Downes brands three-match ban 'a bit harsh' amid injury woes

The moment Connor Kirby went down after clashing with Preston Bitemo

Aaron Downes has doubled down on his support for Preston Bitemo after the midfielder’s red card appeal was rejected, calling the three‑match suspension “a bit harsh” and insisting the challenge at Buxton was fair.

Bitemo was sent off during last weekend’s fiery clash at the Tarmac Silverlands Stadium after a 50–50 with Bucks skipper Connor Kirby — an incident that sparked a melee and left the home captain with a double leg break.

Hereford appealed the decision, confident the tackle was legitimate, but the FA upheld the red card. Bitemo missed Marine, and will also be absent from Radcliffe and Worksop Town.

Downes said he firmly believed it was a fair challenge but respected the outcome.

“I still think it’s a bit harsh what’s happened to Preston,” he said after Saturday’s win over Marine. “He’s been brilliant for us.”

Downes has been unwavering since the moment the clash happened. He said both players “went in for the ball”, described the injury as “unfortunate”, and stressed that Bitemo is “not that person” — not malicious or dirty.

On Saturday in a club statement, Downes said: "I send my best wishes to Connor Kirby and hope he makes a full and quick recovery."

After the match last Saturday, he admitted that "no one likes to see that type of injury on a football pitch".

The suspension comes at a rough time for Hereford. Captain Lewis Hudson is already out for around three months, Joe Willis is sidelined, and now Bitemo is unavailable. It forced Downes into a reshuffle against Marine — and Kam Kandola stepped up with a performance his manager labelled “a real captain’s display.”

Fin Holmes is also absent with a hamstring problem, and Danny Waldron had been carrying a knock, though he was on the bench against Marine.

But despite the injury list, Downes said "everybody was excellent" against Marine, adding: "There was no real bad performance today."

He singled out Kam Kandola, the sponsors' man of the match, for praise, before adding: "It's a good job we've got players who are a little bit versatile and Kam was superb today, really good.

"A real captain's performance out there, so really pleased for him and pleased that he's done a good job because it got us a win."