Aaron Downes said he was pleased with Hereford’s four‑point Bank Holiday return after the Bulls battled their way to a 1–0 win at Southport to move second in the National League North table.
Hereford had to work hard in tough conditions, with a strong wind and the slope at Haig Avenue making the first half particularly difficult. Downes felt his side handled it well.
“I’m really happy with our first half performance,” he said. “Really tough conditions for both teams when you’re going uphill into the wind like we were first half.
"That was really difficult to get out your half and we played it excellently. We got into their final third a lot. We went in behind direct when we needed to. We move the ball quick when we needed to and switched it.
The Bulls dominated territory after the break but struggled to turn pressure into clear chances. Downes admitted that was frustrating.
"I really wanted us to be a lot quicker, move the ball quicker, more decisive with the ball," he said.
"We dominated territory in the second half, absolutely, until the last five/six minutes."
Hereford eventually broke through when Kyle Howkins was fouled in the box and Aaron Skinner calmly dinked home the penalty. Downes said the win was deserved but felt his side should have made life easier by testing Southport's keeper more.
"We didn't really carve out or create a real clear-cut opportunity," he said. "I'm happy with a lot of what we've done today but I’m disappointed we haven’t created eight, ten chances for the dominance we had with the football.
“That's the annoying thing to me, that cutting edge we just didn’t have today so I'm frustrated with that."
Southport pushed late on, forcing Theo Richardson into a superb save to protect the lead.
"It's an excellent save right at the end and, this is not disrespectful, but it wouldn't have been deserved if they got something out of the game," Downes said, but added: "We could have been a lot more clinical and would have made the game out of sight if we had better decision-making in that final third."