There are two changes to Yeovil Town’s lineup from Monday’s abandoned fixture at W*ymouth.
Olly Thomas drops to the bench, with Jordan Stevens missing out entirely after suffering a hamstring injury during the derby. Sam Pearson and Sonny Blu Lo-Everton return to the starting lineup in their places, with a return to the bench for Josh Owers.
Today could be the day… but Worthing are here to play party poopers, here to give us the low-down on the the Rebels is Hayden Baker.
Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Leave us a review and share the pod with a pal.
We’d love to welcome some local businesses into the Gloverscast family through advertising. If you’re a business that would like to speak to a dedicated audience of more than 1000 monthly listeners, please get in touch. Find out more about advertising with us here.
If you have an idea for the website, want to contribute or just want to send us a message, feel free to email ian@gloverscast.co.uk.
Yeovil Town take on Worthing this Saturday in the hopes of ending a 19-year wait for a League Title.
It might not be easy, but just three more points will secure the National League South title.
Ben and Dave are joined by Chris Fox to weigh up those chances and chat about W*ymouth on Monday.
Enjoy Saturday’s game, Glovers!
If you have an idea for the website, want to contribute or just want to send us a message, feel free to email ian@gloverscast.co.uk.
Yeovil Town will face off against Worthing FC on Saturday at Huish Park as they look to clinch the league title.
The Glovers will win the league if they match or better Chelmsford’s result against Slough Town. With the potential of securing a first league title since the 04-05 season, Mark Coopers men will be looking to out on a show for a packed Huish Park.
Worthing will also be looking to secure all three points as they continue their push for the playoffs. The Rebels are currently sitting fifth in the league and haven’t lost in three games, so will prove tough opponents for the home side.
Boss Cooper reiterated his season long stance of this game being the same as any other. He said: “It’s very rare you get an opportunity to win a league with five games to go, it shows how well the players have done…It’s important we see it as another game, it has to be like that.”
The 54-year-old spoke highly of Saturdays opposition claiming them to be “the best footballing side in the league”. Cooper also batted away any suggestion he may be approached by other clubs by stating he is “Happy here”.
The former Swindon manager also talked about the dangers the Rebels may pose. He said: “They are the top scorers in the league and you can see why, they got some great players that have no fear, who just want to pass the ball and run forward and they’ve got the top marksman in the league [Ollie Pearce] who has done brilliantly well.”
Matthew Worthington shared his thoughts on being named captain after Josh Stanton‘s departure. He said:“I’m massively proud to be captain of this club and this team.
It’s new to me and I’m enjoying it, I’m grateful to the gaffer for giving me the opportunity.”
There are no fresh injury concerns for the Glovers.
First team coach Darren Budd spoke after the Rebels’ win over Hampton & Richmond. He said: “It was a great set of results this weekend which we now have to take into the Yeovil game. That’s going to be a tough test, they’ve shown their quality with where they are in the league but the boys will be relishing it.”
Budd also talked about Hush Park being a “great place to play” and how the “size of the pitch and grass” will suit the Worthing side.
The Worthing boss Aarran Racine knows Mark Cooper well, being managed by the Yeovil boss whilst at Forest Green Rovers. Racine should still be in the dugout for the match even after receiving a red card in Monday’s fixture . Kodi Lyons-Forster could be a doubt for the game after going off with a knock on Monday.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
One player for home fans to keep an eye on is Ollie Pearce. The emphatic talisman has scored 36 goals in the league this season for the East Sussex side. Having started his career at Bognor Regis Town, Pearce made the step up to Worthing in 2018. It wasn’t until last season that the striker made a name for himself scoring 25 goals, assisting 14.
Ollie Pearce just WOW 🤯🔥
A brace today means that is now 𝟑𝟔 𝐠𝐨𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝟑𝟗 𝐠𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬 for the forward 👏
This means he averages a goal every 96 minutes 🎯#TheVanarama | #WorthingFC pic.twitter.com/Qrum4kxsRW
— Vanarama (@Vanarama) March 29, 2024
Another player to keep a look out for is youngster Brad Dologhan who bagged a brace against Hampton & Richmond.
