BULLS ARE UP TO THEIR OLD TRICKS
Hereford in hunt for glory
IT MAY not be mentioned in the same breath as Ronnie Radford and Newcastle United in years to come, but FA Cup kings Hereford were at it again at the Silverlake Stadium by stunning National League outfit Eastleigh.
Reaching the first round for the first time since being reformed as Hereford FC three years ago in the wake of Hereford United being wound up, the Bulls were good value for their victory against an Eastleigh side who finished the match with nine-men following the dismissals of Andy Boyce and Gavin Hoyte.
First-half goals from Mike McGrath and Garyn Preen – who was later stretchered off – were enough to seal victory for the Bulls, although Callum Howe’s goal back for Richard Hill’s men set up a nervy finale.
Delighted boss Peter Beadle said: “We always felt we could come here and perform and if we performed well enough, we were capable of winning.
“We’ve got good footballers who have good brains and they play the game with heart.
“Yes, in the second half it was back to the walls at times but we stood firm and saw it through.”
The Bulls were ahead as early as the 14th minute when McGrath’s free-kick deflected past Ross Flitney in the Eastleigh goal.
Eastleigh came back into the game and Hereford had to do well to keep their hosts at bay.
They came close to an equaliser on 24 minutes when Craig McAllister had the goal at his mercy but Hereford keeper Martin Horsell did enough to thwart him.
Sam Wood then shot high and wide before any hope of a comeback was dashed when John Mills set Mike Symons through on goal only to be upended by Boyce – referee Carl Brook left with little choice but to send the home defender off. Symons could, and should, have put Hereford 2-0 up but he somehow shot over from just a few yards out.
However, the Bulls did get the all-important second goal two minutes before half-time. Keyon Reffell did well on the right hand side before pulling the ball back to Preen, who skipped past Flintey before slotting the ball home.
Eastleigh made a game of it after the break and pulled a goal back 12 minutes from time when Howe nodded home, but Hereford defended well and could easily have scored again through Adam Page and Reffell.
A total of 14 minutes were added on due to a serious head injury to Preen, but Hereford held on and will go into the first round draw confident of making cup history once again.