Season Summary and Stat Attack

Theo and Hooper

We bring you another look at all the stats and figures following Hereford United's automatic promotion to League 1...

*This article was originally posted shortly after United's last game of the season against Grimsby, we re-publish it here to give you the chance to re-live the season!

Saturday’s 2-0 success over Grimsby Town in what was – hopefully – Hereford United’s final game in the fourth tier of English football for the foreseeable future saw the Bulls reach a number of milestones, both for this season and during the tenure of, manager and chairman, Graham Turner.

Ben Smith and Theo Robinson’s first-half strikes against the Mariners took United’s goal tally for the campaign to exactly 100 in all competitive competitions - including the Carling Cup, FA Cup and Herefordshire Senior Cup, blowing last year’s total of 73 out of the water.

Saturday’s clash also marked both the 700th competitive fixture since Graham Turner arrived at Edgar Street in 1995 and the 300th competitive win during his time at the club.

And Theo Robinson's 42nd minute strike against Grimsby was the 1000th competitive goal netted during Graham Turner's reign as manager - this does not include goals scored during the 27 competitive fixtures where Phil Robinson was in charge of first-team affairs.

It is the first time the Bulls have reached a three-figure goal haul since the 2003/04 season when 115 goals in all competitions and 11 consecutive league victories at the end of the campaign still weren’t enough to hand Hereford the Conference title.

Theo Robinson finished top-scorer for the club in all competitions (18), whilst his goal against Grimsby on the final day also ensured he ended the campaign as the Bulls’ talisman in the league (13), pipping Gary Hooper (12) by a single strike.

Hooper finished as United’s second-highest scorer with 12 league goals in just 19 appearances on loan from Southend United, whilst Trevor Benjamin’s 11 goals meant Hereford ended the season with three strikers reaching double-figures.

Ainsworth

The goal-scoring exploits of both Sherjill MacDonald and Lionel Ainsworth cannot be ignored either. The West Bromwich Albion loanee exploded on to the Edgar Street scene, bagging a brace on his debut at home to Dagenham & Redbridge, before a hat-trick away at Rochdale three-days later and another goal against Chesterfield the following Saturday took his tally to six in three-games in the space of eight days.

Diminutive but devastatingly quick Ainsworth, meanwhile, scored eight times for the Bulls before departing to Watford for a six-figure fee in November. Lionel struck hat-tricks against both Yeovil Town and Stockport County as well as scoring the goal that dumped Leeds United out of the FA Cup at Elland Road.

At the opposite end of the pitch, 27 clean sheets in all competitions paved the way for success in both league and cup action, whilst – in the league only – 457 fouls, 44 yellow cards and just the solitary dismissal meant Hereford had one of the best disciplinary records.

Rotherham United were one of only two sides in all three Football League divisions not to have man sent off all season – the other being Wolves – whilst only Rotherham and Dagenham & Redbridge picked up fewer yellow-cards than the Bulls in League 2 and Stockport were the only team to concede less fouls.

15 Football League victories on the road - not to mention the 1-0 FA Cup win against Leeds United at Elland Road - set a new club record for Graham Turner's side with only - champions - MK Dons posting a better set of results away from home.

But on home soil United made Edgar Street more of a fortress than in recent seasons, conceding just 19 league goals in front of their own supporters - the third best record in League 2, surpassed only by Wycombe Wanderers and MK Dons.

Benjamin

Stat Attack

Goalscorers – All competitions (League)

Theo Robinson 18 (13)
Gary Hooper 12 (12)
Trevor Benjamin 11 (10)
Lionel Ainsworth 8 (4)
Ben Smith 6 (5)
Sherjill MacDonald 6 (6)
Steve Guinan 5 (3)
Simon Johnson 5 (4)
Marcus Palmer 5 (0)
Clint Easton 4 (3)
Kris Taylor 3 (1)
Luke Webb 3 (3)
Dean Beckwith 2 (2)
Toumani Diagouraga 2 (2)
Ryan Burge 2 (0)
Own goals 2
Richard Rose 1 (1)
John McCombe 1 (0)
Trent McClenahan 1 (1)
Karl Broadhurst 1 (0)
Jack MacLeod 1 (0)
Gareth Thomas 1 (0)

Bookings – All competitions

Dean Beckwith 6
Karl Broadhurst 5
Toumani Diagouraga 5
Theo Robinson 5
Ben Smith 4
John McCombe 3
Clint Easton 3
Simon Johnson 3
Steve Guinan 2
Richard Rose 2
Kris Taylor 2
Sam Gwynne 1
Trent McClenahan 1
Wayne Brown 1
Luke Webb 1
Robbie Threlfall 1
Gary Hooper 1
Sam Harrison 1

Red cards

Steve Guinan 1 – vs MK Dons

Total league attendance at Edgar Street – 23 games

78, 694

Average 3,421