NEXT HOME GAME - TBC
NEXT AWAY GAME - SUPPORTERS XI ARE PLAYING WORCESTER AT MALVERN ON SUNDAY AUGUST 3rd AT 3.00pm

Thursday, April 03, 2014

Make Or Break Weekend For The Bulls



A huge weekend for the Bulls starts tonight with a Nostalgia Evening in the Starlite Rooms reliving the 2006 Conference Play-Off win over Halifax. Doors open at 7.30pm with the screening of previously unseen footage beginning at 8pm. Tickets for the night are £5.

Next up is Friday night's Race Night. All the horses and races have been sponsored, the club now needs fans to come along and have a bumper night with tote betting and a specially filmed Players race to round out the evening. Tickets for the night are £5.

On Saturday, fans can start the day with Breakfast in Addisons from 9am to 11.30am, before Man City-Southampton on the TV at 12.45pm. The bar will again have Owd Bull and Thundering Molly on special offer, with the Hereford Brewery and Celtic Marshes again donating further supplies to aid the club.

Fans will be collecting donations in High Town from Noon with volunteers welcome to join them. Details here (link).

The main event kicks off at 3pm with the Bulls facing Woking in a crucial Conference game. After a bumper take last week, and three prizes for the first time ever after a virtual sell-out, HUISA will be bringing even more tickets to sell in the 50/50 draw.

The matchday magazine The Bull is also available at the game, priced at £3, with editor Jamie Griffiths going beyond the call of duty again to also produce a programme for Sunday's Omid Djalili fundraising gigs.

After the game, there will be a shirt auction in the Starlite Rooms. Full details on the available lots are here.

On Sunday, Addisons will be open from Noon ahead of the first Omid Djalili gig at 4.30pm. The club will remain open through the day until long after the second performance has ended.

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SD's Kevin Rye On H&W


Supporters Direct Development Manager Kevin Rye spoke to BBC Hereford & Worcester this morning.

Howard Bentham asked Rye if it was correct that, long term, the club couldn't just keep on going through fundraising: "I don't want to sound like the harbinger of doom every time I turn up at these places to talk about what's going on.

"Beyond the attempts, and the brave work, of supporters which is going on we have to keep in our minds the fact that it has happened because of poor planning at the start. 

"Football clubs go through bad times as well, I'm not saying clubs don't have unfortunate things happen to them and sometimes that does mean that they cannot manage their finances.

"When you get into situations like this, they tend to be man-made. We have to keep in our minds that we're not running an emergency services charity, disaster relief. We're trying to run a football club.

"You've got one director, Dave Preedy, trying to co-ordinate all of this. Where's the chairman at this point?

"I'm not calling for a lynch mob to run through Hereford - I'm asking a question that you've got the football club in this position, everyone needs to be pulling together in the short term, everyone needs to be part of something to stop this happening again and again."

After an interjection from Bentham about David Keyte's whereabouts and the money he has put in, Rye continued:

"Pumping £600,000 into this football club - that is wrong. It is wrong that anything is happening at a football club that requires anyone to do that. We've got to keep in our minds on what happens next. 

"Dave Preedy said something about everybody pulling together. That is right, but the club has to be run in a totally different way in the future so we don't have to keep going through this."

Fan Russell Cheasley agreed with some of Rye's points: "We need a different model to running the club. We need to be more commercial. The ground is an asset, but is it being used to the best advantage when you consider it has football played once every two weeks."

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Omid Djalili - Half Of Afternoon Tickets Sold


Just over half of the tickets for the afternoon performance by Omid Djalili this Sunday have now been sold.



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Shirt Auctions Updates


London Bulls' auctions end tonight just after 8pm, with total bidding currently just over £500.

Star lot is the Toumani Diagouraga shirt from the promotion clinching game at Brentford in 2008, signed by a total of nine players from the squad. Their full auction listing is at http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/londonbulls/m.html

The club's auction on Saturday has seen several advance bids placed on the lots. Bidding will also be accepted in person at the auction in the Starlite Rooms after Saturday's game. Full details are here (link).

