David Coates (Page 8)

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Yeovil Town interim manager Richard Dryden hailed his side’s work ethic as they picked up their second victory in three days with a 1-0 home win over Altrincham today.

A first half header from defender Morgan Williams was enough to secure the three points, but the Glovers had to work hard to contain an impressive visiting side who came close to taking a point on a number of occasions in the second half.

It means Dryden has now picked up six points in his first two games since being given the top job until the end of the season following the shock departure of Danny Webb on Monday.

Asked by BBC Somerset reporter Jack Killah how he felt after the game, the manager said: “It’s still stressful, if I am honest. We did not start great, a bit like on Wednesday night, but we got in to the game and we looked like we could counter attack and create a lot of chances. I thought we controlled the game in the first half but it would have been nice if we could have got the second goal having had all those chances. It is hard when you have had all those chances, but Christ we worked hard in that second half.

“A second goal would have been nice, it is just the nature of the beast in football when you are winning 2-0 and someone scores against you, it can be a totally different game. We knew what they we were about, their rotation can kill teams, so to score and keep a clean sheet is great.”

After a slow start, Yeovil clicked in to gear with a front three of Andrew Oluwabori, Junior Morias and Tahvon Campbell causing Altrincham all kinds of problems. In particular, Oluwabori was in rampaging form in the first half and Dryden admitted the on loan Exeter City man brings something different to the side.

The boss said: “He has got a different skillset to anything else we have here, so he complements us very well. He played 80 minutes for us on Wednesday and 70-odd minutes today and he got tired, but need to keep players like that on the pitch. That is a lot of work in two games and it is the same as Junior, he hates coming off. I hate putting up his number because he looks at me as if he is going to kill me! I do not know how many kilometres (Luke) McCormick has put in today, but it’s important when you are camped in for the last 20 minutes like we were, it is fantastic.”

In the second half, the Glovers were indebted to goalkeeper Jed Ward on a number of occasions and had to work hard to keep Altrincham from taking a point.

Dryden added: “We have worked a lot of the season on defending balls in to the box which is what this league is all about, if you can do that you have a great chance of winning games. It is not just about the back three, you have wing backs coming in there and the midfielders sitting in to head balls clear. Finn (Cousin-Dawson) is a lad that does not get a lot of plaudits, but he is there and working hard but you need (those kind of players) in your team and squad.”

Oluwabori, Morias and Campbell were all withdrawn after the break after hard-working performances in Wednesday night’s 4-1 win at Aldershot Town and then again today. Dryden said that captain Jake Wannell, who was replaced by Alex Whittle after 67 minutes, after suffering a glute muscle strain in the warm up.

The interim manager said: “Jake struggled a little bit in the warm up with a glute, in half-time we got him on the bike to keep him moving. He did as much as he could and that is what need at the moment. If we need players to be honest. We have a good squad, we filled the bench and have one or two players coming back, but if you walk in to our changing room and the togetherness is good.”

Dryden fielded an unchanged starting XI from the win at Aldershot and admitted it had been tough on his players with another match coming up at Sutton United on Tuesday night.

The boss added: “When the game started I thought I had made a mistake because we looked a bit tired and did not start well, but we grew in to the game. Now on Tuesday we will have to assess tonight and Sunday what we are going to do because we have one training session before then. I will have to speak to the medical team about that, but we know our shape and what we want to do, so we will see.”

Asked if there could be new signings before the trip to Sutton, he said: “We will look, but I do not want to be jumping in for the sake of it. We have people who can play in different positions, people who want to work for each other.“

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A Morgan Williams header in the first half saw Yeovil Town pick up three points against Altrincham at Huish Park.

After a slow start, the Glovers were driven forward by a front three of Andrew Oluwabori, Junior Morias and Tahvon Campbell who were in scintillating form and it was the Exeter City loanee whose ball was nodded home by Williams.

The second half saw the home side tire as they fought for everything against an impressive Altrincham whose passed the Glovers to death with Jed Ward pulling off a number of critical saves at vital moments.