Captain Matt Worthington has spoken about his pride at being handed the Yeovil Town armband this season as he looks to lead his side to the National League South season.
The 26-year-old was handed the captaincy after the departure of former skipper Josh Staunton at the start of this season and has repaid the faith of manager Mark Cooper by playing more games in a single season that he has managed in the rest of his career.
Having been part of the squads which took the club out of the Football League in 2019 and the National League Premier last season, he admits he wants to get the title secured as soon as possible. He could do it this weekend with the Glovers needing just three more points to be crowned champions when fifth-placed Worthing visit Huish Park on Saturday.
Speaking on Thursday, Worthington said: “I am massively proud to be captain of this football club. I was really grateful for the Gaffer for giving me the opportunity, it is a massive personal achievement.
“It would be a massive achievement personally but more importantly for the club because we need promotion. We will be looking to get that done as soon as possible.
“I can’t describe the feeling I get when I walk out with the armband on, I have been here so long, so it is a dream come true. There is a lot of lads in there that are leaders, I wear the armband but with the likes of Coops (Charlie Cooper), Frank (Nouble), Smudge (Michael Smith), Joe Day, Morgs (Morgan Williams) there are plenty of characters in there.
When we all come together and help the team out there, it is important we help the team out.”
He admitted he had questioned his own future at Huish Park following last season’s relegation with the club in a state of flux as former ‘stewards’ SU Glovers, the group operated by now-York City owner Matt Uggla, abandoned their takeover plans. But, the takeover by local businessman Martin Hellier and the decision to keep Cooper as manager convinced Worthington to sign a new two-year contract in June.
The midfielder said: “It was a very tough few weeks in the summer, I did not really know whether it was time to move on but I made the decision to stay after conversations with Martin and the Gaffer. I am really thankful I did now and hopefully we can get the job done.
“It was tough last season and it was difficult to see a light at the end of the tunnel with the way the club was going. Thankfully Martin (Hellier) took over, kept the Gaffer which was massive for us, and signed some really good players.
“It comes down to the complete change we have seen that from top to bottom and it is important that we finish the job.”
In his press conference, Cooper was full of praise for the player who he signed on loan as manager of Forest Green Rovers in the 2018-19 season before taking charge of him again when he arrived in Somerset.
The manager said: “He is a winner, he does not even like losing at five-a-side or even games of Tiddlywinks. He is a good character and I think Matty before was a midfield player who was just going to run all over the place with his energy.
We have tried to give him a structure and a discipline to his play which allows him to show off his qualities and I think he has shown us this season.”
The ex-Bournemouth academy graduate scored the first of his four goals this season at Worthing in the 2-1, sealed by an injury time winner from Morgan Williams, and is expecting a tough game from the visitors to Huish Park on Saturday.
He said: “They had a bit of a dip in form when they lost their manager (Adam Hinshelwood to York City in February), but they seem to have picked up now. They are a good footballing team and everyone knows that. They play total football.
“It was a tricky game at their place on an artificial surface which is always tough, but we are at home so we are full of confidence that we can put on a good performance and get the win.
“Previous to the Torquay game (which the Glovers won 3-0 on Good Friday) we lacked a bit of confidence and it is natural that at some stages of the season you have more confidence than you do in others, but Friday was a really good performance. We looked back to ourselves and we have to take that in to Saturday.”
Manager Mark Cooper has said his Yeovil Town players will treat this weekend’s potential title decider with Worthing as “just another game.”
The Glovers know they need just three more points to be crowned National League South champions with five more games remaining – depending on the decision on whether the abandoned derby at W*ymouth is replayed. Second-placed Chelmsford City will have to be perfect to overtake them and host Slough Town this weekend.
With 4,000 tickets already confirmed as being sold, there is certain to be another big crowd inside Huish Park, but Cooper has banished any thoughts of being champions from his players’ minds.
Speaking on Thursday, the boss told 3 Valley Radio’s Adi Hopper and Si Thyer: “It is very rare you get an opportunity to win a league with five games to go and it shows well the players have done.
