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Southport picked up a point in their relegation struggle against Burton last night.
The point moves them two points clear of the drop zone. Scarboro, currently occupying the higher relegation place, entertain Grays tonight for both sides third game in five days.
Grays boss Mark Stimson told the BBC: "We just need to keep it going now because there's a massive prize at the end of this. If we keep getting a win here and a point there I'm sure we'll have enough points to compete in the play-offs."
First on the agenda (the Baggies played that evening) for Glynis and Simon Wright last Monday was a Conference affair, an afternoon meeting of Hereford United and Tamworth, second from top versus second from bottom, and an afternoon kick-off.
To keep it brief, then, Tamworth desperately needed the points to keep out of relegation trouble, while The Bulls wanted theirs in order to confirm their play-off place come the end of the season.
Once there, though, another pleasure Bank Holiday football provides - a handy ice-cream van parked in the street opposite the ground. Before you could say 'a cornet and a tub of choc mint chip, please', we were getting well and truly stuck in. Lovely stuff, and not a single plod or unpleasant opposition follower in sight.
So, over to the game, then. The thing you have to remember about Tamworth is that they do enjoy what you might term 'a certain reputation' in the Conference. When it comes to the rough stuff, there's none like them, and given their Conference position was far from safe, today's game promised much - but not in the way of skill, sad to say. We did spot SuperBob, however, one of their subs today, and warming up with the rest of the lads.
Come kick-off, though, the game took a pretty strange turn. For reasons best known to themselves, the Bulls decided today's affair - well, the first half, at least - to be nothing more than a lark in the park. No urgency whatsoever about them; as in their previous home fixture, it appeared that end of season ennui had well and truly set in. So low-key were the proceedings, the lad known as Talking Bill regaled us with a couple of tales where his booming voice had caused him to land in lumber of a totally non-PC nature. The first of these told of the time he and a few of his chums ventured into a pub near an away ground patronised almost exclusively by Asian people - then having a couple of drinks (or more!) and (totally innocently; there isn't a racist bone in his entire body) starting a chant of 'Come On You Whites'. Yes, before you ask, it did go down like a lead balloon.
The second time? This one was at Hartlepool. Bill is not really known for his tolerance of refereeing or line errors even at the best of times, so no surprise to anyone when Bill, angry at a series of (to him) erroneous flaggings, started letting rip at the lino. He had meant to intimate the poor chap was seriously biased towards the home side, who rejoice, of course, in the unofficial soubriquet "The Monkeys", hence his knee-jerk accusatory cry to the effect of calling the bloke a 'monkey'. Not once, but several times. It was only when someone quietly pointed out the error of his ways, he realised how close he'd unintentionally come to possible arrest. Yep - the guy was black, and Bill was very lucky indeed to remain a free man!
As for Tamworth, their supporters had it right. "No-one likes us, we don't care?." Which pretty much summed the situation up, really. Hereford's attack proceeded at half-cock, and the visitors' defence did their utmost to bore everyone to death. And that's just about how it stayed until midway through the second half. Realising a 'Plan B' was sorely needed, The Bulls took a brave decision, making substitutions and effectively leaving no less than three attackers up front. Suddenly, the home side got their act in gear, at long last. Wave after wave of white-shirted attacks hit the visitors' rearguard - it could only be a matter of time before they succumbed, and succumb they did, finally, with about ten minutes of the half gone. Even the name of the perpetrator of the damage will be familiar to Baggies regulars - Danny Carey-Bertram, whose stunning 20-yarder finally broke the deadlock.
They could have increased their tally quite easily afterwards, but didn't. Was that play-off nerves asserting themselves, I wondered. Anyway, Tamworth tried to repair the damage, and in one last desperate act, chucked on Albion's former Number Nine. Not much in the way of an attacking threat, really, Bob's skills were utilised more in the 'laying the ball off for others' area than anything else. Then, one minute into injury time, the lad nearly broke Hereford hearts. Finding himself free from the attentions of his markers for once, and only the keeper in his way, he took the ball to the edge of the box, let fly - only to see the effort whiz right over the bar. Two seasons ago, he would have buried the chance, no messing.
Come the final whistle, and confirmation of Hereford's play-off place, time to shift ourselves down to the car park and the mad scramble to participate in Game Number Two. Not that we were looking forward to the prospect, mind - already, Hereford's electronic scoreboard had shown Pompey to be a goal in front at Charlton, so we assumed it was all over bar the shouting. Imagine our shock when we turned on the radio, tuned in to Five Live for the results - and discovered The Addicks had gone and trounced them with only around ten minutes left to go. Football can't half be a funny game, sometimes, and no funnier-peculiar than today's little turn up for the books.
