HEREFORD moved further away from danger at the foot of the table with a fifth successive away win.

Joe Colbeck struck seven minutes from time with a cross-cum-shot to send the 125 travelling Bulls fans home happy.

Hereford were forced into one change after Bristol Rovers recalled Harry Pell from his loan spell.

James McQuilkin returned to take Pel’s place in midfield but Hereford were otherwise unchanged for their first visit to Broadhall Way since their Conference days.

Romanian Adrian Patulea made his first Bulls appearance on the substitutes’ bench.

After the initial sparring, Stevenage were the first to threaten with Jon Ashton hooking a shot just wide from a free-kick.

Herford, however, forced the first corner on eight minutes and a second quickly followed when McQuilkin’s shot was deflected behind.

The second effort, like the first, brought no immediate benefit.

Stevenage, who lost Ashton with injury early on, forced their first corner on 18 minutes but with no greater success than Hereford had found.

Hereford had a great chance on 20 minutes when Joe Colbeck broke away down the middle.

His pass to Stuart Fleetwood was measured to perfection but the Bulls top-scorer, with only Chris Day to beat, saw his shot blocked by the keeper’s legs.

The home side responded with a long-range effort from Ronnie Henry which flew narrowly wide.

Lawrie Wilson also sent a header wide in a home attack as the standard of play rarely managed to rise above the ordinary.

Byron Harrison should certainly have done better than shoot yards wide after John Mousinho easily dispossessed McQuilkin to send him clear.

Former Newport County striker Craig Reid lashed a shot across goal and wide as Boro pressed in the lead-up to half-time.

Hereford forced a 42nd minute corner with a good run and cross by Colbeck.

But the delivery from Kenny Lunt failed to cause problems in the home defence.

This, however, formed part of Hereford’s best sustained spell to date with prolonged attacks featuring Fleetwood and Colbeck.

After Hereford had started the second period well, Boro broke out with Adam Bartlett having to race out of his area to clear from Harrison after the tall striker got the better of Janos Kovacs in the air.

And Reid missed a great chance, heading over from Michael Bostwick’s cross shortly afterwards.

Play descended into the scrappy and nondescript for a long period before Stevenage almost broke the deadlock on 68 minutes.

Substitute Peter Winn rose highest to a right-wing cross and thudded a header against a post with Bartlett beaten.

Hereford replaced Waide Fairhurst with Patulea but it was the Rumanian’s fellow substitute Nicky Featherstone who came close, rifling a drive into the side-netting.

Neither side looked much like scoring until a goal arrived out of the blue.

Colbeck swung in a cross from the right and the ball completely deceived Day to land in the far corner.

Hereford: Bartlett; Green, Kovacs, Townsend, Heath; Colbeck, Rose, McQuilkin (Featherstone 72), Lunt; Fleetwood, Fairhurst (Patulea 67). Subs not used: Hoult, Preston, Thomas, Purdie, Baheng.

Stevenage: Day; Henry, Ashton (Mousinho 16), Bostwick, Laird; Wilson, Bridges, Foster, Long (Winn 60); Reid (May 72), Harrison. Subs not used: Bayes, Charles, Beardsley, Sinclair.

Referee: Graham Scott (Oxfordshire).

Attendance: 1670 (including 125 from Hereford).

Goal: Colbeck, 83 min, 0-1.

Yellow card: Hereford – Fairhurst, foul, 66 min; Colbeck, goal celebration, 83 min; Stevenage – Bridges, foul, 71 min.