“With the amount of expectation that is on us and having to be everyone’s cup final every week, so it is important we just see it as another game. It has to be like that.
“I have no fear that the players will be up for it, I have no fear about the atmosphere, because what we are playing for will take care of that.
“But we are playing against a really good team and we will have to be really on top of tactically, it is important we give them a problem with the way we play. We play really good, structured football, so it is important we carry a real threat which we did last Friday (in the 3-0 home win over Torquay United).”
Whilst Yeovil were 1-0 behind when the game at W*ymouth was abandoned with 75 minutes on the clock on Easter Monday, there was a shock defeat for Chelmsford at bottom-placed Dover. But whilst all that was going on, Worthing picked up a 2-0 home win over fellow play-off hopefuls Hampton & Richmond, having won 5-1 at second-from-bottom Havant & Waterlooville on Good Friday.
Cooper is under no illusions about the quality of the visitors, who sit in fifth place in the table ahead of the weekend, especially the division’s top scorer, striker Ollie Pearce, who has got 36 goals in 40 appearances this year.
The Glovers’ boss said: “They are the best pure football team in the league in terms of the way they play, but it is high risk football. They are deep in their own third at the back to try and hit you in really dangerous areas in behind.
“They are a really dangerous opposition to play against, you can see why they are top scorers in the league because they have some good, young players who have no fear and the top marksman in the league who has done really well.
“They have a good young interim manager in Arran Racine who I managed at Forest Green, who was a really good footballer and he has carried on the good work of Adam Hinshelwood (who quit to join National League Premier side York City at the end of February).”
🚌 Seats on our coach to Yeovil have now SOLD OUT!
Thank you for your fantastic support, Reds! See you Saturday 🙌 pic.twitter.com/DHgy24745m
— Worthing FC (@WorthingFC) April 3, 2024
In his pre-match press conferences, you will often hear Cooper refer to teams changing their playing style when they come to Huish Park, but he is not expecting that from Worthing.
He said: “Worthing will not change, they will try and play their game and full credit to them for that. It is a really good model they have down there and whoever is in charge they play the same way and that is why they are producing some good, young players.
“They will fancy their chances and we have to make sure we are really aggressive in our structure and the way we play.”
During the interview on Thursday, Cooper was repeatedly asked about his plans for beyond being crowned champions and admitted there were processes in place for if they secure an immediate return to the National League Premier, but steadfastly refused to be drawn on them.
He said: “Of course I have things in my mind like players’ contracts, potential transfer targets, but you have to have a certain organisation.
“With the analysis we have at the club, there are certain (transfer) targets that are hitting those, but until we get to where we need to be, we cannot think of that.
“I am fully focused on getting the job done, it is a long way from being done. We respect totally Worthing and there will be no mention of anything other than us trying to put a solid performance in on Saturday.
“If and when that happens, we will deal with that afterwards. We have to get three points. If we do that on Saturday, we will treat every game with the utmost respect because other clubs have their futures at stake.”
On his own future beyond this season, he added: “I have another year on my contract, so I would love to do another year, for sure. I am really happy here. Last year we had a brilliant start, then we had some people come in that were a bit wet behind the ears in terms of recruitment, but under the new owner this year I have been given the chance to build a new squad and full credit to him and I have really enjoyed it.”
Cooper said there was “nothing new” about his injury concerns with full-backs Michael Smith and Alex Whittle and striker Jake Hyde all certain to be missing. One assumes this answer means there is no return for on loan Reading striker Jahmari Clarke, who was not in the squad at W*ymouth with a quad injury, or midfielder Will Dawes.
However, he did speak about the importance of having striker Rhys Murphy back to match fitness.
The frontman, who has 13 goals this season, came off the substitutes’ bench in the 39th minute of the abandoned game at W*ymouth, his first appearance since picking up at injury in early January.
The manager said: “It is always good to have Murph in and around it. He is a good character and a good player, so it was great to see him back.”
He said the club was still waiting on a decision from the National League about whether the derby match would have to be replayed, but admitted having minutes left in his players legs was important.
