David Coates (Page 185)

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Yeovil Town top-scorer Rhys Murphy has been linked with a move to National League new boys Southend United.

The @SouthendSimply Twitter account appears to have taken a punt after the Southend Echo reported the Essex club had made two signings – one of which is believed to be a striker – but could not announce them until their current club’s season had finished.

Murphy’s home base in the South East, plus confirmation from  Glovers’ boss Darren Sarll that the striker has not yet accepted a contract offer are presumably part of the speculation equation as well.

The 30-year-old, who has 13 goals this season, has not featured since the 3-0 home win over Solihull Moors at the end of last month.

https://twitter.com/SouthendSimply/status/1395798727537876994?s=20

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It has been a disappointing end to Altrincham‘s first season back in the National League after promotion last year.

A strong start saw them pick up wins against Wrexham, Chesterfield, Boreham Wood and Dagenham and Redbridge, but their form had just started to take a downward turn when Yeovil beat them 2-0 at Huish Park with goals from Rhys Murphy and Chris Dagnall in mid-February.

They go in to this weekend’s fixture on the back of a terrible run of form with six defeats and a draw in their last seven games and will be hoping to put on a final flourish with fans allowed back in the The J.Davidson Stadium for the first time.

Altrincham have two more opportunities to entertain the home crowd with another home game against Eastleigh in midweek before finishing at home to Gary Johnson’s Torquay next weekend.

FROM THE (ASSISTANT) MANAGER

Speaking after a 2-1 defeat at W*ymouth last weekend, Alty assistant manager Neil Sorvel said he was aiming to finish top of the mini-league of promoted sides including King’s Lynn, Wealdstone and W*ymouth.

He said: “It would be a really good achievement to do that, but it needs a positive finish from us, and that’s what we will be aiming for.

“We’ve got three home games left, with the fans back in, and we need some good performances to get them on our side.

“We’ve got to produce something that will excite them, and we can do that by playing to the level we’re capable of.”

TEAM NEWS

On the eve of Yeovil’s visit to Greater Manchester, Altrincham confirmed that forwards Yusifu Ceesay and Joe Piggott are both set to leave the club.

Neither player has appeared in the squad since the Bank Holiday Monday defeat at Solihull Moors earlier this month and manager Phil Parkinson said the decision had been made to give the club “the strongest, most competitive squad possible” for next season.

Speaking to the club’s website, the manager said: “Ultimately, we want to be more than just survival candidates long term. That’s why difficult decisions have to be made, and we are in the process of making some key ones. I would like to thank them both for their commitment to the club this season. Their attitude and application has been first class.”

Striker Nyal Bell and  defender Yoan Zouma have also been allowed to  return to their parent clubs, National League rivals Stockport and Barrow respectively – and we would like to thank them for their efforts during their short spells with Alty.

A FOOT IN BOTH CAMPS

Glovers’ on-loan defender Billy Sass-Davies had a spell on loan at Altrincham earlier this season.

The Crewe Alexandra player made seven appearances on loan between November and December.

That was his second spell with Alty having had a brief spell there at the end of last season, making just one appearance before being recalled by his parent club.

A slightly more retro connection is winger Lee Elam who had 12 matches with Yeovil Town who was snapped up by Gary Johnson back in our first season in the Football League back in 2003.

He made 12 appearances in that season before being shipped out to Chester City at the end of that campaign.

Elam would later go on to play for Exeter and W*ymouth in the Westcountry and eventually spent the 2008-09 at Altrincham  in the Blue Square Premier, playing 45 times and coaching the club’s youth team.

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Yeovil Town manager Darren Sarll has said the club will need to be careful with their recruitment as they prepare for a third season in the National League.

The Glovers’ boss said there were “ongoing discussions” with a number of players who are out of contract at the end of the current campaign, but said the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the loss of parachute payments would hit hard.

Speaking on Thursday ahead of the weekend’s match at Altrincham, he said: “We have lost huge amounts of money next year because our League parachute payments stop.
“I have to take my hat off to Scott (Priestnall) because he has taken over a club at the worst time ever with relegation from the League, then COVID and the loss of parachute payments, but he has always stood firm and tried to give me the best conditions to do my job.
“We learnt on recruitment by not recruiting early enough, which we went on record about earlier this year around Christmas when I was having a bad time.
“We have to spend very sensibly this year and recruitment has to be a lot better.”

He said he expected to have another busy summer with agents for players pitching him players and potentially having to react to losing players, adding the club had made “over six figures” from sales of winger Myles Hippolyte to Scunthorpe United last summer, and strikers Courtney Duffus and Alfie Lloyd to Bromley and QPR respectively.

Sarll said: “Those sales have kept us going, so are we going to have to do that again and have to react to losing players? I don’t know.
“We’re going to have a five-week period between now and the start of pre-season where we are going to have a more settled squad doing a full pre-season. That will be my aim because we have never had that.”

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Darren Sarll is expecting to field another patched-up Yeovil Town side when they travel to Altrincham for the penultimate game of the season this weekend.

The boss has said he expects to be without defender Luke Wilkinson who was sent off for two bookings in the goalless draw with Maidenhead United in midweek, the first for kicking the ball away and the second for handling the ball in to the net.

