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| Rob Purdie Captained The Bulls |
Hereford FC continued their busy period of games with yet another victory, this time coming from behind at relegated Continental Star to win 5-1. Franklin Hazell's hooked finish put the home team in front before John Mills equalised on the stroke of half-time. Mustapha Bundu netted early in the second-period and Anthony Robbins, Mills and Joe Tumelty followed these up with strikes to give the Bulls a resounding victory, in front of 441 in Staffordshire.
Following the 4-1 success over Brocton on the weekend, Peter Beadle replaced Jamie Laird, Jimmy Oates and Pablo Haysham in the starting line up. In came Jamie Willets, Anthony Robbins and Mills, whilst Rob Purdie shifted to a right-back position.
It took a few minutes for Hereford to adjust to a bobbly, but big pitch at Rushall. Bundu was the man to create the first opening, showing quick feet to skip past two defenders but a right-footed strike was palmed over the bar by the home 'keeper. On the other wing Srdic Grant was causing problems, reacting quickest to a Purdie throw and ghosting past his marker and forcing a low save from the goalie after a left-foot shot. Further chances followed with Mike Symons having a low drive blocked and then, following good work by Grant on the right-wing, a
well-placed Mills' shot was superbly denied by the home shot-stopper.
Yet, completely against the run of play, the hosts took an unlikely lead. A corner from the right was looped into the danger area and the ball was nodded down and pounced upon by Hazell, who hooked a left-boot over the despairing Martin Horsell.
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| Star Take The Lead |
Hereford reacted well to going a goal down, with Purdie firing a 25 yard free-kick just past the far post, and Mills flashing a header from a Aaron Birch set-piece wide at the near-post. Just before half-time however, Hereford levelled, and it was Mills who grabbed the important equaliser.
A sliced clearance by the home number three was headed in the path of Mills by Bundu, and the leading marksman lifted the ball over the out rushing 'keeper and into the back of the net. It was a welcome goal and it set Hereford up nicely for the second-period.
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| Lob From John Mills |
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| Goes Over The Keeper |
Hereford always start strongly in the second-period, and this was no different; Mills lifting a shot over the crossbar from inside the box after more good work from Grant on the right-wing. In the 49th minute, Bundu popped up to put Beadle's men in front for the first-time. A corner by Purdie was met by Robbins and Bundu stuck out a right boot to expertly direct the ball into the net.
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| Star Players Look Behind As Mustapha Bundu Finds Goal |
The game went a bit stale for fifteen minutes, with the only real incident a strong penalty shout for Hereford turned down following what looked like a handball inside the 18 yard box.
With 18 minutes remaining, Hereford produced a superb counter-attack goal to all but seal the points. A corner for the home team was cleared to Bundu, who made good progress into the Star half before releasing Grant. The Hartbury duo interlinked and Bundu received the ball inside the area, before setting up Robbins and he finished from 15 yards.
Mills then grabbed a deserved second of the evening with a classic striker's goal. After an initial corner fell back to taker Birch, he delivered a perfect right-foot ball to the near-post where Mills had lost his marker, and he guided the ball past the helpless 'keeper.
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| John Mills Scores His Second Of The Game |
A trio of subs was made by Beadle, with Tumelty, Ross Staley and James Pilling having short run outs, replacing Grant, Bundu and Symons respectively. The first of those introduced, Tumelty, looked likely to add a fifth, flashing a powerful 25 yard drive past the top corner, before getting himself on the scoresheet in the closing moments. The Continental right-back dallied on the ball, and Tumelty dispossessed him, breaking into the box on the left before sliding a shot past the goalie at the near-post, to finish proceedings 5-1 to Hereford.
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| Joe Tumelty Scored Hereford's Fifth Goal |
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| John Mills And Joe Tumelty |
It wasn't a vintage performance by Hereford, but it was a case of job well done in the end. Continental rallied well, but lacked quality, especially in the final third, and Hereford created a host of chances throughout the match. It was good to see Mills starting, and scoring, whilst there were some more encouraging performances across the field, with Robbins and Grant putting in good shifts in their midfield berths. The strength in the squad has been evident in recent weeks, and has been pivotal in ensuring a strong finish to the season. It's not job done yet, but there's plenty of reasons to be positive. Next up is a trip to Quorn (Wonder if Mo Farah will be there); they have been on a decent run, picking up a point at Sporting Khalsa on the weekend, and beating Dunkirk 4-0 last night, so it could prove to be a tough encounter.
Hereford: Horsell, Purdie, Green, Willets, Bowen, Grant, Birch, Robbins, Bundu, Symons, Mills.
Subs: Bonella, Tumelty, Pilling, Staley, Haysham.
Mills then grabbed a deserved second of the evening with a classic striker's goal. After an initial corner fell back to taker Birch, he delivered a perfect right-foot ball to the near-post where Mills had lost his marker, and he guided the ball past the helpless 'keeper.
