Yeovil Town will travel to the Hollywood hills of Wrexham in the Second Round of the FA Cup.
The tie will be played on the weekend of 2nd-3rd December with the home game against Slough Town in National League South needing to be rescheduled as a result.
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Editors note: Not many things are 7 out of 7, this is. 
As a lot of us have said… into the hat! With Yeovil’s 3-2 win over Gateshead yesterday booking their spot in the next round of the cup, let’s see what’s been going on for the other sides in the National League South.
There were only two teams from our division in action in the FA Cup yesterday, one being Yeovil, and the other being Maidstone. They travelled to Chesham United and posted a 2-0 win on their travels to book their spot in the next round. There is one more team from the NLS in FA Cup action this weekend, with Slough Town hosting Grimsby Town on Sunday afternoon.
Looking to NLS matches now, we start with Chippenham Town, who played out a barnstorming 4-2 win at home to Eastbourne Borough to leave the visitors hovering above the drop. Last week’s visitors Braintree Town got themselves back on track with a thumping 4-1 win over bottom placed Havant & Waterlooville, leaving Havant winless since that fated day in August… you know the one.
Following departures of important first team players, Aveley have stared in the face of adversity and continue to stand strong, registering a 2-0 win at home to Weston-super-mare. This moves them up to second behind Yeovil, but we have a game in hand. There were two 1-1 draws, with Tonbridge Angels holding on for an important point against Chelmsford City after dropping to 10 men within 15 minutes, while W*ymouth were held at home to Welling United.
There were also two 1-0 wins, both for sides nearing the top of the table. Firstly, Hampton & Richmond continued their fantastic run of 6 wins on the bounce, beating Dover Athletic away from home, while Torquay United took a much needed win at home to Bath City ahead of their home clash with Yeovil on Tuesday. The win takes Torquay up to 5th, with Bath matching Torquay’s form of 1 win in their last 5.
A final fixture that was meant to take place but didn’t, was Taunton hosting Farnborough, however it was postponed due to pitch conditions. Slough, as previously mentioned, are in FA Cup action on Sunday, so their match against Hemel Hempstead has also been postponed.
The draw for the FA Cup Second Round will be televised, and will commence at 2:30pm on Sunday 5th November. Fixtures are scheduled for the weekend of 2nd December, we look forward to hosting/visiting whoever we draw!
FA Cup 1st Round results (NLS teams in bold)
Chesham United 0-2 Maidstone United
Slough Town v Grimsby Town (14:00 kickoff)
National League South results – in full
Aveley 2-0 Weston-super-mare
Braintree Town 4-1 Havant & Waterlooville
Chippenham Town 4-2 Eastbourne Borough
Dover Athletic 0-1 Hampton & Richmond Borough
Tonbridge Angels 1-1 Chelmsford City
Torquay United 1-0 Bath City
W*ymouth 1-1 Welling United
Yeovil Town’s 11th win in a row came against National League opposition yesterday, as the Glovers despatched Gateshead in the FA Cup. Here are Ian’s conclusions from Huish Park…
It felt pretty comfortable, despite the scoreline. As with the Southend game in the previous round, the early goal (sorry Rhys, it looks like an OG) got us off to the best possible start and it could have been 4-0 at half time. Stevens misses a sitter before he scores and Matt Worthington should have scored form close range too. There was no doubt about the third goal though as Murphy fired in after a slip from a Gateshead defender in the box. Gateshead’s two goals came from the softest of soft penalties and a lucky ricochet and while it was nervy in the stands, the players looked composed to see it out. For all the talk about Gateshead’s style, there was lots of style but they didn’t produce much substance against our defence.
It’s Michael Smith’s world and we’re just living in it. If he blocked one cross yesterday, he blocked one hundred. The impact he’s made on our performances and our right side is huge. Morgan Williams, who was already solid, has excelled with Smith outside of him. Jordan Steven’s attacking movement is better with Smith’s ability to pick out those runs. He’s composed under-pressure and yesterday was another quality performance. Does anyone else still feel like he’s in third gear?
Jordan Stevens is starting to show he’s a difference maker. Despite Mark Cooper saying he wanted to take him off after five minutes, Stevens showed his quality throughout. His pace is undeniable, just when you think he’s going at full-tilt he shows another level and leaves opponents behind. He took his goal well, when you watch it back he had a lot of time and gives it the subtlest Peter Dinklage of Mair’s leg. Without getting too Football Manager, he’s getting in all the right areas in an attacking sense, if he continues to improve as he has since returning from injury, we’ll have suitors to warn off.
