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Hereford FC host Chorley on Saturday following a wonderful (and let’s face it unexpected) win at Buxton on Tuesday.
That was surely one of the biggest wins in the phoenix club’s relatively short history, given the context of the previous two defeats, and the nature of the complete no-show against Kings Lynn.
The Bulls are now off the bottom of the table, out of the relegation zone, and three points off the play-offs. If they can win again here they could find themselves actually in those play-off positions, which would be some turnaround, and would offer convincing evidence that the start to the season was just a blip.
However, that win is easier talked about than done, as Chorley are always tough and competitive at this level, and have started well.
They sit third in the table having won two and drawn one of their opening three games, scoring an impressive eight goals in the process. The standout performance among those three games was a 3-0 win at home against pre-season fancies Chester, although the visitors played most of that game with ten men.
On Tuesday night they were held to a 2-2 draw at home to Scarborough, a game the visitors arguably had the better of.
Goalkeeper Matt Urwin has been with the club for six seasons now and remains one of the better goalies in the division. Ex-Bull Harvey Smith continues to be a defensive lynchpin for them, and Adam Blakeman is both their free-kick expert and long-throw slinger. Their success tends to come from being a strong unit as a team though rather than having standout individuals, and they'll take some breaking down.
Manager Andy Preece is a shrewd cookie and he will have diligently done his homework ahead of this match, but that homework would have consisted of the Kings Lynn and Buxton matches, and if he can figure out anything logical or consistent from those two games ‘shrewd’ doesn’t begin to cover it – he’s a genius.
Last season when the Magpies flew south they fell to a 1-0 defeat courtesy of a Yusifu Ceesay backheeled goal. That followed a 1-1 draw in Lancashire which the Bulls would have won but for a missed late penalty, so the omens aren’t too bad at all for this one.
This Saturday at Edgar Street will have to be so completely and utterly different to last Saturday if the hosts are to have any hope of winning that it’ll be fascinating to see how that transformation is achieved. The Buxton game is an excellent stepping stone, and it would be perverse in the extreme if Paul Caddis reverted to just a lone striker here.
Hereford’s first two opponents of the season, Spennymoor and Kings Lynn, met on Tuesday night in the northeast, which offered an interesting form line in that the Linnets came away 5-0 winners. I’m not suggesting that it’s a form line that excuses last Saturday, and Lynn didn’t look like world beaters at Edgar Street, but maybe it gives a tiny bit of perspective.
Captain Lewis Hudson, many people’s MOTM on Tuesday, has perhaps regained his starting place as a result of that performance, and I-Lani Edwards can only improve having now got some men’s football minutes into his legs. He looks like he’s going to be instrumental in much of what the side does creatively from now until the end of his loan spell in January, along with Omari Sterling-James.
Remaye Campbell’s first goal on Tuesday, a deft finish that would have graced any level of football, may have given Buxton cause to believe that they swooped for the wrong Campbell in the summer. Their loss, our continued gain, and the striker will go into this one full of confidence. If Willo can manage another hour or so alongside him, the Hereford legend’s goals-to-minutes-played ratio at this level is as good as anyone’s, so you wouldn’t bet against him finding the net.
Finally, am I missing something or is it not allowed to put ball boys and girls in the empty bits of the ground to collect and redistribute balls, rather than the players having to fetch them themselves? I know a lot’s said about the club’s part-time status, but that certainly looked VERY part-time to me last week.
I can’t believe I’m talking myself into being positive about this one after leaving Edgar Street utterly dejected just a few days ago, but crikey, maybe everything’s alright and last Saturday was just a bad dream.
COYW