Huish Park was rocking at the final whistle with around 2,600 home supporters playing their part in ensuring that a difficult week ended with six points – who saw that coming? 

First half

The visitors started at a furious pace with panic inside the Yeovil area from an early corner which saw Jed Ward fail to deal with a corner played deep to his back post and the ball landed to Altrincham’s Keaton Ward who fortunately could not get a decent strike in and our Ward was able to parry it away.

The opening quarter-of-an-hour was played at a million miles with both sides keen to press their opponents whenever they had the ball and it was the lively Andrew Oluwabori who was the big threat for Yeovil. On 16 minutes, he picked the ball up on the right side, cut inside and fired a beautiful shot dipping over the head of Luke Hutchinson in the visitors goal, but it rattled the crossbar. 

Great running by Junior Morias after a wonderful touch from Tahvon Campbell, Morias sped forwards, put it through the legs of an Altrincham defender and was felled by visiting captain Lewis Baines, who was booked for the foul. It was Brett McGavin range, but sadly he was on the bench and Luke McCormick put the free-kick in to the defensive wall.

On 26 minutes, Morias was involved again flicking the ball up and smash a thunderous shot which Dan Sassi did superbly to step up and block the shot with “a tender area”. James Plant grabbed the ball (the football, that is) but referee Wayne Cartmel stopped the play much to the annoyance of the Port Vale loanee and the Thatcher’s End.

After an opening ten minutes where Altrincham were all over the Glovers, the following 20 minutes has been far more solid defensively from Yeovil and there’s been some great opportunities to get a breakthrough. That breakthrough came on 32 minutes and no surprise it was Oluwabori who was at the heart of it. Great play down the right ended with a delicate ball across the area where Morgan WILLIAMS arrived to flick it at the back post.

Oluwabori was at it again on 42 minutes when he burst forward, taking Altrincham defenders on again and smashed an effort in but it was straight in to Hutchinson. The visitors just cannot cope with the Exeter City loanee when he runs at them.

At the other end, Sassi curled an effort just around the post a minute before half-time. Think that one was closer to creeping inside Jed Ward’s post than it first looked, but it would have been harsh on Yeovil, who have dominated the game since the tenth minute.

Half time: Yeovil Town 1 Altrincham 0

Second half

With four minutes of the second half played, Yeovil had a great opportunity to double their advantage.  Junior Morias found himself in space down the left side bearing down on Hutchinson, but his touch let him down and allowed the Altrincham keeper to deflect it as far as Josh Sims whose effort was hacked off the line by Lewis Banks. That should be 2-0 to Yeovil.

There was a real chance for the visitors when Charlie Kirk put a beautiful ball across the face of Jed Ward’s goal on the hour mark, but none of the Altrincham strikers anticipated to level the scores and Sims hacked it away. It has been a cagey start to the second half in comparison with the blood and thunder way the first 45 minutes ended.

With Altrincham starting to look more of a threat as Yeovil’s legs started to tire, Richard Dryden made two changes with Aaron Jarvis and Alex Whittle replacing Campbell and Jake Wannell. Whittle dropped in to the back line with Jarvis taking Campbell’s place in the forward line.

In the 70th minute, Brett McGavin replaced Morias before Yeovil were indebted to Ward after the defence fell asleep from an Altrincham short corner and Banks found himself in lots of space but was denied by the on loan Bristol Rovers keeper.

Yeovil were indebted to Jed Ward on a number of occasions in the second half. Picture courtesy of Debs Curtis.

McGavin almost made an instant impact when he found himself in space after a deft cushioned touch from Jarvis, but his effort flew over the bar. Shortly after, Finn Cousin-Dawson got caught out of position and Altrincham worked a good opportunity which Jimmy Knowles put millimetres past the post. Jed Ward was not getting to that.

Oluwabori, who had been quieter in the second half after a full speed first half, was replaced by Harvey Greenslade with ten minutes remaining.