Southport travel to Burton in the only Conference match of the day.
Southport will be looking for points to aid their survival fight. Burton, who have signed most of the squad already for next season, were hammered 3-0 by struggling Scarboro in their last match.
Weymouth owe more than £2million, and are racking up huge weekly losses, according to the departed Financial Director.
Chris Pugsley, an Accountant, quit the Weymouth board last week after his concerns over the financial state of the club appeared to have been ignored by the Chairman, Martyn Harrison.
Pugsley claims that £2million is owed to Harrison's company, Hollybush Hotels, and Barclays Bank. Harrison initially claimed that any investment from Hollybush would be a gift, but the club received an official letter from Hollybush stating that the bulk of the money was a loan.
Harrison, 90% shareholder of the club, has now stated that all the Hollybush money is actually a personal investment, and has dismissed Pugsley's claims that the rest of the board have no say in running the club.
Weymouth had pinned their finances on selling their Wessex Stadium to Asda. Government inspectors rejected the plans, but local council officials are continuing to back the plans and are challenging the ruling.
Aldershot boss Terry Brown has threatened a clear-out at the end of the season - and has told the players that some of them have already proven that they're not worth keeping.
Speaking after the 3-0 home defeat to Grays, Brown commented to the BBC: "I have to say that I am embarrassed by what I saw and embarrassed for the fans who deserve better.
"There were too many players who are seeing the season out and quite frankly their performances make my job that much easier at the end of the season. I hope some of them don't think they will be playing here after that."
Brown has already offloaded several players including veteran centre-backs Greg Heald and ex-Bull John Brough.
Sky Sports have confirmed that they are to show one of the play-off first leg games on Sunday May 7th.
Sun 7 Play-Off semi-final first leg (TBC) SS1 5.30pm Conference
As yet there is no information on whether both play-off games will be played on the Sunday.
The Non-League Paper has slammed the Canvey Island manager, Jeff King, after he banned the paper from reporting covering Canvey's matches.
The row erupted after top striker Lee Boylan told the NLP he wanted a move from Canvey at the end of this season. King was asked for a comment "in the spirit of fairness". However he banned the paper instead.
Since then the paper has continued to try and print reports and other information about the club.
King said that the Boylan story was untrue but the striker has now publically revealed that the request was true.
The paper suggests that had King been more co-operative with the media he would have generated more publicity which may have increased the number of supporters coming to the games.
Boylan wants to get back into League football. He has good reason to try as he has scored 176 goals in five seasons with Canvey.
Last night King, who is said to be fed up with bank-rolling Canvey to the tune of £8,000 per week, was asked for a comment.
"I don't want to talk about Canvey or Chelmsford," was all he would say.
Meanwhile John Moules, the top man at the Conference, has confirmed that to date Canvey Island continues to be a member of Nationwide Conference - for season 2006/2007.
Speaking after the defeat to the Bulls, Tamworth boss Mark Cooper told the official Tamworth website: "We were unlucky to come away from the game today with nothing.
"I thought that if we could have gone in a goal up at half time it would have been enough, but one mistake lead to their goal and although we had some good chances towards the end we are lacking quality in key areas. The enforced substitutions didn't help but we will have Matt Williams back for next Saturday and I will be available again.
"I've said all along we want to do it properly and can't rely on others faltering either on or off the field, but we will have to see what happens elsewhere as this week unfolds."
Jamie Pitman was interviewed after this afternoon's game by Keith Hall for BBC Hereford and Worcester.
The Hereford United midfielder said that the players were delighted to be in the play-offs for the third year running.
"Now we've got to look forward and prepare right for those play-off games and do better than we have done in the last couple of years."
As regards the game itself Pitman said that Tamworth had made it difficult for the Bulls by putting nine or ten people behind the ball.
"We felt that second-half we dominated the game and it was just a matter of being patient at times.
"Andy (Ferrell) played a great ball on Saturday for the goal and played another great threader today. D C took it really really well, he just smashed it in quite early so the keeper didn't have a chance to react.
"It's frustrating. The more people that get on our backs, the more difficult it becomes because we tend to get a little bit anxious and a bit frustrated.
