Hereford axe end-of-season finals over urgent pitch work

The state of the Edgar Street pitch in January. Picture: YourHerefordshire

Hereford FC have confirmed that a series of end-of-season finals at Edgar Street have been cancelled due to urgent work required on the stadium pitch.

The ground had been scheduled to host junior league finals for boys and girls, three senior cup finals, schools finals and a sponsors’ tournament. However, the club says longstanding issues with the playing surface during the 2025/26 season mean a new drainage system must be installed immediately after the campaign ends.

Work is due to begin within 48 hours of the final National League North fixture on April 25, leaving no time for additional matches to be played at the ground.

The club said the scale of the problems — which have already led to multiple postponements and three first-team fixtures being moved to alternative venues — left them with “no choice”.

The problems have been put down to the drains reaching the end of their lives, as well as the machinery used to install new floodlights during the dry 2025 summer.

The email said: “Due to the well-documented, ongoing pitch issues at Edgar Street… we are sadly unable to host any private hire football matches or end-of-season finals during the close season.

“The works involve significant repairs and the installation of a new drainage system, rendering the pitch completely unplayable.”

Contractors are set to begin installing drainage pipes across the width of the pitch from the week commencing April 27, followed by further remedial work including removal of the top layer of the surface, sanding and reseeding.

The pitch will then be left to recover for up to 12 weeks ahead of the 2026/27 season.

The club acknowledged the decision would be disappointing for players and organisers but said delaying the work would risk the pitch not being ready for the start of next season.

As an alternative, Hereford FC have offered junior finalists the opportunity to take part in a lap of honour during a first-team fixture early next season.

The club added that it hopes to resume hosting finals once the work is complete.

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