Meanwhile, Andrew Huchs has seen bids of over £200 for his signed Steve Guinan shirt from the 2008 promotion side. The auction finishes just after Midnight on Friday: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Hereford-United-Shirt-worn-and-signed-by-Steve-Guinan-in-promotion-winning-game-/321368593624


In a new addition to the auctions, Paul Jones is auctioning his collection of over 250 Bulls programmes in aid of the club. Opening bid is 99p, with the auction finishing on Saturday night around 10pm.

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Collins Hopes Bulls Can Stay Up


Hereford United defender Dominic Collins has said that he hopes the Bulls can avoid relegation. Collins was at Chester last season and he keeps a eye on their position as well.

"It’s very tight at the bottom end of the league table at the minute, but I’m hoping Hereford and Chester both manage to stay up,” Collins told Chester First.

“I’m sure the Chester lads are taking everything game by game, just like me and the other Hereford players as things stand.

“On a personal level, my time at Chester last season couldn’t be more different to the difficulties experienced this season with Hereford.

“I remember only losing three league games at Chester last season and we were flying – it was just a case of expecting to win every time we turned up.

“But it’s been a massive learning curve this season at Hereford and it’s been very difficult to adapt.

“We’ve got a lot of young players in the squad and it’s been a real struggle trying to pick up points.

“Hereford have also been having financial issues and the players haven’t been paid. It’s been a very worrying time, but the team have been trying to concentrate on getting results.

“We’ve had to blank out the difficulties and cut out the negatives that have been happening off the pitch, but it has been a worrying time for everyone at the club.

“I’ve not heard what the latest situation is, but a lot of cash was raised at last weekend’s match and we’re all hoping that the club can raise the money they need by next month.”

Collins and the rest of the squad have recently had to adapt to a new manager's ways.

"The new manager, Peter Beadle, has tried to calm all the players down and take our minds off where we are in the league table.

“He has tried to make our training fun in a bid to relax the players as we prepare for our matches because we don’t need to think about the dangers – we only want to think about seeing the ball hit the back of the net.

“We have had a lot of bad luck, but I never thought I’d see Chester and Hereford struggling like they are near the foot of the league table."
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Wednesday, April 02, 2014

Last Night's 'Boards' Meeting


The three 'boards' met last night to discuss the fundraising effort at Hereford United who face a winding up order next Monday if they can't raise  £78,000.

Directors Grenville Smith, Dave Preedy and Bob Pritchard were at the meeting along with representatives from both HUISA and HUST.

Afterwards Preedy spoke to BBC Hereford and Worcester.

He said that at present all the club's income would go towards paying off HMRC, and not for the players.

"The players are not paid in full up to now, which is well documented," said Preedy.

"But we've got an agreement with the players, they are a great bunch of lads.

"We've got an agreement with our creditors, again the tax man is the main priority at the moment, we've got to pay the tax bill.

"One step at a time and, hopefully, three points on Saturday would be a massive boost."

As for the future?

"Obviously with good management, good budgeting and the Supporters Trust and HUISA and every else getting together now, we can realistically start setting sensible targets to take this club forward."

Preedy then acknowledged all the help the club is currently receiving at this difficult time.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, and thank you to people outside of Hereford and have come in and said how can we help.

"The football family have really pulled together because Hereford has that history.

"We just need that one more push."

Preedy also gave a statement on behalf of the board to BBC H&W.

"After a very constructive meeting with the board of HUFC, HUISA and HUST, we are now within sight of our target to pay £78K to the Taxman.

"At this moment in time we think we are about £20k short. This takes into account expected revenue from this weekend's events.

"One final push from the fans supporting fund-raising events that are taking place at the club on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

"We are confident that they will take us past the finishing line.

