Let Battle Commence!

A new season, a bubbly sense of optimism and what could be a cracking competitive opener against South Shields for Hereford FC on Saturday, with hopefully packed stands and terraces bathed in warm summer sunshine (apart from the shady bits – hello Len Weston Terrace: shady place, shady characters).

The weather forecast suggests the match could be divided into quarters, which drives me nuts, but you can’t argue with health and safety I suppose. Maybe the northerners will struggle in temperatures some way above the South Shields August average of ‘cold’.

The opening games of Hereford’s National League North seasons to date have tended to end in draws. One exception was a 3-0 home win following promotion from the Southern League under Peter Beadle, and that was against Blyth, so if I blatantly gloss over a couple of draws against Spennymoor the Bulls have a 100% win record against northeastern teams on the opening day of the season, which is clearly an omen.

Saturday’s opponents should provide a properly stern test for Paul Caddis and his modified squad. Aaron Martin, Paul Blackett and Jediael Abbey were all among the goals for the visitors last season, with Blackett ending up as the division’s top scorer with 30 goals.

Jed Abbey has been at Telford and Alvechurch in recent seasons, a CV that would normally make the young Dutch midfielder a possible Hereford target, but no, he’s ended up many miles away instead. Perhaps the yawning gap in playing budgets between these two clubs was a factor, and the fancy full-time status on offer up north.

Shields recently brought Aidan Rutledge in on a season-long loan from Gateshead. The 23-year-old forward links up with fellow Heed loanee Jamie Bramwell at the 1st Cloud Arena. Rutledge spent last season on loan at Scarborough Athletic and Darlington, scoring 11 goals.

The tactics last season home and away against the Mariners involved sitting back and allowing them as much possession as they wanted in front of banks of defensively-minded but hard-pressing Bulls. That worked well in a 0-0 draw up there but not so well at home, when Shields outplayed the hosts and eased to a 3-0 win. Following that commanding and impressive performance, it was baffling that they didn’t then go on to be right up in the top three by the end of the season. Instead they finished a point outside the play-offs.

There will be two notable absentees for the hosts here due to injury, with Jason Cowley and Aaron Skinner missing out. New signing Montel Gibson and recent arrival Ahkeem Rose will compete for a place in attack alongside a fit and flying Andy Williams, assuming Paul Caddis doesn’t opt for the latter as a loan striker. Gibson had an interrupted pre-season due to injury, but now looks ready, and Rose has had more of an interrupted career due to injury, but has recently proved his fitness and could be an excellent asset. In fact, he could be the latest in a long line of ‘Roses’ to excel on the Edgar Street stage.

More than capable cover for Skinner comes in the form of new arrival Sammy Robinson, suggesting Kyle Howkins and another newcomer Matt Preston will be tasked with keeping Blackett and the several other attacking threats from the visitors quiet in the middle. Local lad Mark Derricott should be available as cover from the bench, and new captain Lewis Hudson will lead the team out for the first time as skipper, which will hopefully give him a bit of extra spring in his already quite springy step.

Behind them, new keeper Aaron Chapman looks to be a formidable presence, and a presence that will hopefully make himself felt in making it clear that he owns his penalty area, something that perhaps wasn’t the case last season.

In midfield, unless a last-gasp deal has been done to re-secure the services of Yusifu Ceesay, width will be provided by Cosmos Matwasa and, possibly, 18-year-old Preston Bitemo, with Chay Tilt another injury doubt.

In the middle, Caddis can choose between Lawson Dath and Aurio Teixera to tidy up, with Tate Campbell hopefully able to boss the visitors in the same way that they bossed the Hereford midfield last time they came down. Alex Babos will work his magic in between the lines and from set pieces, and allegedly hurl a few long throws in too.

That probably adds up to about 15 players, which should do the job, and might be worth a try given the reputation of referees for short-sightedness.

All in all there are some very interesting and varied signings to enjoy as they make their club debuts, alongside a core of players from last year who put such a shift in to lift the club out of the doldrums and into a new era of hope.

This should be a cracking opening game of the season in front of what will hopefully be a 3000+ crowd, and a win for the hosts would send a tidal wave of optimism through the Bulls faithful in terms of how the season might pan out.

Bring the Noise, as Public Enemy instructed us to do all those years ago.

COYW