Aaron Downes said he was “nearly as tired as the players” after Hereford battled their way to a deserved point against league‑leaders Chester at Edgar Street.
Aaron Downes
The Bulls extended their unbeaten run to four games and became the first side to take points off the Seals this season. Downes felt the 1–1 draw was a fair reflection of a fiercely competitive contest.
“It was a good game. Really good game,” he said. “Good game from two good teams in my opinion. It was a tough game for us. You can see they move the ball well, they've got good patterns, they get the ball forward quickly as well and they're an athletic side. They’re energetic.
"It was a tough challenge for us today and I think we stood up to it.”
Downes praised his side’s ability to impose themselves at key moments.
“There were patches of play in both halves where we moved the ball really well and we were aggressive out of possession, good in possession at moments," he said.
"Overall, that was a good game of football."
Hereford took the lead through Billy Phillips after excellent work from Keziah Martin and Aaron Skinner. Downes called it “a good goal, great work from Kez… Skins does great down the side and Bill finds himself free in the box and it’s a great finish.”
Chester equalised through Billy Waters shortly before half‑time, with some supporters feeling the goal may have been offside. Downes wasn’t ready to judge it.
"I haven't seen it back yet so I will review it, but a few of the boys are saying it is," he said.
"The linesman's in a good position from where I've seen it, so I don't know. No quibbles at the minute, but I might tell you differently tomorrow when I've viewed it."
The visitors enjoyed a strong spell early in the second half, forcing Theo Richardson to several saves.
While Chester found some momentum, Hereford’s best second‑half chance fell to Harrison Iwunze, who headed wide from a good cross.
But Downes said his side got into some good areas in the second half but didn’t come up with an end product, which was disappointing, but the manager was satisfied overall.
“A draw’s probably a fair result,” he said. “It’s probably a good point for both teams.”