Another big opportunity for Altrincham and it was Sassi again who flicked a header which crept just wide of the far post with Tom Crawford arriving. Luckily for Yeovil he was unable to get a touch, but the visitors are passing the ball beautifully here and causing Yeovil real problems.

As the game moved in to three minutes of injury time, the visitors continued to turn the screw. Banks had a great opportunity to get the leveller and then Knowles could not quite get to the loose balls.

When the final whistle eventually blew, Huish Park was in full cry as several Yeovil players dropped to their knees. If anyone ever doubted it, these players gave every last drop of energy to earn those three points and end a crazy week with six points in the bag.

This club, ladies and gentlemen, you’ve got to love it!

Full time: Yeovil Town 1 Altrincham 0

Match Details

Venue: Huish Park
Date: Saturday 24th September, 7.45pm kick-off

Competition: National League Premier Division

Scorers: Morgan Williams 32 (1-0)

Pitch: Lovely but cutting up a little
Conditions: Cold but dry with a strong wind going towards the away end

Attendance: 2,607 (64 away supporters)

Bookings: 
Yeovil Town: Junior Morias 54, Kyle Ferguson 61
Altrincham: Lewis Baines 21, Matty Kosylo 45+1

Referee: Wayne Cartmel

Yeovil Town (3-4-1-2)

Substitutes: Alex Whittle (for Jake Wannell, 67), Aaron Jarvis (for Tahvon Campbell, 67), Brett McGavin (for Junior Morias, 70),  Harvey Greenslade (for Andrew Oluwabori, 80), Byron Pendleton (not used), Ben Wodskou (not used), Matt Gould (not used).

Altrincham: Luke Hutchinson, Lewis Banks, Samuel Reed, Lewis Baines, Isaac Marriott, Keaton Ward, Jimmy Knowles, Matty Kosylo (for Elliot Osborne, 70), Tom Crawford, Dan Sassi, Charlie Kirk

Substitutes (not used): Jake Cooper, Owen German, Louis Fallon.

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New Yeovil Town interim manager Richard Dryden has said the club’s players have rallied around him following the shock exit of manager Danny Webb earlier this week.

The coach was put in charge until the end of the season on Monday and oversaw a 4-1 win at Aldershot Town on Wednesday night, and now he is looking to repeat that performance with Altrincham the visitors to Huish Park today.

Talking to BBC Somerset’s Jack Killah ahead of kick-off, he was asked about the past five days and whether he still felt he needed to strengthen his squad with new signings.

Dryden said: “I’m only 56, I feel about 86 after the last ten days, but the last three days has been pretty positive. From Sunday onwards it has been strange, we came in on Monday and Tuesday training with the very little staff we have left at the moment, but the players have rallied around me. I am not going to lie, it was bloody tough with the lack of staff, the lack of knowing what was going on, and on Wednesday they went out and showed they want to play at the club.

“We hit the ground running on Wednesday night and we want to do the same again today, there is a great atmosphere in the changing room. Do we have to bring anyone in? Not necessarily, I am quite happy how the players are performing and they are improving as the season has gone on. There is not great rush to get anyone in, but there might be one or two knocking on the door, so we will see.”

The Glovers have named an unchanged starting XI from the Wednesday night win in Hampshire to face an Altrincham side missing a number of first-choice players through injury and suspension. Dryden admitted it would be hard to drop any players after an impressive display at Aldershot, but does have striker Aaron Jarvis and midfielder Brett McGavin back on the bench after injury.

The manager said: “We can’t change the side after that performance, the only thing we would have changed is if any of the players were tired. This is why playing on a Wednesday is tough sometimes, because yesterday was our second day of recovery and you want a good training session before every game. We did what we needed to do and had a lot of analysis on what we did well and what we could have done better on Wednesday and about Altrincham. 

“I watched their game against Forest Green, they dominated vast parts of that game with the ball, so they are a good side. They are a bit like us and Aldershot how they set up and want to play, but they have a couple missing today so they might change their shape. We will have to work that out quickly when the game starts.”

