Bare bones

Just a few months ago these two sides played out a couple of matches that contributed hugely to the securing of Hereford FC’s National League North status, in earning the Bulls an unlikely six points. The last five minutes of the second of those games, at Edgar Street, was as dramatic as you could wish for.

Luckily Aaron Skinner seems to have nerves of steel and dispatched a penalty at the death in that game that went a long way to ensuring that the Bulls are playing this fixture again this season.

This one won’t pack such an emotional punch, but the hosts, beset by an already crippling injury list, will be mustard keen for the same outcome in order to get their season up and running following a loss at Buxton last weekend.

Marine kicked off the season last weekend with a home loss against a Macclesfield side powerful and unpleasant enough to go very well this season. A 2000+ crowd saw the home side ‘pummelled’ throughout the game by Macc, and that description came from a home reporter.

Hopefully any residual shellshock the Merseysiders are feeling from that will allow Hereford to dole out another pummelling here. From a glass-half-empty perspective, if the hosts themselves get pummelled it will offer worrying evidence that they’re a very long way short of Macclesfield’s standard this season.

Marine arguably had the better of the game at Edgar Street in April, so this will be a useful yardstick to judge how much better this season’s squad is, or at least the vestiges of that squad who are fit enough to play a game of football, and therefore how much further up the league it can finish.

Young striker Jordan Hodkin arrived from Crewe a day before the start of the season, but wide man Fin Sinclair-Smith is their big danger, and they’ve done well to keep hold of him over the summer. He’s scored 53 in 160 appearances for Marine, and is well worth doubling up on defensively whenever possible. Nullify him and you’re well on the way to getting something out of the game.

Arguably half of Aaron Downes’ starting XI will be missing for this. Fin Holmes and Joe Willis will be out for a good while longer yet, as will captain Lewis Hudson. Joseph James was expected to start last week at Buxton but didn’t, with hopefully a more minor problem than the aforementioned three. Danny Waldren wasn’t risked as a starter against Buxton either, and is clearly not 100% fit. The bench on Saturday may have one or two spare seats, or a smattering of youth teamers.

Any and all points gained whilst the treatment table is so overcrowded will be hard-earned.

To add insult to injury, in addition to the walking wounded Preston Bitemo now faces a three-game ban after getting sent off last weekend (Aaron Downes did mention an appeal but nothing seems to have come of that). Not the start he would have wanted to what could be something of a career-defining season for him. Hopefully the injury to Buxton’s Connor Kirby resulting from a 50/50 challenge with the Hereford youngster isn’t a career-ender for the Bucks man.

Notts County loanee Harrison Iwunze does look like a probable starter here though, and Harry Tustin looks a shoo-in after coming on as a substitute at Buxton and immediately adding some quality to proceedings. It’s really good to see him back.

Kyle Howkins will be back in defence after missing the Buxton game for not getting sent off against Marine last season - something like that anyway. His presence will offer huge reassurance as the Bulls look to demonstrate that they can now use home advantage to dominate against mid-table sides like Marine, rather than look intensely troubled by them.

This will be the first glimpse for many supporters of the new recruits. It will also be a big occasion for local lads Cawley Cox and Jordan Williamson, and they’ll have extra impetus to make an impact in front of what should be a busy Meadow End.

One game in and already this season’s getting complicated, with the absentees and the sending off, as well as the defensive switch-off for Buxton’s late winner last Saturday. Shades of last season a bit there.

A win would uncomplicate things a little – you know where you are with a nice win – and it would allow everyone to breathe a bit easier ahead of the second of an Edgar Street Saturday-Tuesday double-header, which sees Radcliffe come south. That looks very winnable, and the Bulls will be looking for four points from these two games at least.

The omens aren’t at all bad for this one either – three wins and a draw have been earned by Hereford in the four games they’ve played against Marine since the latter were promoted.

So players are missing, but the manager would have said before a ball was kicked that anyone and everyone in the squad is at the club because they can cut it at this level. This is a chance for the fit players to prove it.

COYW