Predictions - 10th

10th - Hereford

Time will tell whether Turner has enough about him to let Trewick get on the job of manager or whether he's just given extra responsibility to his coach to allow himself the luxury of less time put in. Trewick has certainly paid his dues on the coaching side of things, having spent five years at Edgar Street, but coaching and management are two completely different jobs, with many having failed to make that progression. A good start will no doubt have a huge bearing as to whether Trewick is viewed as "the cheap option" or the best man for the job.

Looking at the comings and goings over the Summer, if there were any concerns that Trewick wouldn't be able to put his own side together, then there won't be now. For out of all the teams in the division, Hereford have arguably been the busiest with at the last count thirteen players having left Edgar Street, and eleven new signings - effectively a whole new side has been signed by Trewick.

Some of the signings are questionable to say the least. Midfielder Jamie Tolley seemingly still hasn't recovered from being put in his place by Ernie that time, having been deemed not good enough for Macclesfield, Hereford has become his next destination. He's fast becoming one of those "potential" signings, like Proudlock at Grimsby, where a manager takes a chance hoping that early career form can be rediscovered. History shows 95% of these signings don't work out.

Another signing of a similar style is Leon Constantine. Looking back his career, he seems to fluctuate between being very good and very poor. He has shown goals, but equally he's been one to split fans opinions on him due to accusations of laziness. The only time he's not divided opinions is when he's had all the fans on his back.

You can add Marc Pugh to that list. After a great start to his career at Bury where he showed much promise, a money orientated move to Shrewsbury seems to have put his career on the back burner and its arguably last chance saloon for Pugh amongst the 92.

We don't want to put too much of a downer on their new signings. Kenny Lunt is more than capable at this level and should be a great addition, especially as he'll be itching to get his career back on track after a year of inactivity at Sheff Weds. Ryan Valentine should be a decent enough signing too.

Hereford are a side where there's lots of players of a similar calibre. If they come off, they could be challenging at the top end without a doubt. However, if these career under achievers continue as their CV suggest, Trewick could find himself with a growing malaise within the squad which could derail their entire season and even see them challenging at the fight out at the bottom.

But whilst there's enough reasons as to why it won't go well for Hereford, there's enough to suggest that their League One cameo will have done them the world of good, and they certainly won't have any of the usual pretensions that haunt relegated sides.

Hereford have proved in the past that they can make excellent use of the loan system, and we'd fully expect more of the same from that this season. Their current squad is a tad short on numbers, but those players might be simply there to support the loan players that come in to build a side around as they did in 2008.

So its perhaps with no real conviction that we stick Hereford down for a tenth placed finish - we wouldn't be overly surprised if it all went horribly wrong, but we're happy enough to go with tenth for now. Certain signings might carry question marks, but they're at least making signings which puts them at an advantage over many teams in this division who have cut the cloth to napkin size proportions over the Summer. That'll make a difference but not enough to repeat the marvels of 2008.

 

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