Dryden said he was desperate to get youngster Ollie Hughes on at Aldershot but fell foul of rules allowing on three groups of substitutions. We believe the midfielder is playing for e Plymouth Parkway for their Southern League fixture at Yate Town today.

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Midfielder Brett McGavin and striker Aaron Jarvis are named among the substitutes as Yeovil Town take on Altrincham at Huish Park this afternoon (3pm kick-off).

The pair both missed the midweek win at Aldershot Town through injury, but are considered fit enough to return on the bench with Glovers’ boss naming an unchanged side from win on Wednesday night.

Young midfielder Ollie Hughes, who has been named among the substitutes in recent matches, misses out.

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After the week that was at Huish Park, Yeovil Town return to home soil with semi-permanent interim manager Richard Dryden in charge to face Altrincham this weekend.

FORM…

YEOVIL TOWN

Well, it’s been a week, hasn’t it folks? The shock exit of manager Danny Webb on Monday morning followed by the shock of assistant manager Chris Todd‘s departure to take up a role at Eastleigh on Tuesday – and then a more pleasant surprise in the form of a 4-1 away win at Aldershot Town on Wednesday night.

A brace from Tahvon Campbell, his first goals since returning to Somerset in the summer, and strikes from Junior Morias and Luke McCormick earned the victory in Hampshire and the Glovers will be looking to carry on their attacking intent in front of the home crowd.

Prior to that the Glovers went down 1-0 at Tamworth in Webb’s only game in charge seven days ago, but they were winners last time out at Huish Park with a late McCormick goal snatching a victory over Woking.

Altrincham

It’s been a difficult few weeks at Altrincham as well. The Robins have lost their last three matches with a defeat at home to Forest Green Rovers on Tuesday night, giving them them a 24 hour head start on recovery over Yeovil.

The game saw Alty’s Tyler Golden red carded for two yellow cards in quick succession meaning he will sit out the match in Somerset as will winger Kahrel Reddin, who equalised against Forest Green, having collected a red for a fracas after the final whistle.

Prior to that there was a 2-1 home loss to Carlisle United, with former Moss Lane favourite Regan Linney on the scoresheet, and a 3-1 loss at in-form Boreham Wood the weekend before that. 

The dismissals in midweek mean that Altrincham have had four players sent off in their last three matches. Midfielder Tom Crawford was dismissed against Carlisle and winger Lucas Weaver saw red at Boreham Wood.

To say that manager Phil Parkinson was unhappy with the referees’ performance against Forest Green would be an understatement but he was happy that his team has been taking the game to their opponents.

 

KEY PLAYERS…

Yeovil Town – Andrew Oluwabori

It is early in the second chapter of on loan winger Oluwabori’s story at Yeovil, but against Aldershot in midweek he showed exactly what he was all about.

The light-weight youngster we had from Peterborough United a few seasons ago has been upgraded with a more robust version on loan from Exeter City and on Wednesday night he showed his ability to change the game with driving runs, tackles and great link-up play.

Andrew Oluwabori during his first loan spell at Yeovil in 2022-23. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Altrincham – Jimmy Knowles

Summer signing Knowles has made an impressive start to life at Altrincham with five goals in his first 11 appearances and will be the main goal threat for the visitors.

Prior to the midweek defeat to Forest Green Rovers, the former Accrington Stanley player had three goals in his previous three matches. 

The loss of Golden and Reddin through suspension will be a blow for the visitors and they will need their new talisman to do something special to get a result they feel their recent performances deserve.

THE GAFFER…

Since arriving at Alty at the end of the 2016-17 campaign as a relative unknown, Phil Parkinson (no, not the one from the Wrexham fairytale) has become one of the most impressive managers in then non-League game.

He took over after the Alty had been relegated to the Northern Premier League and got them promote back to the National League North as champions at the first attempt before reaching the play-offs in his second season and then winning promotion via the play-offs in 2020.