We have so many attacking options. We left out Jordan Young yesterday. Just think about that. He’s arguably our most in-form player and he didn’t start. There was room for Will Dawes who impressed again. We reverted back to Nouble and Murphy up front too, which is my preferred pairing up top. We’ve seen how important partnerships are up front, Madden and Hayter, Jackson and Gall, Jevons and Tarachulski, Forinton and Patmore. If you get one that works you can become unstoppable.
The supporters were out in force once again. 3241 were at Huish Park yesterday, many of whom would have had to negotiate some iffy roads after the storm. This wasn’t a part of any ticket deal or included in season tickets, but there’s a feeling building around the club. Each win brings more confidence on the pitch and that is now translating off the pitch. The grumbles about the quality of the football feel like they were a lifetime ago. If I said in April that Mark Cooper would lead Yeovil to 11 wins in a row by the end of 2023, I think most would have questioned my sanity, but here we are. And I like it…
When is a Loan Watch not a ‘Loan Watch’?
There wasn’t a lot of football on offer for the plethora of Glovers out on loan…
Will Buse did get himself 90 Minutes of football for Bath City, they lost 1-0 to Torquay down at Plainmoor in a National League South clash, only a single Shaun Donnellan (remember him?) goal separated the sides.
There were postponed games which prevented the rest getting any game time, that list in full; (deep breath) Lewis Williams (Tiverton), Ollie Haste (Dorchester), Benjani Jr (Melksham), Charlie Bateson (Shepton Mallet), Jacob Shore, Max Dyer and Mason Alden (Welton Rovers), Aidan Skiverton (Sherborne), Josh Haskett, Jack Bareham, Fin Haste (Gillingham)
We finish with better news though that Malachi Linton would have been in contention to make his Taunton Town return today against Farnborough in the National League South, but that match, like so many others, fell foul to the weather!
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We are delighted to welcome Malachi Linton back to squad after he was cleared for first team action.
He was due to be in the squad for today’s game against Farnborough, but will now make his return in the coming matches.… pic.twitter.com/ef6WSGGvpe
— Taunton Town FC (@TauntonTownFC) November 4, 2023
Yeovil Town goal hero Rhys Murphy believes the 3-2 scoreline flattered their opponents Gateshead today as his side progressed to Round Two of the FA Cup with their eleventh successive win today.
Having gone in to a 3-0 lead, the Glovers had a penalty the striker described as “iffy” given against them and then had to endure a nervy last few minutes as visiting frontman Marcus Dinanga added a second five minutes in to seven minutes of second half injury time.
His manager Mark Cooper said referee Gary Parsons had “tried to make a game of it” with his decisions and his top scorer agreed the home side never looked in trouble.
Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Sheridan Robins after the game, Murphy said: “We have controlled games with and without the ball and had a good mix of performances that a good team needs. I think we looked comfortable today, they may have scored two but one is an iffy penalty and the other is when they are throwing the kitchen sink at us in the last few minutes. I don’t think the scoreline reflects the game fairly, it was a solid performance and I thought we looked dangerous, so we will dust ourselves down and go in to a big game on Tuesday.
“The management team are always one step ahead and do their due diligence, so they know the strengths and weaknesses of who we are coming up against. We always have a game plan for whoever we are playing and we have come up against a few teams recently that like to dominate the ball and we have come up with a game plan where we have let their strength become their weakness.”
Murphy was replaced by Jake Hyde after 72 minutes with the top scorer on a hat-trick. Before the game, Cooper said that Murphy had been “gagging” to play having not featured in the 2-0 home win over Braintree Town seven days earlier.
The frontman said: “No player wants to not play, but you have to realise you are getting older. The manager looks like he is doing a great job managing the whole squad, not just myself. Every player wants to play every week and I am no different but luckily we are in a position where whoever is called upon is doing a job. We don’t rely on any one player from front to back, we have a really good squad and the staff are working hard.”
Now Yeovil are back in National League South action with a trip to Gary Johnson’s Torquay United on Tuesday night and Murphy is seemingly gagging to be let loose against the Gulls as well.
