Scarborough Athletic’s winning run halted by Hereford

Lewis Maloney missed his first game of the season following his knock in the Bishop’s Stortford game, with Dom Tear coming in to replace him, and Alex Wiles returning to the bench after his sickness bug at the weekend, writes Steve Adamson.

The opening half was very even, with neither keeper really tested, Aidan Rutledge sending an overhead kick wide then firing straight at keeper Curtis Pond, and Luca Colville, on his 99th Boro appearance firing wide, while for Hereford, Will Thornton blocked a Lassana Mendez strike, and Alex Brown did well to dispossess Alex Babos, who had surged down the right flank and was looking to cut inside.

Hereford had a spell on top, Yusifu Ceesay raced clear, but was stopped by Thornton’s sliding tackle, then Ryan Whitley failed to hold a low free-kick from Ceesay, but Frank Mulhern was on hand to kick the loose ball clear, before they opened the scoring with a terrific goal on 34 minutes.

Jason Cowley passed to Ceesay, who sent a precise through-ball towards Alex Babos in the area, and he rounded Whitley before slotting home.

Boro fought back, Finlay Barnes passing out to the overlapping Kieran Weledji on the right, but there was no-one there to tap in his low ball across the goalmouth, and shortly before the interval Barnes fired high over the bar.

Boro were quick out of the blocks in the second half, Colville’s well struck left-foot shot forcing a flying save from keeper Pond, and Mulhern setting up Tear, who chipped over Pond, but Ollie Southern cleared off the line. Disaster then struck, when Alex Purver’s header back to Whitley was intercepted by Jason Cowley, who cleverly lobbed Whitley to put Hereford 2-0 up in the 50th minute.

Boro played some lovely passing football, and a ball forward from the excellent Colville found Mulhern, who ran to the bye-line and crossed into the goalmouth, but Tear stabbed narrowly wide at the back post, then on 64 minutes Colville turned and fired against the base of the left-hand post with the keeper beaten, and soon after, a Tear strike was blocked by former Boro loanee Tom Pugh.

For the hosts, Ceesay sent a long-range shot high over the bar, before Boro got the goal they deserved, when Harry Green was fouled in the area by Babos, and Mulhern sent Pond the wrong way from the penalty spot.

Rutledge laid off to Purver who shot wide, but Hereford added a killer third goal when Pugh’s surging run ended with him playing Ceesay in one-on-one with Whitley, and he slipped the ball under the Boro keeper.

Boro were on top in midfield, and created late chances, Colville squaring to Harry Green who shot wide, then a Colville shot deflected off Wiles and flew wide. In the dying minutes, Ethan Freemantle scuffed a shot wide for Hereford, and Whitley denied Jack Tolley.

HEREFORD - Pond, Skinner, Teixeira, Downing, Ceesay (Tolley 81), Babos, Cowley (Freemantle 70), Cranston, Pugh, Mendez (Livingstone 50), Southern.

BORO - Whitley, Weledji (Durose 62), Brown, Tear (Wiles 62), Thornton, Gooda, Purver, Rutledge, Mulhern, Barnes (Green 68), Colville.

REFEREE- Craig Scriven

GOALS - HEREFORD- Alex Babos 34, Jason Cowley 50, Yusifu Ceesay 80; BORO - Frank Mulhern 74(pen)

CORNERS - HEREFORD 3 BORO 3

GOAL ATTEMPTS - HEREFORD 12 BORO 13

YELLOW CARDS - HEREFORD - Yusifu Ceesay, Jason Cowley, Jordan Cranston; BORO - Alex Purver, Will Thornton, Alex Brown

BORO MAN OF MATCH - Luca Colville

ATTENDANCE - 1,848 (48 away)​.