Altrincham manager Phil Parkinson was distinctly unimpressed with the refereeing performance against Forest Green Rovers on Tuesday night.

LAST TIME WE MET…

The two sides last met in April when Alty ran out 2-1 winners at Moss Lane thanks to a late Lewis Baines strike. Full-back Tyler Golden, who will be missing through suspension this time around, opened the scoring on the half-hour mark before Yeovil loanee defender Frankie Terry equalised quickly.

The time the two sides met at Huish Park they played out a fairly forgettable goalless draw last September.

DON’T I KNOW YOU…

Altrincham defender Billy Sass-Davies made the move to Cheshire in the summer having left Hartlepool United. The Welshman impressed during a spell with Yeovil on loan from Crewe Alexandra in the COVID-hit 2020-21 campaign, playing 22 times and scoring once.

He is unlikely to feature against his former club having not yet made an appearance since his return to Alty due to injury.

THE MAN IN THE MIDDLE…

Wayne Cartmel will be the man in the middle for today’s game. You can read more about him – HERE.

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New interim Yeovil Town manager Richard Dryden praised his players for “playing for the club” as they overcame a tumultous 48 hours in the club’s history to win 4-1 at Aldershot Town on Wednesday night.

The Glovers raced in to a 3-0 lead in Hampshire courtesy of goals from Tahvon Campbell, Junior Morias and Luke McCormick before Campbell added a fourth from the penalty spot in the second half.

It followed the exit of former boss Danny Webb after just 11 days in charge on Monday morning and the departure of assistant manager Chris Todd to take up a job at league rivals Eastleigh yesterday. Dryden was joined on the touchline in Hampshire by his new number two, former Glovers’ player Jerry Gill.

Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Josh Perkins after the game, the boss said: “It is hard to explain, I know a lot about Aldershot, they have a great team, a fantastic manager and coaching staff so coming here and winning like that is just a massive boost for this club.

“The belief in there with these players, they know they are a good team. We are going to lose games, we are going to lose games and we are not going to play well at times, but that is the league we are in.”

It took just 11 minutes for Yeovil to go in to a surprise lead against the run of play when Campbell bundled the ball home before Morias doubled the advantage ten minutes later and then McCormick added a third after 26 minutes with a cool finish.

Yeovil Town celebrate Tahvon Campbell’s second half penalty. Picture courtesy of Mitch Clarke.

Around the hour mark, James Plant was felled inside the box and Campbell stepped up to fire home the penalty before Aldershot substitute James Henry pulled a goal back in the first half of second half stoppage time.

Dryden said: “Everybody did well as an attacking unit. We had a plan which we maybe did not execute very well for the first ten minutes but after that the shape looked good, the team unity looked good and they are playing for the club. It is good to see. There are different ways to win a game and come Saturday (against Altrincham at home) we may be set up differently tactically, I will look with the analyst. 

“They were a credit to themselves defensively as well as an attacking unit. We talked (in the dressing room after the game) about the last ten minutes when we could have stopped a little bit more space when we could push out a bit more. They have worked hard, they are going to get tired, but Aldershot had nothing to lose and they could have nicked another goal as well. We have to work on that, it is another lesson learned.”

The win came without first-teamers striker Aaron Jarvis, who limped off with a knee injury in the 1-0 defeat at Tamworth in Webb’s only game in charge on Saturday, and midfielder Brett McGavin who is suffering a back injury. Dryden said after the match he expected Jarvis to train on Friday ahead of the weekend’s home match with Altrincham, and added the McGavin had been “really close” to featuring on Wednesday night.

Dryden was handed the top job until the end of the season following the exit of Webb and given the backing of the club’s ownership and was asked whether he could recruit new players before the weekend.

He replied: “I don’t know, I could maybe do with one more member of staff after the mass exodus. The lads have worked so hard, as they have to when there are only 15 or 16 of them, so they need help but they have the shirts at the moment. We will try and bring one or two more in, but we want to make sure we get the right ones. We will see.“

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After three days which have rocked the club, Yeovil Town turned in a scintillating team performance to pick up a huge three points at Aldershot Town.