Cooper added: “It is in the hands of the National League. We viewed it that we had minutes left in their legs, so we have saved that in the tank and hopefully we can use that to our advantage on Saturday.
“(The defeat for Chelmsford at Dover on Monday) shows you have to look after your own business first and keep doing what we are doing, if we do that then hopefully we get the right results. Of course the players want to look (at other results), but we just try to focus on what is in front of us.“
Yeovil Town Manager Mark Cooper has been charged with misconduct by the FA for an incident against Hemel Hempstead in January.
In the latest set of FA Charges for the month of March, it details;
INCIDENT OF MISCONDUCT – STANDARD CASEMark Cooper, Manager, Yeovil Town FCYeovil Town FC v Hemel Hempstead Town FCNational League South20 January 2024Breach of FA Rule E3.1 – It is alleged that following the completion of the fixture, in or around the match officials changing room area, he used abusive and/or insulting language in confronting a Match Official.Mr. Cooper admits the Charge, submits SP1 [Standard Penalty 1] is too excessive, electing a Paper Hearing.
“I said to the referee that those kind of tackles have been outlawed from the game. When I played you got a round of applause for that tackle, but (the referee) did not do his job today. He endangered the safety of the players and, as good as his performance was at times, he will be remembered for that tackle. We want to help referees to learn, but they have to want to learn and hopefully he will and come back better because he has the potential to be a good referee.”
I still cannot work out how this wasn’t a Red card!!! A disgusting challenge and disgraceful refereeing @hemelfc @YTFC pic.twitter.com/iXlCet5kgg
— Andy TurnbullKirk (@atkirk2) January 21, 2024
In other news from the FA’s Naughty Portal, Eastbourne Borough’s head of performance had a word or two too many about a Match Official’s performance in our clash with them just before Christmas.
INCIDENT OF MISCONDUCT – STANDARD CASE
Chairman Martin Hellier has targeted a return to the Football League as he looks to take the club back in to the National League this season.
The local businessman, who took over at Huish Park in May, said he had spent “a disproportionate amount” of money on the playing budget to assist manager Mark Cooper with getting out of National League South.
Going in to this weekend’s home fixture with Worthing, the Glovers need three more points from their remaining fixtures to secure promotion at the first attempt.
Speaking to Radio Ninesprings’ Steve Haigh, the chairman said: “We have got to be measured and the pace has got to be right. There are always going to be financial implications to any of it and we have to continue to optimise it.
“I would say we put a disproportionate amount of money towards hopefully getting us out of this league, I don’t mind that and I would always have done that, but (if we go up) we have to do it right and take stock.
“I would like to get out of the (National League) as soon as possible because there is more financial rewards from getting in to League Two. The 3G across the road, the academy and all of that, we would receive funding for and if we hang around for a few seasons in League Two, I could live with that and I reckon fans can as well for a while.
“We need to try and drive the club towards sustainability, we need to consider what we are doing with the land surrounding the stadium which is sympathetic to the club.
“Whatever I would do with that (land) would be to create lifelong income streams in to the club. You cannot have a footprint the size of this and base everything on what happens on a matchday, it is not enough.
“Keith Weston, our Head of Stadium Operations, has really brought on the room hires and hospitality in leaps and bounds, and even my boy, Jack, has done so much with the bars, food and hospitality and, of course, the volunteers and all the staff have all played their part.
“I would like to try and keep the same trajectory. It is football, so we have to be realistic, but hopefully we do not spend more than one season in the National League Premier – it might be two, who knows? But League Two is where I want to be.”
He said that the long-term success of the club relied upon a solid business model behind it and claimed it Yeovil Football & Athletic Club, the club’s football operations business, was being “financially mismanaged” when he acquired it from former owner <NAME REDACTED> almost a year ago.
The latest accounts for the club published last month show the club lost £1.5m when it was relegated from the National League last season and was being funded by the owners and a loan from the Sports Council.
The chairman said that, even if they secure promotion this season, he did not see the playing budget increasing next season.
He said: “We will put everything in to maintaining the same trajectory as we are now but, if we go up, you will have 11 better players playing against us. I certainly do not anticipate the player budget being any higher, we all have had to make efficiencies, that goes for player budget, staffing budget and everything.