"We need a little bit of quality around the final third that perhaps we haven't shown in the last couple of games."
Andy Williams came on during the second half and appeared to lift the team's performance.
"The lad's got exceptional talent. He's showing himself to be a very good player. He's got a lot to learn still but he's got something about him," Pitman remarked.
"He's got that little bit of quality, little bit of skill and he is quick. He's very difficult to mark when he's running at you."
Top of the Conference:
1 Accrington Stanley 40 32 88
2 Hereford 40 24 76
3 Halifax 39 15 71
4 Grays Athletic 38 33 69
5 Morecambe 40 23 68
6 Stevenage 40 17 68
7 York 40 17 62
Potential Points Table:
Accrington 94
Hereford 82
Grays 81
Halifax 80
Morecambe 74
Stevenage 74
If the teams finish in this order then Hereford United will probably meet either Morecambe or Stevenage in the play-offs. The first leg will be away and the second at home on the following Thursday.
However the final position could easily change. All that is certain at present is that the Bulls are in the play-offs but could finish in either second, third or fourth place in the table.
Should the Bulls finish fourth then the first leg of the play-offs will be at Edgar Street.
Play-offs First Leg:
Saturday, 06 May 2006
4th Place v 3rd Place, 15:00
5th Place v 2nd Place, 15:00
Play-offs Second Leg:
Thursday, 11 May 2006
2nd Place v 5th Place, 19:45
3rd Place v 4th Place, 19:45
Play-off Final:
Saturday, 20 May 2006
Winners 2nd v 5th v Winners 3rd v 4th, 17:30 Walkers Stadium, Leicester.
Finally there was a minutes silence before the start of today's game in memory of Penny Bayliss, a well-known Hereford United supporter, who died recently.
Hereford United claimed the victory that they needed to secure their play off place for the third successive season with a narrow 1-0 victory at home against strugglers Tamworth, who sit just one point out of the relegation zone now, with all three teams below them in the table having a game or more in hand on them.
Changes were inevitably made as The Bulls took to the field for the second time in three days. Wayne Brown, Craig Stanley and Andy Williams all dropped to the bench and Craig Mawson, Jamie Pitman and Nicky Nicolau took their places in what was the same sixteen as named against Altrincham.
The Lambs enjoyed the early efforts at goal, but ex-Bull Daniel Davidson scuffed his shot wide before former English and Scottish Premiership attacker Tommy Johnson stung the hands of Mawson with a powerful effort from twenty yards. The visitors had to make a change after just eighteen minutes as Alan Neilson limped off injured, and was replaced by Nathan Jackson.
United, who'd enjoyed most of the possession but not the chances, first threatened through a corner from Rob Purdie, which was taken off the head of Dean Beckwith by a defender for another corner. The second corner was half cleared to Andy Ferrell, who lofted the ball back into the box where Tamika Mkandawire found himself ahead of the defence, who were calling for an offside that never came, but the Malawian's header was straight at 'keeper Sean Bowles.
Purdie picked a brilliant pass from deep inside his own half that went route one over the defence and into the path of Carey-Bertram - who was only to be denied by a fantastic recovering challenge by Adie Smith. Johnson was the next player to leave the field early for the visitors, as he was removed eight minutes before the break to make way for Tristan Whitman. The former Doncaster attacker was straight into the action and almost broke the deadlock with a rocket of a shot that curled towards the far post, and flashed just inches wide.
Both sides came out unchanged for the second half, but it was obvious that great improvements was needed by both. It came as well, with United becoming more ambitious and gambling a bit more in attack - something which Tamworth didn't handle too well, and found themselves boxed in their own half for huge periods of the half. Carey-Bertram had already signalled intention, when he worked himself an opening, but fired into the arms of Bowles, before he managed to get the decisive goal after fifty eight minutes. Ferrell was, like against Altrincham, the creator as he threaded a superbly weighted through ball into Carey-Bertram's path. The striker made no mistake as he smashed the ball, first time, beyond the reach of the advancing goalie.
Tamworth replied by finally getting some men forward, but Graham Ward's long range strike was the closest they came until injury time at the end of the game. Hereford, on the other hand, went from strength to strength, boosted by the goal and then by the introduction of Andy Williams, who took Nicky Nicolau's place. At the same time, with sixty five minutes on the clock, Stuart Fleetwood was withdrawn for Adam Stansfield.