The Glovers took the lead after 11 minutes when Tahvon Campbell smashed home from close range, ten minutes later the impressive Andrew Oluwabori laid it off to Junior Morias who doubled the advantage and then Luke McCormick fired in a beautiful third. With 26 minutes gone, the Glovers were cruising.

In the 64th minute, Campbell fired home a penalty to make it 4-0 before Aldershot substitute James Henry pulled one back a minute in to second half injury time.

It might not have been a cleano, but after everything which has happened at Huish Park since the news of manager Danny Webb’s shock departure you have to take your hats off to everyone for that performance and this result.

What a reaction. What a club.

First half

The first chance of the game fell to the home side as Archy Taylor hit a half-volley over the bar and it was Aldershot who enjoyed the better of the opening ten minutes with dangerman Josh Barrett an ever-present threat.

Having been on the back foot for the opening 11 minutes, Yeovil did a truly Yeovil thing and took the lead. Junior Morias robbed the Taylor  broke in to the box and hammered in a shot which keeper Marcus Dewhurst blocked with his legs and it fell to Tahvon CAMPBELL whose shot cannoned off Theo Widdrington on the line and into the net.

On the 15 minute mark, James Plant cut in from the left hand side and fired in a shot which Dewhurst parried away and moments later Oluwabori broke forward and fired in a shot which came off an Aldershot defender and wide for a corner. There’s definitely opportunities for Yeovil to get at the home side here.

In the 21st minute, it was 2-0 to Yeovil. A high ball forward was superbly brought down by Oluwabori, who laid it off to his left where Junior MORIAS picked it up, fainted to shoot before smashing a shot past Dewhurst.

Junior Morias celebrates Yeovil Town’s second goal.

Two minutes later it could have been three, a ball in from Plant on the left found Oluwabori on the edge of the box, he turned and fired in a shot which Dewhurst had to get down smartly to keep it out. Oluwabori and Morias are pulling the Aldershot defence all over the place.

On 25 minutes it was 3-0. A long ball forward picked out Luke McCORMICK who was in acres of space down the left side, he tore forward and superbly finished. It has been kamikaze defending from  the Aldershot back three, but ruthlessly exposed by Yeovil. What is going on here?! Every time the ball goal goes forward, Yeovil look like they can score.

Aldershot responded with an immediate change with Ryan Jones replacing Charlie Penmen, but it does not stop the visitors from pushing frorward with Oluwabori breaking forward and fizzing a low shot across the face of goal.

With five minutes remaining until half-time, Aldershot had a shot on goal – it was about time. Barrett picked up a loose ball on the edge of the box and fired in a shot which Jed Ward did well to turn away.

Half time: Aldershot Town 0 Yeovil Town 3

Second half

Aldershot came out with a half-time flea in their ear and had some early pressure, but there are green-and-white shirts back fighting to keep the pressure off.

With 56 minutes on the clock, Morias, who looked to have a problem with his knee, was replaced by Byron Pendleton who went in to the right wing-back position with Josh Sims moving further forward in to the berth left by Morias.

There was not a great deal for either side until the 62nd minute when James Plant broke in to the box and was pulled down by the home side’s Ryan Hill, referee Stephen Parkinson pointed to the penalty spot. Tahvon CAMPBELL took the ball and send Dewhurst the wrong way. 

Tahvon Campbell celebrates his penalty in front of the travelling supporters.

Two minutes after adding to their advantage, Yeovil introduced Harvey Greenslade in place of Josh Sims. There hasn’t been much to offer At the other end, Jed Meerholz headed one wide and substitute Jones put one wide, but there was not much on offer from them.

With 12 minutes remaining, Richard Dryden made a couple change with Alex Whittle and Ben Wodskou replacing the excellent Oluwabori and Plant. The closing stages of this game have been wonderfully controlled from Yeovil who have kept Aldershot at arms length with a thoroughly professional performance.

