BILLY Murphy said it was always in the back of his mind to return to Hereford.

The central midfielder is back at Edgar Street after signing from Bath City.

Murphy was part of Bulls manager Pete Beadle's successful Hereford United youth team in the 2013/14 season and later played for Bristol City.

He impressed at Bath in National League South last season, but a change of manager at Twerton Park saw his chances restricted.

"I started the first 10 games then I hurt my ankle and was out for six to seven weeks," said Murphy.

"I didn't know what was wrong with it for ages, but it was ligaments.

"The gaffer then went to Torquay and the new one came in, who brought in a couple of lads on loan.

"So I was out of the team, then back in, before out again and I stopped enjoying it and it got too much, especially as I was now travelling on my own.

"I was going to have a couple of weeks out of football, but I spoke to Beads and he persuaded me to come here."

Murphy said the set-up at Edgar Street is much better than it was the last time he was there.

"When I was here last time, the club were on its last legs but now everything seems to be run properly, even little things like having protein shakes after a game," he said.

"We didn't have the money then, but now it's nice to be back and part of a winning team.

"Some of my mates come week in, week out and it's nice to play in front of them."

Murphy trained with Hereford last Thursday and Friday before starting the FA Cup second round match at Fleetwood Town.

"It was a tough game to be chucked straight in, especially as I haven't played in two months but I thought I did alright," added Murphy.

"I was meant to be playing a little bit more forward, but when Purds pulled his calf in the warm-up, Beads talked to me about dropping in.

"But I prefer to play in the centre anyway and am more defensively minded, so it worked in my favour in a way.

"When we come to places like this, we're not expected to win so have no pressure on us because we've got nothing to lose."