Carey-Bertram, who now has eight Conference goals for this season, was obviously brimming with confidence as he attempted to lob Bowles from all of thirty five yards, but the ball fell just over the cross bar, before Williams almost netted a scorcher. Alex Jeannin picked out the youngster with an inch perfect cross field pass that Williams took inside his man before firing a left footed shot that required a brilliant tip over the bar to prevent The Bulls from doubling their advantage.
Mkandawire forced another save from Bowles, before Williams again went close but volleyed a Jeannin corner wide at the far post. Carey-Bertram had another chance when Bowles sliced a clearance but, having beaten his marker, Carey-Bertram volleyed wildly and his shot was well off the mark. With little more than five minutes left, Guy Ipoua was introduced, and the goalscorer made way. Ipoua was immediately involved, as he held up play for Pitman to release Stansfield down the right, but his low cross evaded both Ferrell and Purdie who awaited unmarked at the far post.
The three minutes of injury time held plenty of incident also, as Tamworth could have, and probably should have, equalised, before United almost sealed the win. Substitue Bob Taylor was on the end of a high ball that had beaten the Hereford defence (about the only thing that did in the whole game) but his first time effort flew just inches over the cross bar. Williams had the chance at the other end, which he created for himself following a neat spin and run, but his shot was deflected behind. Still there was time for make-shift striker Matt Redmile to head straight at Mawson before the referee bought the game to a close.
Despite Hereford's constant domination, the term "a game of two halves" was very fitting, as the first half was, from both teams, very poor. It lacked pace from both, with Tamworth just stopping Hereford from going forward with a blockade of nine or ten players, while the hosts were happy enough to just knock the ball about themselves. Luckily for the crowd of 2,809, which included 185 away fans, Hereford decided to throw some more players forwards in the second half, making the game far more entertaining - and it payed off, as United cemented their place in the top five in the Conference.
HUFC: Mawson, Travis, Beckwith, Mkandawire, Jeannin, Nicolau, Pitman, Ferrell, Purdie, Carey-Bertram, Fleetwood. Subs: Mawson, Stanley, Stansfield, Williams, Ipoua.
TFC: Bowles, Redmile, Folkes, Smith, Roma, Ward, Neilson, Storer, Touhy, Davidson, Johnson. Subs: Dryden, Gayle, Taylor, Whitman, Jackson.
Just four sides are now competing for the final three play-off spots.
With The Bulls sealing the first place today, York dipped out of the hunt after a second successive 2-0 defeat. Halifax, Grays, Morecambe, and Stevenage are now chasing the last three spots.
Grays have four matches remaining, needing six points to guarantee a spot, and face a third game in five days on Wednesday with a long trip to relegation threatened Scarboro. Halifax have three games left, requiring four points, but do not play again until Saturday.
Both Stevenage and Morecambe have two games left, with Morecambe holding a slight edge with the better goal difference. Neither side can afford to drop points.
Accrington celebrated their title win in front of 3,320 fans - their highest of the season - and took three points in a 1-0 win over 10 man Scarboro, thanks to a last minute goal.
Third placed Halifax's 2-0 win at York effectively ends York's hopes for a play-off spot. They are now six points off fifth spot with just two games to play. Grays' 3-0 win at Aldershot moves them closer to a play-off spot and both Morecambe and Stevenage recorded home wins, against Altrincham and Stevenage respectively, to keep both sides in the hunt.
Down the bottom, Forest Green gained a valuable point with a 0-0 draw against Exeter but remain bottom despite none of the other relegation candidates picking up points. Southport play at Burton on Tuesday.
In the other games Dagenham came back from 2-0 down to grab a late equaliser at home to Canvey, Gravesend beat Woking 2-0 in a game where both sides had a man sent off, and Kidderminster beat Cambridge 1-0 thanks to an own goal.
The Bulls sealed their play-off spot with a 1-0 win over a very poor Tamworth side.
Danny Carey-Bertram's neat finish was enough to collect the points, but both sides squandered good chances in a game that didn't come to life until the introduction of Andy Williams.
One point of interest is that today's referee, Mr Whitestone, did not arrive at the ground until 2.30pm.
Full Report Later
Don and Roy Richardson are the two brothers who control Richardson Developments and according to the Birmingham Post they are now worth around £380M.
Currently their company is in talks with both Hereford United and the Herefordshire council about the renewal of the lease at Edgar Street.