Just as I say that, Aldershot have pulled a goal back. As the fourth official’s board goes up for six minutes of injury time, Jones had space down the left side and the ball landed to the feet of James HENRY who coolly struck it in past Ward from the edge of the box.

That goal has given Aldershot a bit of a lift and with five minutes of injury time played, Archy Taylor fires in a shot which Ward does superbly to tip over the bar.

Honestly, this football club, right? After the three days we have had since the shock departure of Danny Webb on Monday morning it would have been easy for the players to fold, for the supporters to not turn up and for us to tumble further in to despair. Instead, we are 4-0 ahead in front of over 200 people who have made the journey to Hampshire on Wednesday night. We’re some club.

Full time: Aldershot Town 1 Yeovil Town 4

Match Details

Venue: The Recreation Ground
Date: Wednesday 24th September, 7.45pm kick-off

Competition: National League Premier Division

Scorers: Tahvon Campbell 13 (1-0), Junior Morias 21 (2-0), Luke McCormick 26 (3-0), Tahvon Campbell pen 64 (4-0), James Henry 90+1 (4-1)

Pitch: Text
Conditions: Text

Attendance: 1,931 (203 away supporters)

Bookings: 
Yeovil Town: Harvey Greenslade 67, Kyle Ferguson 82
Aldershot Town: Dejan Tetek  62

Referee: Stephen Parkinson 

Yeovil Town (3-4-1-2)

Substitutes: Byron Pendleton (for Junior Morias, 56), Harvey Greenslade (for Josh Sims, 65), Alex Whittle (for James Plant, 78),  Ben Wodskou (for Andrew Oluwabori, 78), Ollie Hughes (not used), Matt Gould (not used).

Aldershot Town: Marcus Dewhurst, Josh Barrett (for James Henry, 73), James Claridge, Cameron Hargreaves (for Tristan Abrahams, 61), Ryan Hill (for Kiban Rai, 73), Jed Meerholz, Charlie Penman (for Ryan Jones, 26), Archy Taylor, Dejan Tetek (for Hady Ghandour, 73), Kwame Thomas, Theo Widdrington.

Substitutes (not used): Ben Jackson, Patrick Nash.

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Yeovil Town’s new manager Richard Dryden has called on the club’s supporters to unite behind the team as they prepare to start life after Danny Webb’s short-lived reign as manager.

The experienced coach was handed the job following the departure of Webb on Monday after just 11 days in charge and he takes charge of his first match tonight at Aldershot Town, the club he left in the summer to come to Huish Park.

Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Josh Perkins ahead of kick-off, he said: “It is a very big challenge, we have all got to come together as a group and that is everyone. I am telling you now, it has to be the fans and the social media, we have all got to get together because it is another start, if we are all going in different directions it is going to be bloody hard.

“The players on the pitch are having a go and I will play players who want to have a go for Yeovil. If they don’t want to, we will move them on or they will go and sit on the bench. We want players who are going to play for the club, score goals and defend with their lives like they did for the four games I was in charge.”

He has made three changes from the 1-0 defeat at Tamworth on Saturday, which will go down in the club’s record books as Webb’s only one as first-team manager, with forward players Junior Morias, Tahvon Campbell and new loan signing Andrew Oluwabori in the starting XI.

He confirmed that frontman Aaron Jarvis, who came off with ten minutes remaining at Tamworth, was unavailable with a knee injury and that midfielder Brett McGavin had not recovered from the back injury which ruled him out at the weekend.

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Andrew Oluwabori and Tahvon Campbell have been brought in to the starting XI for Yeovil Town’s first game after the departure of former boss Danny Webb at Aldershot Town tonight (7.45pm kick-off).

The pair replace Harvey Greenslade and Aaron Jarvis with Jarvis not named in the squad after limping off in Saturday’s defeat at Tamworth.

