We conclude our Talking Bull look back at the momentous events of 1976, as Hereford lifted the Third Division Championship.
Back on the 19th April, 1976, Manager John Sillett had a day at Hereford Races, and when he backed the first five winners, he knew that it was going to be a day to celebrate. Needing just a point to clinch the Third Division championship, United produced a champagne performance to send their fans into ecstasy.
United gained a succession of corner kicks in the first half and came close on several occasions but Shrewsbury held out until half-time. Hereford went ahead within a minute of the restart when Dixie McNeil nodded the ball back to Roy Carter who cracked it into the corner of the net with a finely judged left-footed shot.
It was all Hereford after this and they pressed forward relentlessly and deservedly went further ahead in the 62nd minute when Dudley Tyler put Steve Davey clear and as he ran into the penalty area, he withstood the challenge of two defenders and unleashed an unstoppable shot.
Just seven minutes later, United were three up. Davey once again figured prominently in the move as he mesmerised the Shrewsbury defence and then laid on a close-range shot for McNeil who obliged with the perfect finish to take his goal tally for the season to 33.
From then on it was one-way traffic with Shrewsbury surviving several close shaves before finally, Mike Kearney scored a consolation goal for the visitors with the last kick of the match.
Manager John Sillett commented, “We did it in style! All we needed was a goalless draw to win the title, but our lads rose to the occasion and made it a night to remember for the fans who have given them such wonderful support in the last few months.”
If ever there was a game of two halves, this was it! United gained a corner in their first attack, Terry Paine’s centre was headed out but the player-coach retrieved the ball and his second cross to the far post found McNeil waiting to provide the finishing touch.
United were two up inside six minutes when Steve Davey shook off a tackle near the halfway line, raced down the left wing and his low cross was hammered into the net by Dudley Tyler. It was only Tom McAlister in the Rotherham goal that prevented an utter rout but eventually Tyler collected United’s third after 38 minutes when McNeil’s header from yet another Terry Paine cross, had been handled on the line. It would normally have been a penalty but the referee played the advantage and allowed Dudley Tyler to ram the rebound home.
Before half-time, Dixie McNeil netted again with a picture header from a Terry Paine cross, but the referee disallowed it, supposedly for pushing but as manager John Sillett joked afterwards, “I think the referee had decided we had scored too many. I couldn’t see anything wrong with it.”
However, it was a different story after the break and United presented the visitors with a goal after 53 minutes that changed the whole complexion of the game. Full-back John Breckin was allowed to advance unchallenged into the home penalty area and Richard Finney couldn’t believe his luck when the ball was allowed to run to the far post to provide him with a gift goal.
When Terry Paine was replaced by Eric Redrobe, United gradually went from bad to worse as Rotherham started to shake off their inferiority complex. They gained ascendancy in midfield and after 67 minutes the ball reached Alun Crawford after a series of mis-kicks and he made it 3-2.
The Northerners then stunned home supporters when they got the ball into the net a third time, two minutes from the end and it looked a perfectly good equaliser but amazingly the referee called play back to the edge of the Rotherham area because the keeper had stepped outside his area when making the clearance that led to the goal. The visitors then gained a number of corners and from one of these Trevor Phillips missed an easy chance then in quick succession, they had two shots blocked in a hectic goalmouth scramble just before the finish.
Hereford, in fact, were fortunate to claim both points in a game when they flattered to deceive after promising to win by a cricket score in the first half. Sillett was furious with the second-half display and fumed “we made Rotherham look a poor team in the first half and all the players thought it was all over at half-time. They thought that they could sit back on their laurels but they got a nasty slap in the face. Our second-half display lacked discipline and concentration and there is no way we are going to win matches in the Second Division if we behave like this next season.”
In a congested end of season fixture list, Hereford were obliged to fit in two testimonial matches that had been arranged before a date had been set for the final Third Division fixture at home to Preston North End.
The first of these was a testimonial match for Steve Davey to be played at Plymouth Argyle just two days after the championship had been secured against Rotherham.
In these circumstances, manager John Sillett understandably fielded a side made up mainly of reserves and youth team players and Argyle ran out comfortable 3-0 winners but the crowd of almost 5000 made it a profitable evening for ex-Argyle’s popular striker Steve Davey.
Just 24 hours later, the destination was Ashton Gate when United played a testimonial on behalf of Bristol City’s long-serving defender Brian Drysdale and Steve Emery scored Hereford’s goal in a creditable scoreline of 1-1, with a crowd of 3,151 turning out to pay tribute to their favourite player.
At last, the final Third Division fixture of a memorable season arrived with Dixie McNeil needing to score three times to become the Football League’s leading goalscorer for the second successive season. The opposition were Preston North End and the match was memorable for all sorts of reasons.
Firstly, full marks went to young Kevin Sheedy, aged 16½, who became the youngest player to wear Hereford colours in a first-team league match during the club’s 52-year history. He was never overawed by the occasion and afterwards manager John Sillett said: “he had a great debut, I would have been proud to have played the way he did at his age.”
Secondly, Peter Spiring, signed for £8,000 from Luton Town a fortnight ago, also had an impressive game, especially in the second half, and he would add strength to the team when they stepped up into the Second Division.
Preston were the more positive side in the early stages and Kevin Charlton handled a couple of shots magnificently before he was deceived in the 16th minute when he dived too soon for a mis-hit shot from Mike Elwiss and the ball trickled over the line to give the visitors the lead. Within seven minutes of the start of the second half, Davey missed a great chance to equalise when he shot wide from just 6 yards out.
Hereford levelled it immediately after though, when Steve Emery won possession and his perfect cross was headed home by McNeil.
After this, Preston adopted strong-arm tactics and referee Turvey, who was determined not to allow the proceedings to get out of hand, booked a total of five Preston players. In between the mass bookings, McNeil snapped up his second goal when he chased a long through-ball from Peter Spiring and beat Tunks for possession before neatly lobbing the ball out of the goalkeeper’s reach after 64 minutes.
With the crowd willing Dixie to score just once more to become the League’s top scorer, he duly obliged and completed his hat-trick after 76 minutes when he was put clear by young Kevin Sheedy and scored with a brilliant solo effort. It was a fine finish to the club’s league programme and it was their third successive home win in the space of 10 days.
The players could have been forgiven for believing that their hard work was done and that they could look forward to a well-deserved rest during the summer. However, this was not to be and there was yet more effort required before the season was done. First up was the first leg of the Welsh Cup Final at Ninian Park against rivals Cardiff City on 29th April.
The home side, moving with ease in the first half, looked set for a comfortable victory after Tony Evans had struck two golden goals after 29 and 37 minutes.
But Hereford, showing what champions are made of, surged back and were awarded a penalty after 59 minutes but Dixie McNeil saw his spot-kick hit the crossbar and go over but Hereford were not to be denied.
Peter Spiring netted from close range after 77 minutes from a Jim Lindsay cross, then five minutes from the end Lindsay again outpaced the Cardiff defence to push the ball into the centre where Spiring dashed in to equalise.
The prospect of Hereford United becoming the first English club to win the Welsh Cup for almost 30 years received a nasty jolt a couple of days later when the Welsh FA postponed the second leg following an allegation that United had fielded an ineligible player in Peter Spiring!
* This article was published in the latest edition of Talking Bull – Issue 149 – April 2026.
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