The Richardsons are thought to be in partnership with the multi-million Carillion company. The £1,069,500 debt owed by Hereford United to developers is beleived to be to this partnership. At present no interest is being added to the debt. The lease on the ground is £4,700 per year.
Below is an edited profile of the Brothers. It shows what they have achieved in the past and why they are being talked about as the likely developers of the Edgar Street Grid.
Come rain or shine, nothing much slows up Richardson Developments. Although the founders may not be running round building sites any more, berating builders for their tardiness, the family business continues to run like a well-oiled machine.
Don and Roy may not be pictured in hard hats as often these days as they were in the past but the family's appetite for development remains unappeased.
Retail seems to be the dish of the day at present and for the past 18 months, Richardsons have been developing shopping centres near and far. Not content with conquering the UK, the firm has in 2005 now gone firmly continental with completed projects in the UK being joined by a 157 million euros development in Castel Romano near Rome in Italy.
The £167 million Westwood Cross shopping centre in Broadstairs opened in June 2005 with 41 out of 45 units let, achieving record rents for the county of £60 per sq ft.
Rope Walk in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, valued at £72 million, opened on September 1 2005, providing 205,000 sq ft of shopping space. The centre recorded over 1.5 million visitors in its first three months.
Partnership is clearly viewed as the way forward by Richardsons with Westwood Cross a joint venture with Carillion, Rope Walk with Birmingham-based Cordwell and in Italy with McArthur Glen Designer Outlets.
Castel Romano offers 30 to 70 per cent savings on designer goods including Dolce & Gabbana, Versace, Etro Calvin Klein Jeans, Guess and Nike.
In 2006, the plan is to complete and open shopping centres such as Met Quarter, Liverpool, Barberino, near Florence in Italy and in Salzburg, Austria.
The Met Quarter, offering 150,000 sq ft, is scheduled to open in spring 2006 and has already announced pre-lets to Armani, Hugo Boss and Flannels.
The family continues to have significant holdings in other property and non-property related businesses.
Whether they retain holdings in the developments they are under-taking or sell, it is clear that a revaluation upwards of the family silver is overdue.
BBC Hereford and Worcester will have second-half commentary from today's game at Edgar Street, where Tamworth are the visitors, both locally on 94.7FM and on the internet from 4pm.
As ever there will be a preview and first half updates.
Keith Hall will be their man in the press area.
Meanwhile in their preview of the game, (published yesterday) BBC Sport have printed the following:
Hereford midfielder Andy Ferrell returns from a three-match ban and is likely to be recalled into the starting line-up.
Guy Ipoua and Tony James both remain doubtful for the visit of the struggling Lambs.
It is unclear where BBC Sport get their information from but just to update the facts - Andy Ferrell played on Saturday against Altrincham, Guy Ipoua came on as a substitute but Tony James missed the game through injury.
Tamworth were defeated 3-0 by Morecambe yesterday and manager Mark Cooper said it was a shocking performance. The Lambs visit Edgar Street tomorrow.
"The game was effectively over after 12 minutes. Our experienced lads let us down but collectively we were not good enough. I will be expecting an immediate response on Monday at Hereford. Morecambe were fitter and stronger and we are desperately missing Carl Heggs, but he is unlikely to feature again this season," Cooper told the official Tamworth website.
"We came into the game on the back of a five game unbeaten run so we know we can pick up points, but I was disappointed that the response and support was not behind us."
Meanwhile Graham Turner is thought to be considering some changes for tomorrow's game. He may let goalkeeper Craig Mawson have his first start since the Macclesfield LDV game, change the front pairing and bring in players such as Nicky Nicolau who has missed out through injury recently.
Stuart Fleetwood mentioned possible changes in his BBC H&W interview yesterday.
"I think there will be a few changes for the Monday game, but there will be the same aim - to get three points."
Jon Brady, never afraid to speak his mind, has told the Non-League Paper that should Stevenage reach the Conference play-offs he will support them over his former club Hereford United. He said he had a great rapport with the players and the fans at Stevenage
Brady says he is following the play-offs with interest and thinks both the Bulls and 'Boro will make it.
"I'd like it to be third time lucky for Hereford, but would never write off Boro. I had some great times there and they have quality over the pitch.
"But if a team deserved to do well it's Hereford and I couldn't speak highly enough of Graham Turner. He was fanastic with me and my situation. They are a great family club, like Stevenage, and it was sad to leave."