Yeovil Town manager Darren Sarll.
Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Speaking ahead of the match, Sarll described the decision from referee Daniel Lamport as “silly“, but warned his players he would not accept them picking up bookings for dissent.

He said: “I have said to (Lee) that you are going to lose lots of money if you do that stuff – people are going to get fined.
“I don’t mind people getting booked for tackles, my teams normally play on the edge a bit anyway and if we are booked because we are trying to be competitive, but there is no room for dissent.
“We will probably lose him for the rest of the season which hurts us because he is a huge player for us and we have only had him for 18 games.”

The manager added he did not expect to have any key players including midfielder Matt Worthington or top scorer Rhys Murphy to be fit for the game.

He said: “We have taken a step back because of (the sending off of Wilkinson), I don’t think anyone would be back fit.
“I was hoping to have Alex John back fit and get him in some games because he is a brilliant kid and he deserves some games.
“I don’t think he will make it, I don’t think Worthington will make it, Charlie (Lee) is walking like he has glass in his shoe now.
“Murphy is nowhere near, so we are going to be very short.”

Sarll said he hoped his side would continue to be as motivated as they have been since to returning to playing following a break due to the death of club captain Lee Collins.

He added: “My lads have been heavily motivated and kept a very good attitude and sometimes that has not been good enough and sometimes it has.
“If we can replicate Tuesday’s performance on Saturday, that is all we can ask for.
“The only difference is we are going to be missing another central defender – it’s been a car crash of a season in centre halves.”

Altrincham have confirmed are limiting attendance to just 600 for the visit of the Glovers to “gauge the effectiveness in maintaining social distancing” with tickets on sale to home fans only.

In a statement, the club said: “After carefully considering the paramount importance of spectator safety and the need to test our procedures to gauge their effectiveness in maintaining social distancing, we are limiting the attendance against Yeovil to 600.

“It is our hope and expectation that we will then be able to accommodate the permitted figure of 1,231 for the following two games.”

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Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz

Rhys Murphy has not yet accepted a contract offer to extend his stay at Yeovil Town.

The Glovers’ top scorer, who has 13 goals for the club this season, is out of contract at the end of the season and therefore free to leave on a free transfer.

Speaking ahead of the match at Altrincham, manager Darren Sarll said: “We have tried to discuss on several occasions with Rhys a new contract and, as of yet, he has not accepted any of those offers. It will be ongoing until he signs for Yeovil or somewhere else. We have taken players from lower leagues and players who were relegated with this club and made them better players, and those players have a right to investigate those offers. It is a job, they still have to pay their mortgage and you have to respect that.”

Murphy has not played since the 3-0 home win over Solihull Moors last month when he came on as an 86th-minute substitute and is not expected to play at the weekend.

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Image courtesy of Mike Kunz

Yeovil Town midfielder Lawson D’Ath was on media duties following the Glovers’ 0-0 with Maidenhead on Tuesday night.

The game represented the first game at Huish Park in over a year with supporters in the ground, something which Lawson said made a huge difference.

“It was class to have the fans back, especially when we came out for the warm up to a big cheer, and it just shows how much we’ve missed them, it gives you that extra yard.”

After the game he tweeted his pleasure at seeing Huish Park back to it’s best.

D’Ath surprised not just fans but Darren Sarll too by recovering from a frustrating season with injury to return and put in a couple of top quality performances, possibly ahead of schedule.

On his fitness, the former Reading man said;

“I am putting myself out there and trying to get the fitness going, it is hard work. I am happy, I did not think I would feel this good, to be honest, especially last Tuesday (at Aldershot) coming off the bench, I really felt like I was blowing a bit. But ,Saturday (against King’s Lynn) I felt really good. I don’t know where it came from but I managed to do alright. Today, I had moments where I felt heavy but it is going to be like that playing Saturday and then Tuesday.”

Finally, with one eye on the future, D’Ath signalled the Glovers’ intent to finish the season strong.

“We did well on Saturday and we have done well tonight and now we have to take that on to our last two games and take that in to next season. It is vital that we finish strong this season to take the form in to next year.”

Lawson D’Ath is one of a number of players out of contract this summer, with his recent form putting him in line for an extended deal during the off season.

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Picture courtesy of Andy Cleave

One Yeovil Town supporter went a little further than most to make it to the club’s first home game with fans inside Huish Park.

Kieran Conway ran the 27 miles between his home in Taunton to the ground arriving during the first half of the goalless draw with Maidenhead United on Tuesday night.

He was raising cash for the Adam Stansfield Foundation, Yeovil District Hospital and the club’s own Crowdfunder and has raised £1,460 already.

You can still sponsor Kieran, here: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/raising-money-for-ytfc-ydh-and-as9-foundation

 

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A sending off for Luke Wilkinson and a battling performance will be how the statistics show only Yeovil Town’s second goalless draw of the season, but the real story here was the return of supporters to Huish Park.

In total, 1,497 home fans – unless anyone from Maidenhead United sneaked in unnoticed – were on hand for a battle of two distinctly mid-table sides .