"The board would like to express their sincere thanks to supporters, groups, fans of HUFC for fantastic endeavours."
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Club Statement


Thanks to the fantastic efforts of Bulls fans, and fans from the wider football family, Hereford United are closing in on the £78,000 fundraising target.

With a court date set for this Monday for Hereford United to pay their outstanding £78,000 debt to HMRC, United currently have just over £20,000 in the fighting fund, which includes over £10,000 of donations from fans of Hereford United and the wider football family.

Fundraising shows from top UK Comedian Omid Djalili this Sunday at The Courtyard are likely to raise close to a further £20,000 for the club.

However directors and supporters groups at Edgar Street who met on Wednesday evening stress that a good turnout for United's home game against Woking is a must.

“We've sat around the table tonight, it's been a positive evening where we've received generous donations from HUISA and HUST” Bulls Director Dave Preedy said.

“Taking into account what we forecast to receive over the weekend from gate receipts, bar takings and additional income we think we're left with about £16,000-£20,000 still to find.”

“It's a more manageable figure, but we need one final push from the fans who have so far been absolutely superb with their donations and support of our fundraising events.

“We've got a nostalgia night tomorrow to relive our Play Off Final win over Halifax, a Race Night on Friday night and a shirt auction on Saturday and we'd love to see as many people turn out as possible”.

“We need to continue fundraising right up until the last minute to ensure we can make the payment to HMRC and hopefully avoid a winding up order that could put to an end to our 90 year history.”

“It would be a disaster if this club ceased to be, we've all got our own personal memories and we're all fighting hard to make sure we keep this club going.” Preedy added.

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Preedy 'Overwhelmed' By Djalili's Offer To Help Bulls


Hereford United director Dave Preedy has told the Hereford Journal that the publicity from offer by comedian Omid Djalili to help the Bulls has helped swell the amount raised.

"He is huge name nationwide and he heard about the club's plight thanks to supporter Kaddie Rae, of our student supporters association, contacting him over Twitter.

"When he rang up and said 'I am free on Sunday, can I perform to help you' we were completely overwhelmed.

"I'm sure the tickets will sell like hotcakes and we are hopeful we can raise £10K towards the fund.

"It is creating a snowball effect too.

"Since then other people are coming forward to help, it is humbling to see.

"We've received money from the fans of Crystal Palace, Luton Town and FC United of Manchester.

"If I can make a plea it would be 'this is a club which brings a lot to the city and we hope we can survive."

Preedy also revealed that both Swansea City and Sunderland will have bucket collections for the Bulls this week.

UPDATED: This evening Dave Preedy has said that the Bulls now need between £16K and £20K to get to the £78K required to pay HMRC by Monday.
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Players At Morrisons Collection Today



Dom Collins, Kingsley James, Danny Leadbitter, and Joel Edwards make appearances at Morrisons today as the Commercial Road store held a collection for the Bulls.


The club reports that £350 had been raised by 3.30pm with collecting still going on at that time.

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Why I'm Helping The Bulls - Omid Djalili


 

Omid Djalili has spoken to BBC Hereford and Worcester about why he's helping The Bulls in their time of need. The comedian is playing two shows at the Courtyard next Sunday.

"My production manager on my show, Shaun Weager who is from Ledbury, is a big Hereford fan," said Djalili.

"He said 'Hereford's going to get wound-up on April 7th', I said you are joking.

"So I sent a tweet and there was a lot of reaction and I thought why don't I do a gig.

"And now they want me to go a second gig.

"I said what do you want the shirt off my back.

"I am a big football fan and grass-roots football is really suffering.

"You've probably heard about Salford being taken over by the class of 92.

"It's precisely because less kids are playing football.

"Football clubs all around the country, non-league, division two, they're all in trouble.

"We're hoping to raise about £16k to £20K over the two gigs. I hope that will do something.

"With less people coming through the gates you've got to suport your local football club.