Whether Hereford or Stevenage move up to League Two remains to be seen, but Brady will still be playing Conference football next season as he has recently signed a new deal with Cambridge United.
He seems pleased with his move to Cambridge.
"My personal life has returned too - at Hereford I was driving and training and that was about it."
Stuart Fleetwood, the Hereford United striker, has revealed that no talks have yet taken place on any addition to his contract at Edgar Street which is only to the end of the season.
Fleetwood, signed from Cardiff City on a free transfer at the end of January, scored the winning goal yesterday at Altrincham.
"It was a great win for the boys. They are buzzing in the changing room," the striker told BBC Hereford and Worcester.
Fleetwood hit the crossbar in the first half and scored in the second.
"It was a great save. When I hit it, I hit it quite sweet and it dipped onto the crossbar.
"It was a great through ball from Andy Ferrell and luckily I finished it off."
John Trewick also spoke about the match.
"We dominated the game throughout and although it was disappointing not to have won by more goals, we'll take 1-0," the Hereford United coach told the Non-League Paper.
"The result keeps us ticking over and means that we are assured of a place in the play-offs. We now have the task of working on things for those games. It's important that we keep the momentum going as we approach the play-offs.
"What is comforting us is that as well as the players who are making the starts, we have plenty of options on the bench and there may be other players who will get a run-out to stake their claim.
"I thought our play was very good today on what was a difficult pitch. Everything came together for the goal. There was good play, a good pass and a good strike.
"We'd all like to win three, four or five nil, but these things just don't happen."
By the time the Bulls are finished with Tamworth they could be bottom of the league, with the Bulls guaranteed a play-off spot.
Struggling at the wrong end of the division with 37 points, the three sides below Tamworth all have a game in hand and can all leapfrog The Lambs by the end of the match. A dismal 3-0 reverse to Morecambe ended a good run for Mark Cooper's men, who have struggled to name a consistent side all season thanks to injuries.
A 1-0 victory, thanks to an early Alex Jeannin goal, on August Bank Holiday was enough to give the Bulls the points first time round this season. The game was notable for a controversial decision near the end of the game to send off both Ryan Green and Tamworth's Graham Ward. Just five of that Tamworth side started Saturday's match, with five others having departed the club.
A string of high profile signings promised more than they delivered for Tamworth. Paul Merson and Nicky Summerbee came and went in brief spells while Tommy Johnson, kept quiet by the Bulls defence while playing for Scunthorpe in the LDV earlier in the season, has struggled to adapt to Conference life with a solitary goal.
One face familiar to Bulls fans will be former striker Danny Davidson who partnered another veteran striker, Bob Taylor, up front on Saturday. Davidson has floated around the Conference and lower leagues since 'disappearing' from the Bulls and has had four clubs this season.
Guy Ipoua made a short appearance for Hereford United in their 1-0 win at Altrincham.
A happy Guy Ipoua talking to Adam Stansfield and Ryan Green at half-time.
Ipoua came on for Andy Williams but didn't really have long enough to get into the game. In fact his first three involvments in the game resulted in two fouls and an offside against him!
However just after his good lay off gave Stuart Fleetwood a chance on goal but the young striker thought he was offside although the flag wasn't raised.
Ryan Green travelled with the squad today but wasn't on the bench. During the game he was sitting with, and talking to, several of the Hereford United directors.
Top of the Conference:
1 Accrington Stanley 39 31 85
2 Hereford 39 23 73
3 Halifax 38 13 68
4 Grays Athletic 37 30 66
5 Morecambe 39 21 65
6 Stevenage 39 16 65
7 York 39 19 62
8 Exeter 38 13 57
Potential Points Table:
Accrington Stanley 94
Hereford 82
Grays Athletic 81
Halifax 80
Morecambe 74
Stevenage 74
York 71
Exeter 69
At the most Hereford United now need just two points to be sure of a play-off position.
Around 275 Hereford supporters watched the game.
Hereford United all but secured their place in the play offs for a third successive season following their 1-0 victory at Moss Lane this afternoon, against Altrincham. Morecambe were 3-0 victors at Tamworth, meaning, at the worst, Hereford can only finish 6th on goal difference. A victory on Monday, against Tamworth, for the Bulls would finalise their position in the top five.
United made a few changes from the draw with Dagenham last weekend - the only forced one was the replacement of Daryl Taylor on the right by Andy Williams, as the former's loan spell has ended. Andy Ferrell was back in the middle in place of Jamie Pitman and Stuart Fleetwood was back in the starting line up in place of Adam Stansfield, who was benched. There were returns from injury, but only to the subs bench, for Guy Ipoua and Nicky Nicolau.
