Hereford's Tyrone Barnett Rises Above Krystian Pearce
On a very mild, sunny afternoon Hereford returned to action after three weeks and three postponements. The Bulls lined up with Eve; Latty-Fairweather, Amadi-Holloway, Haines (c), Evans; Hanson, Thompson-Sommers; McLean, Rus, Holmes; Barnett. Substitutes were Pinchard, Storey, Pendley, Thompson and Dinanga.
It was slightly surprising to see Thompson slip to the bench having shown good form and Amadi-Holloway’s class could have been better used further up the field with the Bulls struggling to score goals. For Kidderminster Tom Owen-Evans returned to some shouts of Judas from the Meadow End. Krystian Pearce captained the carpet men in the centre of defence. With both teams underwhelming their fans this season the attendance of 3,221 with 551 from Worcestershire was disappointing for a derby between the top two supported teams in the division.
The game started evenly and when Ryan McLean threatened to flash past Pearce on the right wing he was stopped at the expense of a card. Then on the left full back Foulkes fouled Rus and was booked. Rus had gone past three defenders and went down in the box but the first contact appeared to be just outside. Holmes took the free kick but it was deflected away by the wall.
Kidderminster though were getting the upper hand with Lissimore impressing and testing Eve. When the midfielder surged forward again Thompson-Sommers went shoulder to shoulder with Lissimore, and the ball broke free. Brown picked up the loose ball surged forward and slotted a super pass inside Latty-Fairweather. Eve came out but Liverpool loanee Bearne struck across to the far netting with an impressive first time finish. Haines had his hands in the air appealing to the referee and not playing to the whistle.
Kidderminster went into time taking mode with keeper Palmer winning the award so far this season for the best waster. Time after time he switched sides for goal kicks, yawned, pondered, paused and took a keen interest in the services of match sponsors Urology Hereford. The Bulls let this happen. McLean talked to referee Martin once but there was no managing of the official who had impressively booked two visitors early on. Late in the second half after 70 minutes of this Palmer was finally booked having taken many minutes off the clock.
Hereford responded through Rus who won the ball well and his rangy, slippery running eased past defenders and troubled Kidderminster. At other times Hereford moves broke down with misplaced final passes which gave the impression of ring rustiness.
At half time Kidderminster had taken the one real chance but neither side had impressed. After the break Kidderminster seemed to have sussed Hereford and took control with the Bulls failing to respond as the home fans expected. Holmes valiantly embarked on two runs one which went into the box and was stopped by a superb tackle.
Jack Holmes
Hereford took off Thompson-Sommers who started well but in the second half was ineffective. Surprisingly McLean was subbed. Pinchard and Storey coming on. Kidderminster took off Hemmings who had shown several flashes and kept Evans on more defensive duties, bringing on Leesley.
Owen-Evans had a good second half finding space, working back well and showing what the Bulls fans had enjoyed watching in recent years. He was substituted and Byrne came on. Haines was booked for a foul late on. Will he become the most booked captain in a season in Hereford history? He must be on target.
Marco Rus With A Chance For Hereford Near The End Of The Game
At the end few fans stayed to applaud the Bulls. A block of fans in the Meadow End of all ages stood to call for Gowling to go. There were a few boos at half time and a lot more at the end but the vast majority walked away in quiet, despairing frustration. Kidderminster were not that great they could not turn their second half superiority into a second goal. Very Hereford.
Hereford were not that poor but they lacked passion and were predictable. Eve made some good claims and could do nothing about the goal. Latty-Fairweather was outwitted for the goal and appears to have pulled his hamstring again. Evans was restricted to defensive duties mostly and did not get forward much. When teams do that Hereford are far less effective. Rus was impressive and probably the pick of the players.
Without rampaging full backs the 4-2-3-1 does not work. In addition Hereford were far too conservative. Both defenders on Kiddy’s right flank were booked within twenty minutes. Hereford knew Pearce was vulnerable to pace. Yet the slowest of the attacking troika Holmes was kept in position. The Bulls did not try to expose this flank. No switching of McLean with Holmes and again when Storey came on he was not directed to run at the men on yellow cards. Rus understood the issue but there was no sense of a team ruthlessly exploiting an opportunity.
At kick off Hereford won the toss and chose to uncharacteristically attack the Meadow End in the first half. This made sense with the sun low in the sky and keeper Palmer put his cap on. Yet there were no strikes on goal nor opportunistic balls to trouble the Harriers defence staring into the sun in the first half hour.
Barnett is often left isolated. If he gets into the final third and Hereford have possession the team pushes forward but too often there is a conservatism which means that turnovers are not pressed home quickly. Thompson-Sommers then joins attacks but it is not automatic and it is clunky allowing recovery.
If Hereford are to challenge for the play offs that means at least 15 wins from the remaining 25 matches. Struggling to score barely a goal a game will not work. Amadi-Holloway was the best passer on the pitch but at centre back there’s a limit to how effective he can be.
Josh is a proud man but for all the talk of injuries (Kidderminster have plenty too) it is the stubborn clinging to 4231 which is losing fans. It’s a plan not a sacrament. For all the fans seeking to vent at Josh the club needs to be clear on finances. They are bad. How bad? Can the club afford tens of thousands of pounds to change managers?
Josh knows things are tough. At the end only Jack Evans went to the fans for selfies. The rest did not stray far from the centre circle. Gowling was a distant figure. He could hear the “Not good enough” and stronger messages.