Once again it's back to this weekend in 2003 and a Conference game against Burton.
Hereford made the most of having a selection of attackers to pick from, and so Karl Hawley and Albano Correia started in attack with Steve Guinan on the right-wing, but Tony James missed out with a foot injury. Burton, managed by Nigel Clough, had to do without top scorer Christian Moore, who has netted eighteen times this season, as he had an ankle knock.
It took just eight minutes for Hawley to open the scoring, as a Guinan ball fed through from the right was missed by Correia and Ben Smith's shot deflected off the on-loan Walsall striker and went into the back of the net. A second effort, on nineteen minutes from Hawley, was blocked and Rob Purdie's follow-up was blocked by Darren Stride, who recently had a testimonial match at Eton Park. However, the Bulls didn't have the wait long until doubling their advantage.
The second goal came on twenty one minutes, when a Paul Parry one-two with Ben Smith saw a good cross for Steve Guinan to launch a powerful header past Duke for his thirteenth Conference goal of the season, and that was fourteen nine minutes later when Hawley's ball was laid-off by Correia for Guinan to strike a thunderous shot from outside the area to effectively end the match as a contest.
Matt Baker's main action of the first half came with six minutes to go, when he was forced to block a Jon Howard shot from close range, but United continued to dominate after the break as Hawley tried his luck with a low shot which narrowly missed the target, and Ian Wright planted a header inches wide at the far post.
Not that Hereford need worry - they had a three-goal advantage and made it four with twenty minutes left when a Paul Parry corner was flicked on by Rob Purdie to Michael Rose. He charged into the box, and Albano Correia turned well and fired a low shot home from eight yards out.
Parry and Correia came close to extending the lead when Parry hit a free-kick inches wide and Correia headed onto the crossbar, while an Andy Sinton free-kick at the other end caused some consternation when it was headed onto Matt Baker's crossbar. All in all it was a solid performance by Hereford, and it is difficult to select one man as the star player.
| Hereford United | Burton Albion |
| Matt Baker | Matt Duke |
| Matt Clarke | Terry Henshaw |
| Michael Rose | Mark Blount |
| Ian Wright (captain) | Darren Stride (captain) |
| Andy Tretton | Dale Anderson |
| Rob Purdie | Aaron Webster |
| Ben Smith | Colin Hoyle |
| Albano Correia | Craig Dudley (off, 49 minutes) |
| Paul Parry | Andy Ducros (off, 24 minutes) |
| Karl Hawley | Andy Sinton |
| Steve Guinan (off, 89 minutes) | Jon Howard |
| Subs | Subs |
| John Grant | Paul Talbot (on, 49 minutes) |
| Ken Griffiths | Dan Robinson |
| Richard Teesdale | Andy Garner |
| Danny Williams (on, 89 minutes) | Nigel Clough |
| Rob Sawyers | Ben Petty (on, 24 minutes) |
| Yellow cards | Yellow cards |
| Ian Wright (foul, 44 minutes) | - |
| Red cards | Red cards |
| - | - |
| Scorers | Scorers |
| Karl Hawley (8 minutes) | - |
| Steve Guinan (21, 30 minutes) | |
| Albano Correia (70 minutes) | |
| Man of the Match | Steve Guinan |
| Attendance | 1780 |
| Referee | Mr. G. Chapman (Stroud) |
There is still a chance
There
is still a chance that Hereford United can make the playoffs. With
Dagenham losing at Morecambe the Bulls are still in sixth place but only
four points adrift.
After the game Karl Hawley, the Bull's on-loan forward from Walsall
spoke to BBC Hereford & Worcester. He was asked what he made of the
game and his goal. "I got the first. It was a shot by Smith and I
deflected it in. It was a good result this afternoon."
Asked about having three strikers in the team, he said: "Steve
Guinan was like a right mid-field striker. He was told to attack more
than defend so it was all positive."
He talked of the difference between his previous club Raith Rovers
where he had also been on-loan and Conference football. "It's not too
different to Scotland as I went on loan to a second division club up
there," he continued.
"We've got no complaints," said Burton player-manager Nigel Clough
after the game."The game was dead for us after they scored three goals
in the first 31 minutes."
Last autumn Hereford ended a lean run with a 4-0 win and went on to
take ten points from the next four games. If only that sequence could be
repeated it would give the Bulls a chance to make the play-offs.
Confidence returns to the squad
Some
supporters have called today's performance "brilliant". A four-nil won
is good but Burton were not the team that defeated the Bulls at Eton
Park last October.
It should be remembered that they were without Christian Moore, who
has scored eighteen goals for them this season, and for what ever reason
Nigel Clough did not play. That said, today's win will put confidence
back into the Hereford side.
It was difficult to pick a man of the match today. Several players
could have deserved the accolade. Rob Purdie had perhaps his best game
in an United shirt so far. He seemed to run and run and was a little
unlucky not to score. It is to be hoped that Graham Turner offers him
another contract.
Steve Guinan, so missed last week until he came on as a sub, must
have found his new position as a right wing midfielder (at least that's
what Hawley called it) to his liking as he scored two good goals. The
second one from the right was a low drive from twenty yards or so.He has
now scored 14 Conference league goals this season which for a player
who is not a natural striker isn't bad. He, too, deserves to be offered a
new contract.
Of the two new strikers Albarno Correia and Karl Hawley, both had
good games. Correia looked fresher than last week and scored in the
second half. Hawley, however, seems to be more talented.He held the ball
better and challenged strongly. His goal early in the first half was a
delection off Ben Smith and he was unlucky not to have scored again
later. If only Walsall would let him go, he could make a massive
contribution to the Bulls.
A word of praise for the officials is due today. The referee had a
good game and the linemen kept up with the play. So much different to
some officials we have seen at Edgar Street recently.Although Ian Wright
picked up a yellow card for a late challenge which was probably
deserved, the game produced some good flowing football with the referee
waving play-on several times as opposed to blowing his whistle.
Graham Turner selected a team without Tony James,who failed a late
fitness test, Jamie Pitman, serving time, John Grant, and Danny Williams
who came on for three minutes for Guinan when he appeared to have
injuried his left thigh. To have won by four goals without these four
players shows that Turner has put together a useful squad. He will have
another selection problem next week of who to leave out and there's
still Richard Teesdale and Rob Sawyers looking to get a game. If only
Turner can hold onto the vast majority of the squad then even if things
don't quite work out this season the Bulls must be in with a real chance
of promotion next season