"I'm just lucky that my local football club is Chelsea - I support my local club and I think people should support Hereford.

"It doesn't matter even if your team goes down, you don't let it become non-existent.

"It's such an important thing for everyone to come out and support the club.

"I'll be there 4.30pm and 7.30pm."

The two shows are at the Courtyard opposite Edgar Street. Currently there are some tickets unsold for the 4.30pm show.
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HUST Presented With £815 Tesco Collection


HUST board members collected this afternoon the £815 raised from generous donations from customers of Tesco's Belmont store in aid of the Bulls.

Pictured: Dan Freeman (Deputy Manager) Sammy Neate, Ian James, Sarah Woodward, HUST board member Tony Clifford-Jones, collection organiser Sharon Manuel ,Sarah Fitzpatrick, Vanessa Cheasley, and HUST board member Gary Bradley. 
The sum will be handed to the club at tonight's meeting with the Club and HUISA boards.

Further donations can be made online: http://www.gofundme.com/SaveHUFC

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Omid Djalili - Online Ticket Sales For Afternoon Show



Tickets are now available online for Sunday's afternoon show by Omid Djalili.

The picture shows that, as of 2pm today, about one third of the tickets for the show have been snapped up already. Sales are online at http://www.courtyard.org.uk/events/omid-djalili-comedy-to-save-the-bulls/

The comic did an interview with BBC Hereford & Worcester this morning, which can be heard via Audioboo at https://t.co/0tC33xPNlm

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Volunteers Wanted For High Town Collection


Organiser Will Cheshire is seeking volunteers to help with a collection in High Town on Saturday.

Will has secured permission to collect in the foyer of Tesco's Bewell Street store, and will also rattle buckets through town before making their way to Edgar Street at around 1.30pm.

Anyone wishing to help is asked to email Will direct  Will_cheshire@hotmail.com or contact him on Twitter @hufcchesh or via the Save Hereford United Facebook page (link).

Volunteers are asked to meet outside Marks & Spencers at Noon.

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Auction Update


New York based Bull Andrew Huchs is auctioning a signed Steve Guinan shirt from the Brentford promotion game in 2008.


Meanwhile, London Bulls' auctions have seen increased interest in James McQuilkin's shirt overnight, with bids doubling. Their auctions are at http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/londonbulls/m.html

Also, the club are taking email and phone bids on their shirt auction after Saturday's game. Full details on the available lots are at http://www.herefordunited.co.uk/news/article/the-bulls-shirt-auction-1450354.aspx

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Dodd On Talksport


HUISA Chairman Keith Dodd spoke to Talksport's Danny Kelly last night.

Dodd outlined the current situation at Edgar Street, before talking about the HMRC bill: "I think we're about halfway towards sorting it out. If we had another week we'd probably get the rest of it. 

"We're just looking for someone to come in and help us out. We've got all these fundraising things going on just to meet this tax bill so there'll be no winding up order."

Kelly tells listeners that football clubs are as important to our culture as the Royal Opera House and 'anything else you can name' before playing commentary from the Ronnie Radford goal.

Asked what ordinary fans could do, Dodd called on Newcastle to hold a bucket collection in aid of the club and spoke of Welsh Premier side TNS assisting: "If we can get though this thing, and get to Monday, I think we can sort the rest of it out."

Danny Kelly told listeners that he would donate: "I'm kicking up a fuss about this because I don't want the club to go to the wall. I was going to buy an England shirt, the £90 one that come up yesterday. That £90 I've going to donate now to Hereford. I think it's better use of my time and money."

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Tuesday, April 01, 2014

Diagouraga Shirt Bidding Up To £275


The London Bulls auctions have attracted over £450 in bids so far.



The star lot is a Toumani Diagouraga shirt from the 2008 promotion winning game at Brentford, signed by nine of the team. Bidding for the shirt (pictured) is up to £275 at the time of writing.



