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In atrocious conditions, Hereford claimed their third consecutive victory with a workmanlike performance against Barnet, thus making relegation unthinkable and the comfort of seventeenth place more likely. Graham Turner named an unchanged side, whilst counterpart Ian Hendon replaced top scorer John O’Flynn, who failed a late fitness test, with the evergreen Paul Furlong. The former Chelsea man, still willing to go the extra mile (or at least an eighth thereof), is now 41 and may have donned the hideous away kit of “graphite and tangerine” in his Stamford Bridge heyday. This afternoon, Barnet took to the field in a fetching little number described in the match programme as “violet and silver”. And jolly smart it looked too, in the driving wind and rain which made football tricky throughout the first half.
Hereford started brightly, with Mathieu Manset being caught narrowly offside on a couple of occasions. Marc Pugh was also flagged when in a promising position, despite appearing to have sprung the trap. A clever backheel from Lewis Young set up a shot from Manset which was deflected into the grateful arms of Bees stopper Jake Cole. Pugh then raced onto a Manset pass, and referee Mr. Evans played a sensible advantage before the chance was lost. Kenny Lunt and James Crankie McQuilkin were influential in midfield, probing and prompting to create chances for the attack, and the defence stood firm. Barnet threatened with a cross/shot by Albert Jarrett which drifted narrowly wide with Adam Bartlett beaten, and were unlucky not to be awarded a free kick when Albert Adomah was bundled over on the edge of the box. How satisfying, in an old-school way, to watch opponents with not one, but two players rejoicing in the name Albert!
29 minutes into the match, and the home side took the lead. A splendid move started with an intelligent clearance from Bartlett, and went from Jake Jervis to Young, who picked out Manset. The Frenchman turned the ball back for McQuilkin to hit an exuberant shot into the net. Manset was once more proving a scary handful to the visitors defence, despite the odd lapse in control, and was likened by one observer to Grace Jones on a Russell Harty chat show. (Your reporter had to agree that he had never seen them both in the same room.)
The Bulls now, (foolishly as it turned out) attempted to reach the interval with their lead intact, and relaxed the tempo. A misunderstanding between Ryan Valentine and Bartlett almost let Furlong in, but a timely intervention by Darren Jones saw his effort blocked. With 43 minutes on the clock, the visitors equalised in unfortunate circumstances. A whipped cross from the left hit an unsighted Richard Rose, wrongfooted Bartlett and dribbled frustratingly over the line. Even Mr. Evans could scarcely believe what he had just witnessed, and took an age before reluctantly awarding the (own) goal.
HT: HUFC 1 BARNET 1
Pugh started the second period in determined mood. In rapid succession, he made several darting runs down the wing, and, after one delightful interchange with Valentine, sent a pass across the six yard box, just evading the attentions of Manset and Young. Jervis was caught marginally offside when well placed, and Lunt and McQuilkin continued the good work in midfield. A Jones clearance poleaxed the stoical David Livermore, who declined any attention after the game had been halted. Lunt then went on a promising solo run and his fierce shot was parried by Cole straight into the path of Young. As the youngster was about to shoot, it was taken off his blue boot by a saving tackle. At the other end Bartlett and Jones delayed a clearance, which caused some concern, and Ed Upson’s long range shot was comfortably fielded by Bartlett.
69 minutes had elapsed when the Bulls scored the winning goal, though some panel or other may be needed to adjudge the scorer. An excellent run and cross from the right by Young was met by Manset, who had previously shown signs of tiring, and it appeared that the striker had cheekily backheeled the ball into the goal. Other agencies suggest that the significant touch was from Gary Breen, and that the game had seen its second own goal . Whatever the verdict, the 2-1 scoreline remains the same.
A flurry of substitutions took place, with Astrit Ajdarevic given the chance to show his moves, and Matty Done injecting some energy into proceedings. He set up Manset with a chance and a fearsome collision took place, prompting a strong appeal for a penalty which was denied. Meanwhile an Adomah cross whistled harmlessly across the penalty area. A harsh free kick awarded to the visitors in the dying seconds caused concern to Bulls fans who recalled points lost in similar circumstances earlier this season. The chance, however, came to nothing, and Hereford could celebrate a hard fought win.
FT: HUFC 2 BARNET 1
Attendance: an improved 2146, including just 88 Bees
HUFC: Bartlett, Valentine, Jones, Rose, Green, Pugh, McQuilkin, Lunt, Young (Ajdarevic 74), Jervis (Done 74), Manset (Constantine 87).
BARNET: Cole, Devera, Gillet, Breen, Lockwood, Hughes, Adomah, Jarrett (Hart 80), Upson, Livermore (Hyde 74), Furlong (Wright 72).