Junior Morias, who came off the bench at the weekend, also starts with Byron Pendleton on the bench.

Midfielder Brett McGavin, who was also missing at the weekend, is also not named in the squad.

Yeovil Town: Jed Ward, Morgan Williams, Jake Wannell, Kyle Ferguson, Finn Cousin-Dawson, Luke McCormick, James Plant, Josh Sims, Junior Morias, Tahvon Campbell, Andrew Oluwabori.

Substitutes: Matt Gould, Byron Pendleton, Alex Whittle, Ollie Hughes, Harvey Greenslade, Ben Woodskou.

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Yeovil Town’s new ownership has insisted it gave Danny Webb its full backing to strengthen his squad before his shock departure of manager Danny Webb today.

Speaking to the Gloverscast just hours after the announcement, Chief Strategy Advisor Nicholas Brayne said there had “not been a single disagreement” with the now former boss who quit just ten days after taking over at Huish Park.

He described the club as “bitterly disappointed and shocked” by the former Chesterfield assistant manager’s resignation just ten days after taking the job, but insisted that personal and family reasons were the driving force behind the decision to quit.

Brayne said: “Danny was very much supported, he knew there was money to spend, we had put a recruitment strategy in place with Danny and we were working through that. Andrew (Oluwabori) joined on Friday and there were other conversations going on led by Danny with all of us supporting him, I personally had a number of conversations with agents of players we wanted to bring in to the squad and there was money there for Danny to do what he wanted to do to make us more competitive on the pitch. That is exactly the same case for Richard.

“To be clear, when you hear people say ‘has he walked away from the club because there’s been a disagreement?’ There has not been a single disagreement with Danny and he will say that the ownership group backed him every step of the way whatever he thought he needed for this club to succeed and as a human being with what he has gone through over the last 48 hours.”

Nicholas Brayne, left, speaks with Richard Dryden, Chris Todd and Sihal Shrinavasan, the son of owner Prabhu, following the win at Solihull Moors earlier this month.

The advisor, who is part of the ownership group led by Dubai-based businessman Prabhu Srinivasan which took over the club in May, insisted the decision to give Dryden the job would bring stability at Huish Park. The coach was brought to the club by former boss Mark Cooper in the summer and will lead the team when they travel to his former club Aldershot Town on Wednesday night.

Brayne said: “In the four games which Richard was in charge was a really good, stabilising factor behind the scenes, he is really good with people, really good with the board, really good with the players and that is what we need now. We need someone who is going to take time and give us time and that is why that Richard is taking the helm until the end of the season.

“This whole process of trying to identify and get the right manager, we have just run that process. From the perspective of energy, focus and making sure we are running in the right direction, to run that process again you would be talking about another four weeks (of uncertainty). I think the fans and the players would get restless, so we are saying ‘let’s calm this situation down’, Richard is in charge, in him we are going to trust. I think it give everyone a sense of direction.”

The announcement at 10am on Monday morning stunned the club’s supporters and has sent shockwaves through Huish Park. It comes just over 24 hours after a 1-0 defeat at Tamworth in Webb’s first game in charge which he followed with a post-match interview where he spoke about understanding “the magnitude of the job.”

Brayne said that he had spoken with Webb on a number of occasions during Sunday, adding: “Everyone has been bitterly disappointed and shocked. Danny was selected after a process which took several weeks and I think everyone got an idea of why he was selected, the way he came across, the way he interacted with the media, fans and the people here. He’s a very personable character and he has got a good track record in football, so it is easy to see why we felt he was a really good fit for Yeovil. He hit the ground running last week and then he has now decided to step away from the dug out for personal reasons.

“I had a number of calls with Danny on Sunday to make sure he was okay to understand the process of how he had come to that decision. We talked about his welfare, his mental health, what he was thinking, so a lot of that was about making sure he was okay on a human level which I am pleased to say he is. Then we were trying to understand the rationale of how we got to this point which is a really difficult process.”

You can read the interview with our Ian in full here or listen to it here.