Other lots include signed balls, and shirts from Danny Williams, James McQuilkin, and Matt Done. Bidding ends on Thursday evening.



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Darts Loss Keeps Bulls Out Of Bottom Four


Dartford lost 2-1 at home to Luton to keep the Bulls a point clear of the bottom four. The Darts held the lead, dropping the Bulls into trouble, but a red card and two Luton goals swung the game late on.

Southport remain three points ahead of the Bulls after losing 4-0 at home to Braintree. Woking racked up their fifth straight win with a 2-1 victory over Forest Green.

Cambridge cemented second place with a 1-0 win over Macclesfield, while Grimsby beat Wrexham 1-0 to leave the Dragons with just one point from nine under Kevin Wilkin.

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Ronnie Radford At Edgar Street On April 12th


Ronnie Radford With John Motson At Edgar Street In 2012
Ronnie Radford will be at Edgar Street on Saturday April 12th as a guest of the Tupsley Whites.

The whole day will be geared towards raising money for the club.

Radford, whose goal for Hereford United against Newcastle in 1972 is known all over the world, is set to arrive at the ground at 10.30am.

From then until around 12 noon, supporters can have their photograph taken with Radford on the spot from where he scored that goal.

Photographs will be taken by Steve Niblett (Nibbo) and will cost £20 each including post and packaging. 

Supporters are asked to let Mick Loader know if they wish to have their photograph taken as number are limited to 50. Contact Mick at Hereford United on 01432 350789 or e-mail: mickhufc@gmail.com

Radford will then have a sponsored lunch with the Tupsley Whites and afterwards watch the game.

In the evening he will attend an event dedicated to him in the Starlite Rooms where supporters will have the chance to question the former player.

7.00 pm: Question and Answer session with Ronnie Radford. Chairman TBC.
 
9.00 pm: Moon On A Stick disco

9.30 - 11.30pm:  Live music with the King Mantis Band
  
Tickets £7.50 to include finger buffet
 
All proceeds to go to Hereford United so please give your support. Tickets on sale from the club.
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Super-Duper-Markets


Morrisons in Commercial Road will join Tescos in holding a collection for the Bulls tomorrow (Wednesday).

Staff will also hold a raffle, with the fundraising starting at 9am.

Meanwhile, HUST will collect £815 raised by Tesco Belmont, at the weekend, ahead of tomorrow night's meeting of the HUST, HUISA, and Club Boards representatives.

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Omid Djalili - Afternoon Show Added


Comedian Omid Djalili is to perform an afternoon show in aid of the Bulls in addition to the sold out evening performance.

Bulls fan Shaun Weager posted a pic of Djalili's custom kit
With the 7.30pm show selling out within hours, the Chelsea fan is to pull double duty with a second show starting at 4.30pm.

Tickets are now on sale from the Courtyard in person and on the phone - 01432 340555 - with website sales expected to be added shortly.

Meanwhile, the following fundraising game has been announced for May 4th:




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Shirt Auction Saturday - Available Lots


The following shirts are available to bid on for Saturday's post-match Shirt Auction.

Bids can be sent to auction@herefordunited.co.uk, along with your name, address, and phone number.

Blackpool current team signed shirt. 

Cardiff City current team signed shirt. 

Bath RFC Rugby current team signed shirt. 

Leicester City Tony Cottee signed shirt. 

Bolton Wanderers shirt signed by Jay-Jay Okocha. 

Bolton Wanderers shirt signed by Ivan Campo. 

Wolves circa 1990 team signed shirt including Steve Bull. 

Almeiras (Brazil) team shirt. 

Everton shirt signed Kevin Sheedy. 

HUFC shirt signed Kevin Sheedy. 

HUFC 06/07 shirt team signed. 

HUFC 07/08 shirt team signed. 

