On this day in 2016 Hereford were away at Tonbridge Angels in the FA Cup. But it wasn't a good day for the Bulls in Kent. Let's hope it's much better at Three Bridges this afternoon.
A look back:
Tonbridge Angels 4 – Hereford 2
Hereford travelled to
higher-graded Tonbridge Angels in Saturday’s FA Cup 3rd Qualifying
Round tie, but the Kent side easily booked themselves a place in
Monday’s draw.
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| Joel Edwards Captained Hereford |
Tonbridge got
themselves off to the best possible start, taking the lead with just 2
minutes on the clock. Jamie Willets was adjudged to have fouled ex-Bull
Nathan Elder 20-yards out, and after beating the four-man wall, Luke
Allen’s free kick nestled in the bottom left hand corner of the net past
the static Alex Harris.
With Hereford unable to get a foothold in the game, they found themselves trailing by two goals 7 minutes later. Nick Wheeler made progress down the left flank before rounding his man and cutting into the box. Wheeler fired across Hereford’s keeper Harris, with his left-footed shot going in off the inside of the upright.
In the 18th minute, Hereford came close to pulling a goal back through Jamie Edge. A determined Tristan Plummer had prevented the ball going behind for a goal kick, but his shot from a tight angle was cleared as far as Edge by the feet of the keeper. Despite being in space on the edge of the area, his tame shot was easily claimed by home keeper Anthony Di Bernado.
Hereford’s best
chance of the half fell to Tristan Plummer on the half hour mark. The
ex-Bristol City man created himself a perfect shooting opportunity on
the right-hand side of the area, but his powerful effort sailed just
wide of the mark.
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| Tristan Plummer's Shot |
The Bulls made their
only change of the game at the start of the second period, with Pablo
Haysham returning from injury to replace Jake Sinclair on the left of
midfield.
With 49 minutes on
the clock, Jamie Willets should’ve done better to open the scoring for
Hereford. Jack Parter conceded a corner for the hosts after blocking
Plummer’s cross from the right. Jamie Edge delivered the ball into the
heart of the area, but Willets was unable to connect as the danger was
swiftly dealt with by the Angels.
Moments later, a
defensive error by Tonbridge meant that Mike Symons picked up a loose
ball within the 18-yard box, but neither him or Tristan Plummer were
able to get a shot away as the Lilywhites missed an opportunity to pull a
goal back.
The task of getting
through to the 4th Qualifying Round was made even harder for Hereford in
the 64th minute as Tonbridge increased their lead to three goals. The
well-positioned Craig Dundas was easily able to convert Jack Parter’s
cross from the left.
There was a slight glimmer of hope for the visitors 3 minutes later. Tristan Plummer played a neat ball into the box, with John Mills able to direct the ball past Di Bernado with his right-footed shot from close-range.
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| John Mills (Behind Tonbridge Number Eight) |
It wasn’t long however until Tonbridge firmly re-established their position in the driving seat, as Luke Blewden made it four. A sloppy pass from Edge within his own half was intercepted by Nick Wheeler, subsequently playing a through-ball to Luke Blewden who found the back of the net with ease.
In the 87th minute, Jamie Edge nipped in front of the keeper to neatly finish a Joel Edwards cross. But it was a case of too little too late for the Bulls as they crashed out of the FA Cup.
Next up is Hereford’s first game in the FA Trophy since reforming, when they travel to Wiltshire where they face fellow phoenix club Salisbury on Saturday October 8th.
FT: Tonbridge Angels 4 – Hereford 2
Att: 1,112
Tonbridge Angels: Di
Bernardo, Folkes, Parter, Parkinson (c), Miles, Phipp (Whitnell),
Fortnam-Tomlinson (Scannell), Allen, Elder (Blewden – 64’), Dundas,
Wheeler.
Subs not used: Udogi, Lawlor.
Hereford: A. Harris, Purdie, Green, Willets, Edwards (c), Plummer, Edge, McGrath, Sinclair (Haysham – 46’), Mills, Symons.
Subs not used: Parry, Staley, Huntbach, Horsell.