Lee Richardson made five changes to the Chesterfield line-up for the visit Hereford United. Injury deprived the visitors of Niven, Robertson, Leven and Lester; Moloney, O'Hare, Fletcher and Winter came to replace them. Michael Jordan replaced Barry Roche in goal. New loan signing Lloyd Kerry took a place on the bench, along with youth team striker Jake Williams.

With a makeshift side out, the sight of Jamie Lowry going down injured in the second minute was an unwelcome one. In an atmosphere more akin to a memorial service Hereford started cautiously, mindful, perhaps, of the battering they took at Saltergate. This no doubt helped the visitors to settle and play the ball about a bit.

Unexpectedly, Hereford took the lead in their first visit to the visitors' penalty area. MacDonald has scored for fun recently but he will not have scored a simpler one, with grossly poor defending allowing him to score with ease on 8. This woke the crowd up and gave the home side the lift they needed to improve a little.

Lloyd Kerry replaced the struggling Lowry on 11. With Hereford snoozing at the back an opening was worked by Fletcher for O'Hare to shoot, but the effort did not test the keeper. Fletcher wasn't being picked up by the home defence and looked to pose a threat every time the Spireites went forward.

Aside from the goal, the opening twenty minutes or so delivered what you might expect from a match between a nervous home side and an out-of-form visiting team. It was the sort of game that needed a streaker to liven it up. Downes' foul on Johnson on 25 raised a roar and gave the home side a chance from the free kick, but Winter blocked and a corner resulted.

Ward broke from the clearance, beat men and shot but the effort didn't trouble the keeper. Jordan held Johnson's header at the second attempt. Hereford began to press as the half-hour point passed. The competitive nature of the debutant Kerry was well to the fore. Ward worked in to the box on 37 and had his legs taken away as he was about to knock the ball back, but referee Bates saw no offence. Significantly, perhaps, the home crowd went momentarily quieter between the foul and the denial of the penalty.

Taylor's right-foot shot flew just wide of Jordan's post on 39. Hooper broke into the box on 42 and appeared to be brought down but again the referee denied the fouled man a penalty kick. He might have been wrong on both occasions, but at least he was consistent.

Johnson collapsed under Picken's challenge, giving Hereford a free kick in a promising position. Easton's free kick was blocked but Hooper was there at the far post to fire the ball home for the Bulls' second goal, in first-half injury time.

Halftime: Hereford 2 Chesterfield 0

Hereford brought Threlfall on for Gwynne before the resumption.

O'Hare tried to get into the penalty area on 49 but was blocked off, presenting the visitors with a free kick near the edge of the box. Ward stepped up to take the kick but fired the ball over the bar. Kerry and O'Hare combined to force the Spireites' first corner of the match on 53. O'Hare's flag kick looked for the head of Downes but was cleared away. Cooper shot narrowly wide on 55.

Richardson changed the shape after an hour; Picken and O'Hare went to full-back with Moloney and Cooper on their correct midfield flanks. This should have given the Spireites a better platform to attack. Firstly, though, Jordan had to pull off a smart save from MacDonald's header. Fletcher got a knock down into the box but Kovacs' shot was blocked.

Winter was booked for dissent, it seemed, in the 68^th minute. Theo Robinson replaced MacDonald on 73. Kerry cut in and shot left-footed on 77, forcing a corner; Kovacs' header came to Moloney but he missed his kick and gave Brown the opportunity to gather.

Chesterfield brought Allison on for Cooper on 79, while Hereford brought Benjamin on for Hooper a minute later. Chesterfield won a late corner when Moloney's cross was blocked but he slipped as he took the corner and the ball drifted out of play.