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Friday Night Race Night




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Woking's Hill Gets The Curse


It did for Martin Foyle, and now Saturday's opponents Woking will come to Edgar Street with boss Garry Hill the reigning Manager of the Month.

The former Dagenham boss has seen his side win all four of their games in March to move clear of the relegation fight. The run included wins at both Luton and Barnet.

The first effects of the curse will be on show tonight when they face Forest Green, one of five games in the Conference.

The Bulls' relegation rivals Dartford and Southport are both also in action. The Darts entertain Luton, with a home win meaning the Bulls would enter the bottom four for the first time. The Sandgrounders entertain Braintree having recorded five straight home wins.

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HUST Pass 500 Member Mark


The Hereford United Supporters Trust have passed the 500 member mark. This from HUST:

The board of HUST are delighted to encompass so many members, with each and every members views and opinions valued, we attempt to represent each and every one of you as best possible.

If you would like to suggest anything to HUST or get further involved at any level, we appreciate any help or advice that we can get, so email liaison@hufctrust.co.uk with your views, skills or opinions.

If you still haven’t signed up for the Trust there is still plenty of opportunities, here on the website, or in the VP Club Lounge before home games.


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News Round-Up


Ex-Bull Toumani Diagouraga has been recalled to Brentford from his loan at Portsmouth. The 26 year old made eight appearances for Pompey, the last being last Tuesday's 3-0 loss to Rochdale. Gateshead say that defender/striker Liam Hatch will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing a hernia operation.

Stockport's shareholders have agreed to hand their shares back to the club or to continue to put money in after a meeting this week. A large number of the club's shares were in the hands of people who were not putting money in, leading to the meeting to resolve a funding problem after investment talks with a local consortium collapsed.

Luton and Forest Green say that striker Andy Mangan is on loan at Kenilworth Road until the summer. Reports say the deal was done last week despite the Gumpers having supposedly terminated his deal. Welling boss Jamie Day has signed a new two year deal with the club. The 34 year old has been in charge since 2009 and is still registered as a player, making six appearances this term.

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Bulls Looking For A Full Team Of Mascots This Saturday


The Bulls are looking for a mascot for every player for this Saturday's game with Woking.

Each of the 11 mascot spaces are just £70, which includes match tickets for two parents/guardians and programme.

Anyone interested in taking up the offer is asked to email club@herefordunited.co.uk or ring Lee on 01432 375630. Mascots can also get a HUFC kit for an additional £20.

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Saturday Morning Breakfast Service


After last Saturday's success, the Bulls are to open the Starlite Cafe again this Saturday.

The Cafe will be open in Addisons Bar from 9am until 11.30am with a full menu on offer.

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Graham Picks His Conference XI


Bulls captain Luke Graham has selected his best XI from the current Conference season.

In his XI, he selects players from seven different sides with only Luton and Barnet getting more than one pick.

While naming no Bulls in the XI, he does note:

'From my current Hereford United squad, unfortunately not enough players have been consistently good enough to have pushed the eleven players I have picked for a variety of reasons.

I feel Daniel Lloyd Weston has done very well in the twenty games he has played and has a good future in the game. Daniel Leadbitter has had some good games at right back and has improved since the season started defensively.

Rod Mcdonald and Dominic Collins have had a great battle at centre back this season and have both had some good games for us this season. I think Dom has improved the most due to starting the season on the bench, he has done a job at right back on more than a few occasions and has also chipped in with some important goals.'

The full XI is on Luke's website: http://thelukegrahamblog.wordpress.com/

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Foyle Favourite For Nuneaton Job


Former Hereford United manager Martin Foyle appears to be favourite to take over at Nuneaton.

Currently Foyle is priced at 8/1.
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Omid Djalili - Standard Tickets Sold Out - VIP Tickets Remain


The Courtyard have sold out of standard tickets for Sunday's Omid Djalili fundraiser for the Bulls.

The club still have a small number of VIP packages for the event. Email club@herefordunited.co.uk for more details.

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