HEREFORD FC manager Peter Beadle is looking forward to locking horns with former club Newport County AFC in pre-season.

Beadle’s Bulls will host County in a friendly at Edgar Street on Saturday, July 21 (kick-off 3pm).

The 45-year-old was in charge of the Exiles between 2005 and 2008, twice just missing out on promotion from the Conference South.

Beadle went on to Clevedon Town before taking over as caretaker manager of Hereford United in 2014.

And the following year he was appointed as the first ever manager of Hereford FC, the successor club to Hereford United.

Beadle has guided the Bulls to three successive promotions and they will play in National League North next season.

Looking ahead to the friendly, he told the club’s official website: “Newport are a decent side who had a great run in the FA Cup last season, they finished in the top half of League Two as well so will be tough opposition.

“Mike Flynn has done a great job there, and we can expect to be up against a decent side.

“You play different teams for different reasons in pre-season, and with Newport hopefully they’ll give us a taste of what we can expect in the coming season, and that is a higher intensity of football for longer periods of the game than we’ve been used to over the past three seasons.

“With them being a League club, and not too far away distance wise, hopefully, they’ll bring a number of travelling supporters as well.”

South Wales Argus:

Beadle and Hereford will be up against another former Exiles manager in National League North next season after Tim Harris (above, right, with Justin Edinburgh) was named as director of football at Tamworth.

Harris left a similar role at Rodney Parade in 2014 to manage Gloucester City.

He left the Tigers last year and after a brief spell at Redditch United will now assist ex-County midfielder Mike Fowler, who is Tamworth’s new head coach.

“Tim is someone I have known throughout my career and I captained his sides three times at Merthyr, Newport and Gloucester,” said Fowler.

“He’s been a mentor to me and our relationship stands us in good stead.

“He ticks a lot of boxes to help us and he will be hands on with the football side of things. We will be working together very closely.”