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Hereford FC host Buxton on Tuesday as the home games keep coming, but as long as the wins keep coming too no-one will mind too much.
The Bucks’ last three games have seen them lose against Radcliffe, draw against Leamington and finally lose against play-off rivals Curzon Ashton on Saturday. This form has seen them slip out of the play-off places, with Hereford being the beneficiaries. However, that wobble followed a run of five wins in six matches, when they looked like they were timing their end of season finishing burst to perfection, and they may well find that form again.
It was all change for the Bucks over the summer, with a new manager, a new team, and a new full-time status. That last bit could be described as ‘brave’ on home crowds of about 700, or ‘barking mad’ might be another way to look at it, but this is football after all, where barking mad is very much the norm. An average squad age of 23 suggests that they’re trying to do the full-time thing on the cheap – an approach Kings Lynn tried last season in an attempt to get out of the division, and in fairness it nearly worked for them, although what they nearly achieved was getting out of the division in a downwards direction.
There’s no danger of that for Buxton however, and manager John McGrath looks to have had a good first season in charge having moved up a level in the summer to take over from experienced Craig Elliott as boss.
Midfielder Connor Kirby has survived their summer overhaul and is generally considered to be a key player for them, pulling the strings in midfield and weighing in with goals too. He has seven goals and seven assists to his name this season.
Like Kirby, Tom Elliot is another long server to have survived the move to full-time, and the attacking midfielder is their top scorer this season with nine goals.
There have been too many new signings this season to mention in full here, but one is Josh Popoola, who has performed well in the National League North before when briefly on loan at Spennymoor and Chorley. He likes to get forward and has four goals this season from right back.
Their main goal threat in recent seasons has been Diego de Girolamo, but he’s now moved down the road to Macclesfield, who have virtually won the Northern Premier League already.
Interestingly, despite the financial backing that’s subsidising their full-time status, they still seem unable to resist the grasping talons of moneybags Matlock, who pinched defender Josh Granite from them earlier in the season.
If Buxton maybe timed their seasonal finishing burst a bit prematurely, Hereford are currently doing a good impression of a side getting the timing just right. Seven wins in eight games have seen the Bulls charge up the table to fourth, and they also currently sit proudly at the top of the form table.
Sammy Robinson missed Saturday through illness and this game may be too soon for him too, at least as a starter, but the side is showing that it can find a way to win matches without key performers. With Aaron Skinner now back fit and Alex Babos back in form, the rotating starting XI is demonstrating the strength in depth of the squad. Jaiden White is full of confidence, Yusifu Ceesay is full of goals, Levi Andoh is full of ability and new striker Temaye Campbell is full of the X factor defenders don’t like.
There will hopefully be plenty to enjoy in this, but something that would probably get the loudest cheer of the night would be a goal for Jason Cowley. It’ll surely come soon.
Hereford goalie Theo Richardson was at Buxton for two seasons before moving to current parent club Fylde, so he’ll hopefully be motivated to continue the form he’s shown recently in keeping three clean sheets in the last four games, helped in that, it must be said, by the superb form of the Howkins-Preston central defensive partnership.
This fixture last season saw Hereford kiss goodbye to any lingering realistic play-off hopes in scrambling to a 2-2 draw in front of 3004 people. A win this time would further reinforce this season’s far more realistic play-off hopes, and while a crowd of 3004 is perhaps unlikely, a few part-time punters may be tempted along by the magnificent current run of form, to push the crowd up towards that figure.
Something that may further encourage people to turn up is that, unlike last Saturday’s guests, Buxton will try to play a bit, although in that match last season at Edgar Street they were really quite irksome too.
It’s fifth-bottom Marine away after this, and while they are putting some form together, they’re nevertheless still fifth bottom, so it’s another winnable one.
I promised myself I wouldn’t say this out loud, but…six points off top spot. Surely there’s no chance of…no, of course not. Silly me.
COYW