But, if this performance is anything to go by, you can see how much the Glovers have missed the presence of fans in the ground.

The better chances fell to the home side with Josh Neufville and Charlie Lee hitting the woodwork in each half and even after Wilkinson’s dismissal for a second yellow when he clearly handled a corner in to the net.

But, even with a man disadvantage, it was Yeovil who looked to be pressing for the winner and might even go away feeling disappointed not to have got more than a point.

All in all, for those lucky enough to be inside the ground – football is back.

Here’s how I saw it…..

FIRST HALF

Joe Quigley for Reuben Reid in the frontline was the only change Yeovil Town manager Darren Sarll made to his starting line-up, with under-18s’ midfielder Adam Heaton named among the substitutes with the bench at full strength.

The boss was also able to start with the same back four as he did in the 3-1 win over King’s Lynn three days earlier. There’s a novelty, eh?

On the fourth minute, every fan, player and member of staff of both clubs joined in a rapturous round applause in memory of late Glovers’ skipper, Lee Collins. I’m not crying, you’re crying!

https://twitter.com/s_dalbiac/status/1394723470827794441?s=20

Josh Neufville had the game’s first opportunity forcing Maidenhead James Holden, who joined from Championship Reading five days earlier, in to a stop.

Five minutes later, the Luton Town loanee was cutting in from the right and hit a drive which grazed the top of the bar on its way over.

From then on in, it was fairly end-to-end next with the visitors threatening to create something, but not quite forcing Adam Smith in to any meaningful action as two physical teams cancelled each other out.

The nearest opportunity came on 35 minutes when a deep free-kick from Carl Dickinson saw Holden caught in no man’s land and found Quigley whose header was turned wide for a corner, from which Charlie Lee headed just over at the back post.

Holden was in action again with five minutes to go as Chris Dagnall‘s fine pass found Tom Knowles on the right of the box whose shot was turned away.

The half finished goalless but Yeovil will have gone in at the break feeling they had the better opportunities.

Half time: Yeovil Town 0  Maidenhead United 0

SECOND HALF

It was a bright start for the home side having a shot cleared off the line in the opening exchanges and making the better opportunities without ever really threatening the Maidenhead goal.

On the hour mark the visitors made an opening when Smith had to make a good double save from first full-back George Wilson and then reacted quickly to deny Danilo Orsi-Dadamo on the rebound.

On 62 minutes, a corner in from the right was met by the raised arm of Luke Wilkinson who bundled the ball back in to the net and, having picked up a yellow card in the first half, was given his marching orders by referee Daniel Lamport.

It was a disappointing way for such an experienced player to go with a first yellow for kicking the ball away and a second for deliberate handball to bring his season to a premature end.

Lee rattled the crossbar with an impressive volley with 20 minutes to go, but despite their numerical disadvantage it was still Yeovil who still looked the more likely to find the breakthrough with plenty of attacking intent.

However, the final chance of the game did fall to Orsi-Dadamo who broke in to the box in the final minute of normal time, but could only chip an effort over the bar.

Full time:  Yeovil Town 0 Maidenhead United 0

 

Yeovil Town: Smith, Kelly, Wilkinson, Sass-Davies, Dickinson (c), Lee, Knowles, D’Ath, Neufville (for Sonupe, 85), Quigley, Dagnall.
Substitues (not used): Evans (GK), Stephens, Heaton, Quigley.
Bookings: Wilkinson, Dagnall.
Sending off: Wilkinson.

Maidenhead United: Holden, Massey (c), Wells, Parry, Twumasi, Coley (for Keetch, 77), Smith (for Sparkes, 67), Ince, Comley (Egan, 80), Upward, Orsi-Dadamo.
Substitutes (not used): Wiltshire.
Bookings: Wells.

Attendance: 1,497

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Yeovil Town central defender Max Hunt has revealed he will miss the rest of the season with a fractured cheekbone.

The 22-year-old, who suffered the injury in the 3-0 defeat at Wrexham, confirmed the news on his Twitter ahead of Tuesday night’s home game with Maidenhead United, the first in front of supporters at Huish Park.

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Joe Quigley replaces Reuben Reid in the only change to the Yeovil Town starting line-up for the match with Maidenhead United in front of supporters at Huish Park on Tuesday night.

Reid drops to the bench where he is joined by midfielder Adam Heaton, a member of the Glovers’ under-18s, as boss Darren Sarll names a full bench having started with just four subs against King’s Lynn at the weekend.

For the visitors, former Yeovil players Seth Nana Twumasi and Rohan Ince both start.

 

Yeovil Town: Adam Smith, Michael Kelly, Luke Wilkinson, Billy Sass-Davies, Carl Dickinson, Charlie Lee, Tom Knowles, Lawson D’Ath, Josh Neufville, Joe Quigley, Chris Dagnall.
Substitues: Max Evans (GK), Emmanual Sonupe, Toby Stephens,Adam Heaton, Joe Quigley.

Maidenhead United: Holden, Massey (c), Wells, Parry, Twumasi, Coley, Smith, Ince, Comley, Upward, Orsi.
Substitutes: Wiltshire, Egan, Keetch, Sparkes