Asked about the match, he said: “Everyone can’t wait, straight after the game we said ‘good win, but let’s focus on Tuesday’, so it’s rest and recovery tomorrow and let’s get ready for another big one. We are in a good place, the fans have been brilliant and I am sure they will travel well. We have got some good memories down there, so hopefully we will go down and make some more.”
We think we may know the memories you are referring to there, Rhys.
Yeovil Town boss Mark Cooper has his eyes on a plum Third Round FA Cup draw after seeing his Yeovil Town side progress to the competition’s Second Round with a 3-2 home win over Gateshead at Huish Park today.
The Glovers were 3-0 ahead thanks to a brace from top-scorer Rhys Murphy and a first half strike from Jordan Stevens before the visitors’ Marcus Dinanga made it a nervy finish with a penalty and then an injury time second.
We will be ball number 33 in the draw which is televised live on ITV1 on Sunday having made it 11 wins in a row in all competitions.
Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Sheridan Robins, the manager said: “When you are one game away from the Third Round you just want a realistic opportunity to get in to the Third Round and get a Premier League team in that Third Round. That is the Holy Grail.
“When you play against a team like Gateshead you have to have a clear plan of how you are going to do things and credit to the players because they carried it our brilliantly. We went man-for-man and we left the goalkeeper as their spare player and then we went a pressed from there and defending one-on-one at the back and I thought we were great.
“They played with a brilliant spirit, they committed to every duel and we did great. They are a really good team, they keep probing and try to get overloads and you have to be so good for 90 minutes – or 97 minutes or 99 minutes!”
The boss joked (maybe) that he had threatened Stevens with a substitution after a shaky start in front of another crowd of more than 3,000 at Huish Park.
Cooper said: “He had a horrendous start to the game, it was going to be the quickest substitution in history after about three minutes. But then he started to come in to the game and his pace is incredible and it puts people on the back foot and it was a great ball from Murph and a great finish from Jordan.”
But the boss would certainly have substituted referee Gary Parsons who he said had “tried to make a game of it” by giving a soft penalty which was converted by Dinanga after 67 minutes. The striker, who is the top scorer in the National League Premier, then added a second five minutes in to seven minutes of time added on to set up a nervy finish.
The manager said: “We should have been comfortable after that but the way they play they cause you problems, but I never felt in any danger until the referee tried to make a game of it. It was an incredible dive for the penalty, I can’t believe he’s given it and then he just went card happy.
“The second (for Dinanga) is a bit of a fluke, the shot deflects up on to the bar, falls straight to Dinanga in the six yard box – but if we hadn’t won today it would have been a travesty the way we committed to the game. I never felt we were in trouble until the referee made a game of it.”
With his side 3-0 up, Cooper withdrew Murphy, strike partner Frank Nouble and Stevens with an important National League South match at Torquay United coming up on Tuesday night.
The boss had said before the game that Murphy had been “gagging” to play and the two goals – coupled with an impressive performance from ex-Gulls’ man Nouble – will not have done either player any harm.
Cooper said: “Once we were 3-0, I had an eye on Tuesday and trying to keep one or two who are integral – and a little bit older – fresh. I thought Frank and Murph were outstanding and when you do make four changes that can change the rhythm, sometimes in a good way, sometimes in a bad way. I don’t think that was why we conceded two goals, it was making sure we had enough fresh bodies on Tuesday but the game was won until the referee decided to make an impact.
“The biggest thing was the players commit to the instruction we give them. We have been good in different ways. When we are playing a home in our league, we go and attack and create, or when we are playing against bigger teams we have a different way of playing and we have to frustrate a bit.”
Torquay, whose manager ex-Glovers’ legend Gary Johnson has been under pressure after an underwhelming start to the season, moved back in to the play-off places with a 1-0 home win over Bath City. They sit in fifth place, seven points behind Yeovil having played a game more.
Johnson has turned to his son (and another Huish Park favourite), Lee, who is managing at League One side Fleetwood Town for reinforcements. Striker Callum Dolan, who has made four appearance for Johnson Junior this season, started for them today with young forward Theo Williams named among the substitutes.
Asked if he was thinking about the trip to South Devon, Cooper said: “I am going to enjoy this one first and look forward to the draw tomorrow and then dust ourselves down and get ready for just another game on Tuesday. That’s all it is. I see they have signed a few players and have got a couple in from Fleetwood, they signed a goalkeeper today so they are having a go and spending the money, so we know it is going to be a tough game.”
