed on Saturday, but a good atmosphere should be generated,
and a repeat of the 1-3 scoreline from that day would begin to instill a
feeling that an extended Cup run could be in the offing.
Having spent a bit of time in recent years higher up the pyramid, Tamworth currently ply their trade a little lower down in the BetFred Southern League Central Division and sit in third place, just a point behind leaders Rushall Olympic. Indeed, with just a point separating the top four, it could be one of the most keenly fought promotion races in BetFred Southern League Central Division history. If I was Fred I wouldn't have a bet, it's too close to call.
They've won their last four league matches, so are clearly feeling quite spritely and shouldn't be underestimated. Tim Harris’s former club knocked local and divisional rivals Nuneaton Borough out in the first qualifying round with a 3-1 home win, their first victory in the competition since 2014, before scoring another three goals in the next round to beat Loughborough Dynamo. At the same stage, of course, Hereford recovered from a shocking start to ease through against Truro
5-2.
Josh Gowling’s inspirational
return to form on Tuesday hopefully signals an end to the distracted nature of some
of his early season performances, and also that he can once more lead by example as
he did on several occasions last season, which should result in a few more
clean sheets, and indeed set-piece goals at the other end.
After a midweek game and with some tough away
assignments to come, Russell Slade could be tempted to tweak the starting line-up a little, although this match is far from a gimme. However, with fringe players
presumably keen to find favour with the manager and therefore right up for it if given the opportunity, there should be enough
strength in the squad to rest one or two where necessary and still find a formula to win this one and earn a place in the
fourth qualifying round. That is, of course, when the crème de la crème of the
semi-professional game join the party. Although it's still regionalised at that stage, removing from the equation potential glamour ties with Hartlepool, Chorley or Fylde, we’re potentially still talking your Boreham Woods, your Sutton Uniteds and your Ebbsfleets, and if a trip
to lovely Ebbsfleet doesn’t have ‘magic’ and ‘fairytale’ written through it like a stick of
rock, I don’t know what does.
COYW