“You can sustain that number of people, but where it could fall apart is who is running the business. A football club needs great players, but if it has terrible business people running it, it doesn’t matter. I am aware of our ascent up to the Championship and all the way back down again and there was millions of pounds coming in then. In the Championship, you are talking about £6.5m coming in to this club. Well, I have looked everywhere and I can’t find it. When I came in to the club, it was being financially mismanaged beyond any business I have ever looked at when
“You have to have some astute people behind the scenes and therefore I have to assume there wasn’t those people. I believe if the model is right, it will work but there are so many cogs and if one of those is broken, it effects the whole machine.”
He also reiterated his intention to buy back the land surrounding Huish Park from Somerset Council, which bought it from the previous chairman <NAME REDACTED> for £2.8m.
The owner holds the exclusive buy-back on the stadium and surrounding land at the site which runs until 17th May 2026, and will pay £195,000-a-year in rent until he activates that option.
He added: “There is no point in me buying that land back when I have not planned what I am doing with it. I am quite happy for it to be in the ownership of the council now, but it is my ambition to reunite that land with this club.
“It should never have been separated. It was separated to sell to someone to build houses on and that is fine if the income from that sale came in to the club, but it never would have.
“One of our biggest achievements was getting the buy-back rights on the land. If you can imagine the kind of effort which goes in to turning this club around this season has taken, you barely have time to think about it.
“But I am certainly not going to continue to rent a load of fields and watch people walk their dogs on them every morning.
“I don’t think there is much negotiation to do on that. The last chairman sold it to the council for £2.8m, the rent we pay represents 8% of what that would be, the land was index-linked so that £2.8m is probably £3.2m now.
“You also have a council in term freefall in terms of finances. If only they ran councils like businesses, you wouldn’t have five blokes on a roundabout looking at a daffodil!“
Terry Cotton has done it all at Huish Park, and on this edition of the Glovers Past, Dave, along with Michael West from the YTFC Heritage Society pick the brain of one of the most recognisable faces at Huish Park on match day.
Thank you for your continued support of the Gloverscast. Remember to add Gloverscast.co.uk to your favourites and check the website daily for the latest news and views from Huish Park.
Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Leave us a review and share the pod with a pal.
We’d love to welcome some local businesses into the Gloverscast family through advertising. If you’re a business that would like to speak to a dedicated audience of more than 1000 monthly listeners, please get in touch. Find out more about advertising with us here.
If you have an idea for the website, want to contribute or just want to send us a message, feel free to email ian@gloverscast.co.uk.
The Yeovil Town supporter who was taken ill at the Easter Monday derby at W*ymouth had “a comfortable night” in hospital, her sister has told fans.
The National League South match was abandoned with Yeovil trailing 1-0 after 77 minutes following a delay of more than 40 minutes as the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance landed on the pitch at the Bob Lucas Stadium.
The supporter was taken by ambulance to Dorchester County Hospital and her sister posted on the Ciderspace Facebook to thank fans for their good wishes on Tuesday morning.
In the post, Louise Goodland said: “The lady in the emergency at Weymouth yesterday was my sister, she is in the Intensive Care Unit, she has had a comfortable night. Thank you for everyone’s help and good wishes.”
In a statement posted on Tuesday, the club said it was talking with the National League around the outcome of the fixture and thanked the Air Ambulance Service for responding so quickly.
The statement said: “It is moments such as this which place fixtures into perspective. We are extremely proud of the way in which the fans and staff conducted themselves in light of the emergency.
“We would also like to express our gratitude to the Dorset & Somerset Air Ambulance who reacted so promptly in order to ensure the proper medical treatment was delivered in a timely fashion.
“We are in correspondence with the National League and the FA regarding the outcome of the fixture which is currently unknown. We will provide an update on this as soon as we are able.
“Once again, the thoughts of the Club are with the supporter, their friends and family who we understand remains in intensive care and is receiving the best possible treatment.”
We are sure we speak for everyone when we wish the supporter the best in her recovery and hope to see her back at Huish Park at some point in the future.
