Saturday, April 19, 2003

Hereford United suffered their fifth defeat in six Nationwide Conference outings after a miserable performance to lose 1-0 to Leigh RMI at Edgar Street on Saturday.

The relegation-threatened Railwaymen scrapped for every ball in a poor match and just about deserved their slender victory.

Phil Salt's stunning goal on 38 minutes was worthy of winning any game. He seized on a loose ball outside the area and sent a superb dipping shot beyond Matt Baker into the top corner of the net.

A disappointed Bulls boss Graham Turner said: "The story of our season has been that when we have gone a goal down we have not been able to recover.

"I do not think it's down to a lack of character from the players, it seems to be down to a lack of confidence."

Without livewire Paul Parry (injured knee) and midfielder Ben Smith (upset stomach), United lacked a cutting edge.

But the Lancashire outfit had a double escape on 31 minutes when Danny Williams sent on-loan striker Karl Hawley clear but goalkeeper Stuart Coburn blocked the shot with his legs. The rebound fell to John Grant on the edge of the box but his shot lacked power and was pushed away by Coburn.

Five minutes before the interval Grant threaded the ball through to midfielder Jamie Pitman who weaved his way into the area only to shoot narrowly over the top.

In first-half stoppage time Steve Guinan turned sharply inside the box but fired straight at Coburn.

The powerful Neil Campbell thought he had doubled the visitors' advantage 12 minutes after the interval. He slipped the ball through the legs of Baker but the linesman had flagged for offside.

Although the visitors looked more threatening on the break, United had opportunities to stave off defeat.

A slick move between Grant and Guinan ended with Hawley shooting wastefully over the bar from the edge of the box in the 75th minute.

In stoppage time Grant blazed a decent opportunity over the top.

Hereford: Baker 6, Clarke 5 (Teesdale 78), Rose 6, H Wright 7, James 6, Pitman 6, Grant 6, Purdie 5 (Correia 69, 4), Williams 5, Hawley 5, Guinan 6. Subs (not used): Sawyers, Griffiths, O'Kelly.

Attendance: 1,690.