Hereford United F.C. - History

History

In the past Hereford United Football Club was founded in 1924 with the merger of two local clubs St Martins and RAOC (Rotherwas), with the intention of sustaining a higher class of football in the city of Hereford. Hereford joined the Birmingham Combination and lost its first match 2–3 to Atherstone United. The club's second ever match was an FA Cup Preliminary Round tie against future rivals Kidderminster Harriers which they lost 2–7.

Hereford progressed to the Birmingham & District League in 1928 where the club was to spend 11 seasons, during which they managed a best position of 4th. By the late 1930s the number of clubs in the league had decreased and Hereford successfully applied to join the Southern League. At the same time the club became a limited company but only played a few games in their new league before the outbreak of the Second World War.

When football resumed United finished 1st in their first full season in the league only to be demoted to 2nd behind Chelmsford City, who were awarded points for unplayed matches. In 27 seasons in the Southern League, Hereford finished as runners-up three times, and also lifted the Southern League Cup three times. When the league was regionalised for one season in 1958–59, Hereford also won their regional division to add to their third League Cup win.

In 1966 Hereford signed John Charles, the former Leeds United, Juventus and Welsh international, boosting the support of the club. He became manager a year later and set about building a team to challenge at the top of the Southern League and gain election to the Football League. With the club becoming one of the best-supported non-league outfits in the country Charles used his standing within the game to canvass votes from member clubs for election to the Football League.

The 1971–72 season was a watershed as it saw the club finish second in the Southern League and gain national prominence due to its exploits in the FA Cup. Charles had departed the club in October 1971 and his successor Colin Addison inherited a side that went on to defeat top-flight Newcastle United in the FA Cup of which the star player was Dudley Tyler. Ronnie Radford and Ricky George's famous goals earned the club a Fourth Round tie against West Ham United where they were defeated in a replay at Upton Park. The success of this Cup run played a part in the club's successful election to the Fourth Division at the expense of Barrow although Hereford were, at the time, more supported than most of the clubs in that division.

The club embarked on a meteoric rise to the Second Division after finishing runners-up in their debut season in the Fourth Division and winning the Third Division title in 1976. Dixie McNeil was the leading goalscorer in the top four divisions of English football in the same season, but Hereford would only spend one season in the second tier before quickly dropping back into the Fourth Division. The club's peak was in October 1976 when they were in 6th position before they played Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest, losing 3–4 at the City Ground.

After this period of success the club spent 19 years in the bottom division, suffering financial problems in the early 1980s which resurfaced in the mid 1990s. The club enjoyed brief glimpses of their past success in the Cup competitions, holding Arsenal to a 1–1 draw in the FA Cup of 1985 and narrowly losing 1–0 to Manchester United in the FA Cup of 1990. The first silverware for 14 years was achieved when the club lifted the Welsh Cup in the same season. In the league the club usually finished in the bottom half as it went through a succession of managers, finishing 17th in 4 consecutive seasons.

Graham Turner was appointed manager for the beginning of the 1995–96 season and managed to lead the team to 6th place and the play-offs, despite the club being in 17th position two months previously. This resurgence was in part thanks to the goals of Steve White who emulated Dixie McNeil by being the leading goalscorer in the top four divisions. Hereford lost to Darlington in the play-offs and, with financial problems worsening, the club lost key players for the following 1996–97 season. After a terrible run of form the club were ultimately relegated after a relegation-decider at Edgar Street with Brighton & Hove Albion.

Having initially offered his resignation Graham Turner went on to purchase the majority shareholding in the club in 1998 from the previous regime of Peter Hill and Robin Fry who left the club with debts of £1 million owed to a developing company which also controlled the leases on the stadium. The club's first five seasons in the Conference saw little success on the pitch, with the club being forced to sell many of its key players and the future of Edgar Street in serious doubt. The 2001–02 FA Cup saw the club receive a financial bonus when the BBC televised the First Round match against Wrexham live. Turner stated that the money was critical to the club's survival and therefore Gavin Williams's goal against Dover Athletic in the previous round is seen as the goal that saved the club.

Having reached a 40 year low of 17th in the Conference, the summer of 2002 proved a turning point as almost the entire squad was changed. The majority of new signings having been released from Football League clubs as a result of the ITV Digital collapse. This all-new squad evolved the club into genuine title contenders which, after a record-breaking season in the 2003–04 season, finished as runners up in the Conference only to fail in the play-offs. 2004–05 saw an identical outcome but the 2005–06 season saw Hereford finally secure promotion after defeating Halifax Town in the play-off final.

The club returned to the Football League with a vastly improved financial situation. Under Turner the club was now strictly living within its financial means, having turned a sizeable profit in the latter Conference seasons whilst spending just £20,000 on transfers. In addition the team was playing attractive football which had earned them the mantle of "the best footballing side in the Conference".

In 2006–07 Hereford achieved victories over five of the top eight finishing clubs, but a poor run of form in the last part of the season dropped the club into 16th position. In the following season the club were never out of the top five from November onwards and consistently placed in the automatic promotion places. Despite being pushed all the way by Stockport County, Hereford secured third place and promotion with a match to spare by defeating Brentford 3–0 at Griffin Park.

Hereford largely struggled during the 2008–09 season in League One, with just 17 points on the board at the halfway point of the season. They rarely placed outside the relegation zone throughout the season with the highest position being 18th after the first match of the season. A 5–0 home win over Oldham Athletic was a rare good result, with top scorer Steve Guinan scoring a hat-trick. Hereford's relegation was confirmed on 18 April 2009, after they recorded 1 win and 11 defeats in a 12 match spell.