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After back-to-back home wins and the suggestion that Edgar Street is becoming a fortress (complete with fortressy medieval lighting), Hereford FC travel up to north Lincolnshire on Saturday to take on divisional giants Scunthorpe.
The Iron were very, very good in both games against Hereford last season, so the Bulls will be looking for a bit of revenge this time. They sit in third position just a point and two places ahead of Hereford.
It’s all a bit baffling with regard to the hosts. They’ve never gone bust, they just find themselves at this level courtesy of being rubbish for a very long time, tumbling from the Championship to National League North over the course of 12 years of mostly succumbing to relegation. They’ve got a huge budget relative to other clubs, one that contrasts sharply with that of Curzon Ashton, who sit two places and five points above them in the table, but yet again they seem to be struggling. One plus for them is that ‘struggling’ at this level is relative, and so far at least they’ve shown no sign of being capable of being relegated from the NLN, unlike all the other divisions they’ve had a try at over the last decade.
Manager James Dean was off-loaded in the summer along with a big chunk of the side that fell short last time. Andy Butler replaced Dean as manager having been an Iron player and coach previously – this is his first taste of management though, and the natives are reportedly getting restless with him. He’s also getting a bit waspish with the media which is usually a good sign for the opposition.
This situation contrasts with Paul Caddis being voted NLN manager of the week this week, an accolade I didn’t actually know existed. And no, these things aren’t curses, that’s just mumbo-jumbo.
Wholesale squad changes two seasons ago didn’t result in promotion for Scunthorpe, and more chopping and changing ahead of this season has seemed to adversely affect them again. Several of the players brought in are proven performers at this level and above, although they’re perhaps feeling the burden of expectation weighing heavily on their shoulders, given that this full-time club really should be able to win the National League North at a canter.
Great things were expected of striker Carlton Ubaezuonu who signed from Chorley in the summer, but he has yet to score. However, they do ‘bat deep’ when it comes to alternative sources of goals. Danny Whitehall got 21 last season and has eight so far this time around, so he’s good for roughly a goal every other game. However, he scored twice last weekend against Marine so he should logically draw a blank here.
Attacking midfielder Callum Roberts is also good for one goal in two (ten in 20 appearances this season) and new arrival Mark Beck has come in from a level higher, and has done very well in the NLN previously for Darlington. Talking of a level higher, he’s 6’ 5” which could dictate how the hosts approach this tactically, which is to say that it may not be as grass-based as Scarborough were in midweek.
Yet another attacking option is Will Harris who arrived on loan from Spennymoor at the start of December. He got 16 goals for Moors last season.
You get the feeling that they’re feverishly and haphazardly collecting players in the hope that at least some will work out, which tends to be an expensive and not generally successful approach.
Influential ex-Bull Will Evans will once again bring an intimidatingly solid presence to the centre of the Iron defence.
Scunthorpe have only lost once at home this season, but they’ve only won four of their ten home games too. Leamington in 17th place have as good a home record. So the hosts have shown this season that they’re fallible, yet you’d imagine they’ll be up for this more than they would be for games against some of the smaller clubs in the division.
The Bulls travel on a wave of momentum following two narrow wins against very good opposition, with two clean sheets demonstrating that the Howkins-Preston central defensive partnership at the heart of a back four has settled into something quite formidable.
Much has been made of the strength of the Hereford bench on Tuesday night, and one or two of Willo, Rose, Campbell, D’Ath and Babos may start here. It would be a bit of a surprise if a starting place wasn’t found for Tate Campbell.
Surrendering the bulk of possession may be on the cards, but this squad is arguably at its best when counter-attacking an over-committed opposition at pace.
This is a Football League-ish fixture that usually attracts a decent Football League-ish away following, which should help the cause no end.
As with Chorley, if you finish above Scunthorpe in this division you know you’re going to get promoted automatically or have a crack at the play-offs. If Hereford can make it three wins in three here they’ll go above Scunthorpe and remain above Chorley. That would be a good look going into the Boxing Day derby against Kidderminster.
COYW