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Next Game: Farsley Celtic At Edgar Street On Saturday 26th October at 3.00pm

Friday, January 10, 2020

Andrew Graham Post AGM Interview Part Two

Hereford FC chairman Andrew Graham spoke to BN after last night's club AGM.

Part Two of the interview started with a question about the relationship with Pegasus Juniors which somewhat stalled last summer.

"We have a brilliant dialogue with Pegasus," said Graham.

"I had a meeting with one of their directors this morning. We want to keep that open.

"Hereford is a tight-knit community. The project with Pegasus was a fantastic project but we have to make sure it works for the football club and we have to make sure it works for Pegasus.

"And we also have to make sure it works for everybody that is involved, all the players and parents that have their children up at Pegasus and also the ones that have their children in the academy teams."

How do you feel manager Russell Slade is getting on?

"He is finding it tough, challenging. He inherited a squad that wasn't really his and he has made some changes to that, some has worked out, some haven't.

"He's aware of what we want, he's aware of the type of football we want and he's aware of the demands the board are placing on him.

"He's also fully aware, as I've said before, that this is a results led business and that he has to deliver and has to make sure we are a sustainable football club on and off the pitch.

"I'm confident that together as a board, as a club and as a football management team that we can keep pushing for the right results. It just has to happen on the pitch. I don't want us battling against relegation."

Slade often hints he would like a budget increase.

"We've increased the budget significently this year which everyone is aware of. I think what we have to do is ensure that he has sufficent to make us as successful as we need to be.

"This season are the play-offs out of touch? Let's be realistic we have to win a few matches and our currant form dictates that we are trying to be a middle of the table, sustainable, football club at the moment.

"Would we look at budget increases if the need arose? I think we have to take every week as it comes at the moment. That's the best way of addressing it."

Bradford Park Avenue are at Edgar Street tomorrow. An elusive home win?

"You are asking the wrong person, I'm the eternal optimist, I think we can win every match.

"I went up to Bradford PA as you did and I just thought we should have had four or five. Every time they went down that left wing it looked like they were in a different division and the week before they had been beaten 8-0 and then they beat us.

"It was another one of those performances on the road where you think how has that possibly happened. It has to stop. We've got to win on Saturday. It's a must win match."

Graham was then asked how he was enjoying being chairman of Hereford FC.

"I always enjoy a challenge. 

"Any of the previous chairman whether it be Jon Hales or Ken or myself, nobody would do this job as a volunteer if they didn't love this club.

"There have been challenges both on and off the pitch which everybody is fully aware of and it's a challenge I will continue to step up to so long as the shareholders and supporters want me to do this job.

"I will give it all I possibly can."

Any message to supporters and shareholders for the future. Are we on course to go full-time, are we on course to get to the Football League?

"Our vision has not changed. This is something I harp on about and I'm not tired of doing it.

"It's a sustainable football league club. And in order to be a sustainable football league club we need to work in three different areas.

"And that's behind the scenes, on the terraces and on the pitch.

"We will do all we can behind the scenes, all we can for the people to make it work on the pitch. They have to do that in order for the people to trust us to come through the turnstiles.

"We know we can guarantee that there will be a certain number of people who will turn up no matter what and I'm one of those people.

"Sometimes you just need, however hard it is, other people to say do you know what it's my football club. And I remember when it wasn't here and I remember how much of a void that was in this city.

"We can't allow that to happen again no matter how hard it is to watch a match if you are not enjoying it. You just have to think it's our football club.

"I'll do what I possibly can and if the feeling was from supporters, shareholders, directors or whoever that it was time to make a move for the benefit of the club I would step down for someone else to do it if it made the club a better place."