As is the case this season, Cooper spoke to the club’s official YouTube channel following the game – and had a few more things to say about the referee’s performance and the reason keeper Joe Day was wearing protective headgear.
Yeovil Town goalkeeper Joe Day was sporting a protective head guard after being bitten by a spider.
The on loan Newport County player sported the Petr Cech-style gear in the 3-2 FA Cup first round win over National League Gateshead on Saturday.
Speaking to the club’s official YouTube channel after the game, manager Mark Cooper revealed that he had been scrambling for a goalkeeper on the eve of the Cup tie.
He said: “It’s been a difficult week and on Wednesday and Thursday we did not think Joe was going to play. He got bitten by a spider and he has been in hospital for three or four days on a drip.
“He got a horrendous infection, he had to have it cut open and we were scrambling on Thursday and Friday because we didn’t have a goalkeeper.
“Joe has put his hand up and said he would play with a ‘bullet wound’ to the side of his ear, so full credit to him, he’s been great.”
Following the game on Saturday, BBC Somerset reporter Sheridan Robins revealed in a post on social media network X (formerly known as Twitter) that the 33-year-old was “touch and go” having been in hospital after the incident.
She posted: “Joe Day was sporting the headwear today because he was bitten by a spider. He has been in hospital this week. was touch and go to play. Makes today’s performance even more impressive.”
Rumours that Day now has the ability to climb up the side of skyscrapers has not been denied by anyone at Huish Park (and possibly has not been asked about).
With number two Will Buse out on loan at Bath City, the Glovers had no substitute goalkeeper on the bench on Saturday. Third choice Lewis Williams, who has been out on loan at Tiverton Town, played in the Somerset Men’s Premier Cup exit at Clevedon Town on Wednesday night.
Following the win over Gateshead, goalkeeping coach Phil Osborn tweeted “what a week, what a guy“, presumably relating to Day.
The Second Round draw for this year’s FA Cup will feature Yeovil Town. But who was your Man of the Match in today’s 3-2 home win over Gateshead?
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A double from top scorer Rhys Murphy booked Yeovil Town a place in the Second Round of the FA Cup with a win over National League Gateshead at Huish Park on Saturday.
The Glovers made (another) fast start with Murphy latching on to a long ball forward from Joe Day to open the scoring with just a minute on the board, before Jordan Stevens latched on to a pass from Murphy to double the score after 26 minutes.
In the second half, Murphy poked home his second before a penalty from Marcus Dinanga pulled a goal back from the penalty spot and the National League’s top scorer added a second five minutes in to seven minutes of added time.
But it is Yeovil who will be Ball 33 in the draw for the Second Round which will be made at 2.30pm on Sunday, live on ITV1.
Mark Cooper introduced Rhys Murphy and Frank Nouble back in to his starting XI after the pair started on the bench seven days ago in the National League South win over Braintree Town.
Speaking ahead of the match, the boss said the top scorer (that’s Murphy, by the way) was “gagging” to play and was being “let loose” with a trip to Torquay United coming up on Tuesday night.
And, the boss could not have been more of a prophet if he’d tried, as MURPHY gave the home side the lead after just three minutes. The striker latched on to a long ball from goalkeeper Joe Day which bounced over the Gateshead defence and excellent control on the edge of the box saw Murphy beat his man and lift a shot over Archie Mair in the visitors’ goal. There was probably a touch from a Gateshead defender along the way, but you try taking that goal off him.
Day was playing with Petr Cech-style head protection. We learnt after the match that the on-loan Newport County player had been in hospital during the week after suffering a spider bite close to his ear. No, seriously – read here.
That stunned Gateshead – a side who ran out 4-0 winners when these sides met up in Tyneside back in April – who started to grow back in to the game. Kyran Lofthouse had a shot from range deflected wide before Ed Francis had an effort blocked on 15 minutes.
But when Yeovil went forward they looked dangerous and on 22 minutes a lovely bit of build up play down the left-hand side involving Will Dawes and Nouble saw the strike whip the ball in to Jordan Stevens driving in on goal but, with a bit of help from Stephen Wearne, he skied it over the bar from close rangfe. Soon after, Murphy found himself unmarked inside the box but could not get enough power on his header.
