Gloucester City 1-0 Hereford

Gloucester City 1-0 Hereford

Vanarama National League North

Monday 18th April 2022

Things could still change but this might just prove to be the defeat that results in Hereford being stuck in the National League North for another season.

Three points adrift of the Play-Off positions at the start of play, Josh Gowling's men knew they could ill afford to slip up but infront of a record crowd of 2,826 at New Meadow Park, the hosts snatched all three points thanks to Jordon Thompson's goal midway through the second half.

It means Gloucester are all but now mathematically safe whilst Hereford are now now four points off the final Play-Off spot with four games to go - and considering two of those are against title-chasing Brackley Town and table-toppers Gateshead, it isn't looking promising.

Depsite it being a glorious day for football, the game wasn't a vintage affair.

For long periods, the ball was up in the air too often and despite Hereford being in control (albeit without having created that much in the way of clear-cut openings), the dynamic of the game shifted in Gloucester's favour when the visitors' big target man, Andre Wright, was substituted around the hour mark as he'd won everything in the air, was a focal point and a good physical match for the home defence who'd done okay, collectively, without looking that convincing.

In terms of chances then a couple of set-play scenarios didn't result in Gloucester 'keeper Harvey Wiles-Richards being properly tested when he perhaps ought to have been and probably the closest Hereford came to making a breakthrough whilst the score was 0-0 was during the first half when Tom Owen-Evans, against one of his old teams, sort of got in-behind to meet a floated ball and was about to pull the trigger on a shot, only to be deliberately pushed in the back by a defender! 

'Play On' said the referee who didn't even award a free-kick. It was a poor decision!

With not much in the way of goalmouth action in open play, it wasn't a shock that the only goal came from a set-piece. Gloucester won a free-kick out wide and the delivery into the box, the bounce, coupled with some sloppy defending, meant there were a few players in decent positions who could have converted and it was Jordon Thompson who did so.

The Tigers fans were roaring then and would have been doing so again just a few minutes later had Ollie Hulbert managed to squeeze the ball past Brandon Hall when he broke clear on a counter-attack and into a one-on-one, only to see his attempt go wide of the post.

Hereford pushed and pressed late on, knowing even a point could prove vital, but there was a sense of desperation about their efforts. They lacked a focal point and ultimately weren't able to find a way through - and the defeat is one which they really could have done without.

Despite the result (plus the fact the game wasn't that eventful), I still gained exactly what I wanted to from making this 302-mile round-trip trek down the M1 and M5; which was the chance to visit Gloucester's new ground for the first time, plus the opportunity to closely watch one of the best players in the National League North in Tom Owen-Evans.

The TigerTurf Stadium (to give it its official title) isn't bad. It's plush, modern, comfortable and the 4G pitch will undoubtedly earn the club a fortune throughout the week when they can rent it out. There's also still a few visible remnants of the old 'Meadow Park' which was situated on the same land before it was flooded in June 2007, forcing the club to move into exile. 

As a club, Gloucester City and its volunteers deserve huge credit not only for keeping things going during what turned into a prolonged 14-year exile, but for somehow managing to maintain their status in the National League North, year by year, whilst they've groundshared at Evesham United, Cheltenham Town and even Cirencester Town for a period before that.

As for 'King Toey' (who'll be wondering how I know that!) then I've followed his career for a long time so I know precisely what he's all about, how he plays, what he offers, his technical qualities, attributes and capabilities and I've got a lot of respect with how he's built his career to the point now where he's a player who is fundamental to success of the team. It's always a pleasure to watch good footballers and he is a good player; plus (to throw in some trivia), then to my knowledge he's the only player to have scored his first, and only ever goal in the Football League, on two entirely separate occasions.

I'm sure that'll be a quiz question in a pub in Newport or Bristol at some point later in life!

The people I went to this game with drew instant comparisons between his style and Jack Grealish which isn't a bad shout. He's scored 14 goals this term (plus a total 'shank' at AFC Fylde the other week!), has contributed almost double-figure assists and his form/individual stats are now on a par with last season and the FA Trophy journey which culminated with a goal at Wembley.

Hopefully, TOE can bag a few more goals to nudge Hereford closer towards the Play-Off positions soon AND so he can hit the fast-approaching landmark of 50 career goals before his old YT mate who used to work in McDonalds and is nowadays a top player in League Two.

Next Up: Bonnyrigg Rose vs Fraserburgh on Saturday.