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| Jarrod Bowen |
In a interview with Sky Sports, former Hereford United captain Luke Graham recalls Jarrod Bowen's rise to fame.
Bowen now plays for West Ham in the Premiership, a far cry from Edgar Street in 2014 when he made his debut for the Bulls who were in deep trouble both on and off the pitch at the time.
And as Graham says little did they know at the time that Bowen was going to play at the highest level.
"It was a massive experience for Jarrod," Graham told Sky Sports. "Watching a group of men fighting for their lives, coming together despite not being paid, he has seen all that. He has seen aspects of football that other young lads have not been exposed to."
His goal against Alfreton helped save the Bulls from relegation.
"Jarrod will have many memories now but I guarantee he won't ever forget that."
Peter Beadle was the manager at the time and had promoted Bowen from the youth team.
"I remember one session early on where Bowen got in between me
and the full-back to squeeze in a header. He isn't the biggest. I
thought, 'Cor, that's impressive.' He was not scared," said Graham.
"His attitude was so good, that stood out. He was a humble local lad, no arrogance. He was almost naïve, a young lad who was happy to be there. He seamlessly stepped up in those first few training sessions.
"But the biggest thing about that whole group was how humble they were. Jarrod was willing to do anything. If you said we were going up a 50 foot hill to do sprints, he was the sort of lad who would do it without questioning it. He would just get on with it.
"I remember his debut against Barnet. He fitted straight in and had no worries about playing the forward pass because he had no fear. On the ball, he had some bright touches. Off the ball, he worked hard with his movement. You just knew straight away with him.
"You do see young players come in at the top level but it is very hard to bring in young lads in non-league because of the physicality. Not many clubs at that level hand out debuts to 17-year-old boys. That is down to the rough and tumble but he could handle that."
Then that game at Aldershot which Hereford had to win. Michael Rankine scored the winner in the 88th minute.
"It was almost like we had won the league," says Graham. "It was just the sheer emotion that we had done the unthinkable. When you don't know when the next pay cheque is coming, it is not easy in terms of the mindset. That was a great achievement.
"A couple of the boys had not brought their gear. So a group of us, myself included, went to Tesco and bought the outfits there. They were stripping in the aisles, tracksuits off. People thought we were nicking stuff but we paid for it all. We went out in Tesco gear.
"Stories like his are few and far between. Jarrod has had experiences other players would never have had. He is a great inspiration to lads in the lower leagues. It was a dark period for the club but a massive growing-up period for him and it put that fire in his belly.
"Look at him now. He was an out-and-out winger at the time, cutting inside and drifting in, but he can play anywhere these days. He can play off the shoulder, he can come inside, he can link up, go past a player. He could be a false nine. He can pretty much do it all.
"Everyone just wants him to get that England cap now."