But on 26 minutes, the home side doubled the lead. A great run forward by Jake Wannell moved the ball forward, fed a ball through to Murphy who made a great turn and fed it to Jordan STEVENS smashed a great angled drive past Mair. First a goal and then an assist from Murphy – literally gagging for it!
There was a sickening moment where Gateshead midfielder Stephen Wearne collided with the advertising boards two minutes later. He received some treatment and fortunately was able to return to the fray.
Nouble and Murphy combined again to set up Matt Worthington who came within a whisker of adding a third.
As the game ticked in to injury time, midfielder Callum Whelan put an effort over the bar before good play by Will Dawes found Worthy, but his effort was straight at Mair who palmed it away allowing the visitors to clear the danger.
The second half started with a concerning moment when Alex Whittle went down and needed some treatment. Cue discussion about who could possibly play left-back. The answer for the few moments he was off the pitch was Will Dawes, but fortunately Whittle quickly returned to the fold.
Great play involving Smith saw the ball break to Nouble down the right hand side who put his foot through the ball but his effort was straight at Mair who parried it out as far as Smith whose effort rocketed wide.
Just after the hour mark it was 3-0 to the Glovers. Nouble again caused problems down the right, but his ball drilled in to the box was blocked and Regan Booty looked to have time to clear it, unfortunately (for Booty) he was robbed by Murphy allowing the ball to break to Stevens. Mair did well to block the shot with his feet but could only push it as far as MURPHY who lashed home his second.
But the visitors were given a golden opportunity to pull a goal back when the faintest of nudges from Smith saw the National League’s top-scorer Dinanga (embarrassingly) tumble inside the box. Shock, horror, the referee gave it and it was DINANGA who stepped up send Joe Day the wrong way from the penalty spot.
Heads did not drop from Yeovil with good play from Dawes winning a corner which led to a foul being awarded against the visiting keeper.
That was Dawes’ last involvement as he was replaced by Jordan Young after 70 minutes, and two minutes later Murphy was withdrawn (presumably with Torquay United in mind) in place of Jake Hyde.
Perhaps with the trip to South Devon in 72 hours in mind, manager Mark Cooper saw withdrew the impressive Frank Nouble and goalscorer Jordan Stevens for Zac Bell and Sonny Cox.
Jake Wannell had a glorious chance to make it four with five minutes of normal time remaining. A ball in from Young was left by Morgan Williams for his central defensive partner who did not show the ball-striking ability he has shown previously.
But, the visitors ensured a nervy finish when they pulled another goal back with five minutes of the seven added on played. A shot from the edge of the box by substitute Aidan Rutledge deflected off the boot of Wannell, who was closing the striker down, and looped over Day and on to the crossbar and DINANGA was on the spot to head past Morgan Williams on the line.
The final whistle from referee Gary Parsons was met with a combination of relief and jubilation and means that our home match with Slough Town on December 2 will be moved to match way for a Second Round tie.
Venue: Huish Park
Saturday 4th November, 3pm kick-off
Pitch: Held up well considering the battering the surface (albeit covered) had taken in the week leading up to the game
Conditions: It didn’t rain until the 85th minute
Attendance: 3,241
Scorers: Rhys Murphy 1 (1-0), Jordan Stevens 26 (2-0), Rhys Murphy 64 (3-0), Marcus Dinanga pen 67(3-1), Marcus Dinanga 90+5 (3-2).
Bookings:
Yeovil Town: Michael Smith 45+3, Alex Whittle 89
Gateshead: Kenton Richardson 41, Rutledge 90+2
Referee: Gary Parsons
Yeovil Town (4-4-2)
Substitutes: Jordan Young (for Will Dawes, 70), Jake Hyde (for Rhys Murphy, 72), Zac Bell (for Frank Nouble, 79), Sonny Cox (for Jordan Stevens, 79), Josh Staunton, Josh Owers, Jordan Maguire-Drew, Alex Fisher.
Gateshead: Mair, Richardson, Grayson, Booty, Lofthouse (for Hunter, 64), Wearne (for Rutledge, 73), Whelan (for Chadwick, 64), Francis, Olley, McBride (for Hannant, 81), Dinanga.
Substitutes (not used): Storey, Allan, Hunter, Pani.