Hereford started brightly with Rob Purdie causing plenty of problems on the left, and it was his dangerous early cross that was clawed away by 'keeper Stuart Coburn. Ferrell had fired off target in the sixth minute before Fleetwood should have broken the deadlock. United had broke well down the right, where they were to enjoy much success in the first half, and Simon Travis delivered a cross for Fleetwood, but his first time effort was somehow tipped onto the cross bar by Coburn.
Stanley had an even better chance to open the scoring just before the half hour mark, after another fast attack down the right caused problems for the Alty defence. This time it was Williams who was the creator, but Stanley volleyed just wide from a central position, from around twelve yards out.
United continued to dominate after the break, but still struggled to make Coburn work that hard in the Alty goal. The Bulls enjoyed much possession around the box and were very rarely threatened at the back for the opening stages of the second half, but the nearest to a shot on goal came through Stanley, whose effort from outside of the box was deflected to safety.
Colin Little had Alty's first real effort at goal when he headed over before Fleetwood finally made a break through in the sixty fourth minute. The Robins had squandered possession in the middle and Ferrell managed to thread an inch-perfect pass, just beyond the toes of the impressive Gary Talbot, and into the path of Fleetwood's run. He made no mistake when faced by the on rushing Coburn, as he fired powerfully into the back of the net.
United took their foot off the gas once they'd got the goal, and Altrincham did come into the game a bit. However, the Bulls almost doubled the lead when an Alex Jeannin corner found Danny Carey-Bertram at the far post, but his first time shot was blocked on the line. Tamika Mkandawire was first to the rebound, but his shot was deflected behind for a corner. Williams also had a good chance, but he was just beaten to a cross from man of the match Purdie, by the flying Coburn.
Substitute Kieran Lugsden shot narrowly wide as the hosts tried to salvage a point before Guy Ipoua replaced Williams in the eighty fourth minute. Hereford had one final chance before Ipoua's introduction, and it was Ferrell, who'd created the first goal, who went close. Williams received the ball into his feet, fifthteen yards out with his back to goal, and touched the ball onto Ferrell who met it first time with a thunderous effort, that whistled just wide of the top corner.
It was, again, not the best performance from United but it is definatly points that matter at this stage of the season. However, Hereford did look solid at the back and a little more fluency and pace to their game would most probably do them a world of good. Another positive for the Hereford following in the crowd of 1,251 was the return of Ipoua. The Bulls will want to have everyone fit and avaliable for their inevitable play off campaign.
HUFC: Brown, Travis, Beckwith, Mkandawire, Jeannin, Purdie, Ferrell, Stanley, Williams, Carey-Bertram, Fleetwood. Subs: Mawson, Pitman, Nicolau, Stansfield, Ipoua.
AFC: Coburn, Aspinall, Talbot, Band, Scott, Potts, Murphy, Peyton, Chalmers, Little, Thornley. Subs: McFadden, Adams, Lugsden, Munroe, Norton
Torquay surrendered a half time lead to lose today and edge closer to the Conference.
Losing 2-1 at home to Cheltenham means Torquay are six points adrift at the bottom of League Two. Two former Conference winners, Barnet and Rushden, are level on 45 points fighting it out for safety. Barnet lost at fellow strugglers Oxford, while Rushden conceded a last minute equaliser to Rochdale - another side in trouble. Eight teams are still in trouble for the second relegation spot.
Chester appear to have got themselves out of trouble. Five straight wins have launched Chester to 15th place and they are now as close to the play-offs as the relegation zone.
With results today, the Bulls are now on the verge of a guaranteed play-off spot.
Grays and Halifax can overhaul the Bulls, but York can no longer make the current points tally and both Stevenage and Morecambe can only make 74 points.
Should either Stevenage or Morecambe drop points on Monday, the Bulls will be confirmed in the play-off spots regardless of their own result.
Accrington finally secured promotion after a jittery few weeks with a 1-0 win over Woking. Grays missed out on third place as Forest Green gained a valuable late point in a 2-2 draw. Morecambe also helped their play-off cause, winning 3-0 at Tamworth.
