Saturday, March 11, 2006

DESPITE an heroic fightback which saw then recover from two-goals adrift after 55 minutes, Hereford's chance of promotion by winning the Nationwide Conference title seems to have gone.

Stanley still lead the table by 16 points and Hereford have only 10 matches to overturn the Lancashire side's considerable advantage.

But the Bulls fighting spirit must give them a good chance of battling through the play-off lottery -- assuming they go on to secure a top five spot -- although boss Graham Turner admitted their championship prospects had probably gone.

"I think that realistically Accrington are now too far out of reach and we have probably believed that for some time," he said. "All we can do is go to Southport and try to take the three points up there and then if at any time Accrington slip up we have to be there and ready to take advantage."

With Accrington's United old-boy Andy Tretton ruled out of a return to Edgar Street by a thigh injury, it was left to another former Bull, David Brown, to provide the first set-back for Hereford.

It was Brown who scored the winning goal when the sides met at the Crown Ground earlier in the season, and the former Manchester United man got his side under way after 36 minutes with an excellent piece of opportunism.

The ball reached Brown from Andy Todd's cross and the striker hooked the ball over his shoulder and into the net off the far post.

Andy Williams had the ball in the net after 40 minutes but the whistle had already blown for a foul on goalkeeper Robert Elliott by Tamika Mkandawire. And it was the unfortunate United skipper who put through his own goal to hand the visitors a two-goal lead.

Mkandawire sliced a clearance from Ian Craney's corner kick to give Wayne Brown in the home goal no chance. That appeared to be that as far as Hereford were concerned, but the young Bulls are nothing if not resilient.

On 71 minutes, a neat inter-change between Ryan Green and Robbie King on the right saw the former Wales full-back deliver a fine cross which on-loan midfielder Nicky Nicolau drilled goalwards. However, the effort was handled by defender Daniel Ventre's and referee Mike Mullarkey sent off the Accrington player and pointed to the spot.

Elliott pushed Rob Purdie's firmly struck penalty on to the bar only for Stuart Fleetwood to smash in the rebound.

Hereford piled forward and Dean Beckwith's effort was headed off the line before Elliott produced a couple of outstanding saves from Williams and Andy Ferrell to prevent the equaliser.

But the Bulls did draw level three minutes into injury time when Williams flicked Beckwith's pass into the path of Nicolau who rifled home his first goal for the Bulls.

Accrington might have snatched the win as it took a brilliant saving tackle from Purdie to save the day for the Bulls when substitute Steve Jagielka streaked clear in almost the game's last attack.

Hereford: Brown, Green, Mkandawire, Beckwith, Purdie, King, Stanley, Ferrell, Nicolau, Fleetwood, Williams. Subs not used: Mawson, Halliday, James, Gwynne, Carey-Bertram.

Referee: Mike Mullarkey (Exeter)

Attendance: 4,479.