A FORMER pub has quietly faded into history after the building was torn down after a series of arson attacks and decline.
The Sportsman in Widemarsh Common, Hereford, was once a popular gathering place, but after trade fell in the 1990s, it closed and was left derelict.
The building became the target of repeated arson attacks in the early 2000s, one of which forced firefighters to rescue five people from inside.
Just a week later in April 2008, a second fire broke out, described as one of the worst in the city in recent years.
Phil Major, the station officer who led the firefighting effort, said: "It had probably been burning for some time before the calls came in.
"When we arrived fire was just starting to break through the boarding."
Because the pub had been boarded up, the "severe" fire had no way to escape, causing extreme heat and damage.
Firefighters had been called to the scene after a flurry of 999 calls at 4am, and found the building "shrouded in smoke".
Migrant workers who had been rescued days before the blaze lost their belongings inside.
The burnt-out shell of the pub remained standing until 2011, the last piece of its former identity being the iconic Sportsman sign, which was stolen in 2009.
Bryan White of Herefordshire Sport said at the time: “From a heritage point of view, the sign has great value in the city.
“If the person who took it has a conscience they will realise it is part of Hereford’s sporting history and will return it.”
After demolition, the site remained unused for years despite being sold.
In 2012, it was bought by Reservoir Homes of Gloucester, who applied in 2021 for planning permission to build a block of six flats.
However, the plans were not given the green light by Herefordshire Council planners until 2023.
The application was the company’s fourth attempt to redevelop the site, with the most recent previous plan rejected in 2020 due to concerns over harm to the Widemarsh Common conservation area and excessive road noise.
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