Hi all,

Yesterday’s game with League 2 Newport County has now concluded a successful pre-season for us with lots of different types of opposition and I am now relishing the chance to manage our club for a 2nd season in NLN.

I use the term ‘our club’, because I feel I now have the right to, after a season at your club. I told everyone when I walked into the job that I wouldn’t lie and tell you Hereford FC was my club and a club I followed in detail over the years because that simply isn’t true.

Fast forward just over a year and you’ve made me feel like I belong on that touchline week in week out representing you with pride and passion. I want to thank you for that and, for that, I hope I am now part of your club because I certainly feel like it.

Looking forward to the season ahead I think it’s important to talk about the people who will go under the radar this season externally, but definitely not by me.

Firstly, my staff have been a really strong sounding board for me. We have a young enthusiastic analyst in Patryk Bialowas, who provides us with in depth opposition analysis.

Dan Pace the lifelong Hereford fan looks after the staff and players with all the kit we need and has the club’s best interests at heart.

We have recently welcomed a new voluntary member to our tight knit group of staff, with Robert Collins joining us as a sports massage therapist. He has provided James Hughes – our physio – with great support and reducing the work load for him.

James himself has had to continuously deal with the ups and downs of being a physio in senior men’s football and has dealt with and managed them with great maturity.

Shaun Edwards, our goalie coach, is a brilliant source of knowledge and go to for all things non-league and has a huge work ethic around the training ground.

Finally, of course, my right hand man, Adam Rooney. We don’t go an hour without talking and we are so connected in bringing the best possible results to the football club. He is there right beside me every step of the way.

He is a player who trains regularly and he is also an assistant manager to me and many other things. More than that though, he is someone I completely trust and will constantly challenge me and in my opinion and we form a brilliant partnership built on honest trust and friendship.

Secondly, our supporters. You are the heartbeat of the club and I won’t get fed up saying it. On a personal note the support I have been given by you has been so heartwarming and something I would never have imagined coming into my first job as a manager at a club who have really ambitious supporters who expect a certain level of competitiveness.

I don’t like talking about previous seasons but in this case it’s important. Last year, I was no-one to you. I walked in with no background in management and, in truth, there was a decent amount of negativity. This was probably fair due my lack of experience, particularly at such a vital and crucial time for the longevity of this club which, although not broken, really did have 2 severely unstable legs.

I brought in a full group of players and as supporters you have the right to react in different ways. You can swallow it and back the players, or you show your disappointment and walk away.

You stayed week in week out and you backed my players – that’s the sign of proper supporters.

I love the fact we have no ‘big premiership club’ nearby. Hereford fans support Hereford. Of course you have interests in other clubs but you want the best for Hereford.

I spend alot of time in Hereford and you can find me in and around the club a lot of the time and bumping into supporters of all ages. You hear stories of elder supporters who used to go to games with their parents and you realise coming to Edgar Street isn’t just a game of football for them, it’s still a feeling of family for them.

They are coming to support the team but it also brings the memories back of being a 5 year old standing with a parent, (who may not be with us any more), and it’s a source of comfort for them.

Young kids who are oblivious to be attending games with their mums and dads and will come to realise that in 50 years time they will have those warm feelings and sharing stories of ‘I remember when I used to come with my mum and dad and…so on!’

That’s what supporters are. It’s about coming and making memories and as always you know my players will do everything in their power to make those memories happy ones.

Finally, for me the most important department in a football club. The players. The dressing room.

The players have worked hard because they know what we expect as staff and they know what to expect from you as supporters. We have built a reallly strong squad to date. I always felt as far back as last October that we needed to build a squad of players that have been at the club.

We stressed we cannot rebuild every season and acted as soon as we could to secure players for the coming season.

From the Boston game at the end of last season we have 10 players still with us. We have added in areas we felt we had to with all different attributes. We have added pace and power. We have added strength. We have added youth and experience. We are extremely pleased with the group we have. A group of brilliant men with a collective belief of working to their maximum for the 4 hours a week we have together in training and the eternity of a match day.

I will protect the players and the club with everything in my power because I am the focal point of the club and I relish that. Rest assured these players will not let you down and by that I am not suggesting we will win every league game, but we will be top of the league on hard work, character and desire.

Manager, staff, players, volunteers, stadium staff, board members, shareholders, supporters of Hereford and the city of Hereford, it’s time for us all to come together and ride, as one, through the rubbish moments we will inevitably have at points this year and make as many amazing memories together as we can.

Thank you for all your support and I can’t wait to see you in full voice and hopefully large numbers on Saturday at Edgar Street.

Take Care

Paul Caddis