Down the bottom, Forest Green's point was not enough to see them end the day bottom after Scarboro beat 10 man Burton 3-0 to move within a point of safety. Southport beat Gravesend 1-0, and Crawley secured their Conference future with a 2-0 win over Aldershot. Crawley have now taken 19 points from the last 21 to lead the form table.
Dagenham appear to have given up on this season, getting their second mauling of the week in a 3-1 defeat at Exeter.
The Bulls beat Altrincham today thanks to a solitary Stuart Fleetwood goal, as Accrington finally confirmed their entry to the Football League.
The Bulls recalled Andy Ferrell, and Guy Ipoua made a late cameo appearance for his first game since January. There was, however, no place for Ryan Green who was expected to recover from injury.
Full report later.
TNS lifted their second successive Welsh Premier title yesterday, but ex-Bull Graham Evans had to watch from the sidelines.
Evans, who left Edgar Street in January, managed just five starts and one goal before a series of injuries ended his involvement. TNS move to Oswestry next season but will remain in the Welsh leagues.
BBC Radio Essex are reporting that Canvey Island will quit the Conference at the end of the season.
Just 621 people watched their Good Friday win over Kidderminster. It was their fourth worst gate of the season, but an improvement on recent figures which dipped to under 400.
With Jeff King likely to leave in the summer, with Chelmsford City admitting they have spoken to him, Canvey will be unable to survive a Conference season based on their meagre gates. King has pumped in up to a staggering £9,000 a week to help the side compete in the Conference.
King has indicated that he will not walk away entirely, offering to match any other investment pound-for-pound, but a move to Chelmsford would force King to cut all ties with Canvey unless they dropped down the divisions.
Canvey would have to submit their resignation by May 13th if they were to resign.
With last night's results going in favour of the Bulls, a win at Altrincham this afternoon will put the Herefordshire side, at the most, just two points away from a play-off place.
And unless Morecambe and Stevenage score enough goals in their last four matches to overtake Hereford United's goal difference, the Bulls may only need one more point assuming they win today. Currently Morecambe's goal difference is four lower and Stevenage's six lower than the Bulls.
Morecambe play at Tamworth this afternoon and will need to defeat the Lambs to keep up their hopes.
The only other likely play-off candidates playing today are Grays Athletic who entertain Forest Green Rovers and would be expected to take all three points.
Finally if Accrington Stanley can take a point at Woking they will be crowned Conference champions.
This afternoon's fixtures:
Altrincham v Hereford United
Crawley Town v Aldershot Town
Exeter City v Dagenham and Redbridge
Grays Athletic v Forest Green Rovers
Scarborough v Burton Albion
Southport v Gravesend and Northfleet
Tamworth v Morecambe
Woking v Accrington Stanley
BBC Hereford and Worcester are covering the game at Altrincham this afternoon but it is unlikely to feature on the Internet as the station is expected to broadcast the Worcester Warriors rubgy game from Gloucester which also starts at 3pm.
Halifax Town have closed the gap slightly on the Bulls this evening with their 1-1 draw against fellow play-off hopefuls Stevenage Borough.
The other contenders playing this evening, York City, lost 2-0 at Cambridge United.
As none of the hopefuls took three points, Hereford United now only need five more points to be certain of reaching the play-offs.
Top of the Conference:
1 Accrington Stanley 38 30 82
2 Hereford 38 22 70
3 Halifax 38 13 68
4 Grays Athletic 36 30 65
5 Stevenage 39 16 65
6 York 39 19 62
7 Morecambe 38 18 62
8 Exeter 37 11 54
Potential Points Table:
Accrington Stanley 94
Grays Athletic 83
Hereford 82
Halifax 80
Stevenage 74
Morecambe 74
York 71
Exeter 69
Daryl Taylor has returned to Walsall from Hereford United after playing his last game of his loan spell for the Bulls against Dagenham last Saturday. He is hoping that the new manager at the Bescot Stadium will consider him for selection tomorrow.
The 21 year-old, who made ten appearances for The Bulls during his loan spell at Edgar Street, could well be involved in The Saddlers' run-in for the final five games of the season. And if he does force his way into Kevan Broadhurst's plans, he is determined to make the most of the opportunity.
"I feel fitter and sharper now than I have ever done," said Birmingham-born Taylor as reported on the official Walsall website.
"Playing in the Conference as a winger, you know you're going to get kicked all over the place, so you have to always be one step ahead.
"It may not seem as quick as League football when you're watching it, but for me it is. I feel really sharp and I'd like to think that if I get the chance to impress, I'll take it."