Ian Perkins (Page 51)

Jordan Young’s hattrick helped Yeovil to another win against a tricky opponent under the lights at Huish Park last night. Here are Ian’s Conclusions from the Bamford Stand…

Jordan Young was on fire. What a difference from Saturday afternoon for Young. Almost everything (less tackling Jordan) he touched turned to gold last night. His first goal and his hattrick were calmness personified inside the box. To say there was a hint of fortune – see also hopelessness – about his second would be an understatement. It’s a great free kick, delivered with wicked bend, but the keeper’s had a nightmare. That’s what Young brings to this team though. His radar was off on Saturday, but under the lights he put on an attacking clinic.

We’ve seen a different side to some players now. With Will Dawes covering the suspended Alex Whittle at left back, we’ve seen that there is cover there. The injury to Jake Wannell has seen Michael Smith fill in at centre back, although we did see he is a mere mortal. We knew we were going to need to use the squad and we saw a bit of that last night with a change in personnel and shape as the game wore on. With the injury to Wannell, I was surprised not to see Josh Staunton come in, but with the hectic schedule it won’t be long before we see him back on the pitch.

With that said, I hope Wannell comes back fast. He’s been a revelation at the back in these last few weeks. His ability to carry the ball out, his calmness in possession and passing has progressed since he first arrived. The partnership between him and Morgan Williams has been a huge part of this record-breaking run. The loan signing of Duncan Idehen will provide extra cover in Wannell’s absence, but it’s hard to imagine someone slotting in like-for-like with the centre backs recent performances.

It got a bit spicy! When the referee blew the whistle for full time, there was quite a bit of tension out there at Huish Park. There was definitely a spirit to the game and Yeovil were victim to a few spicy challenges. I think there was an argument for a red card for Kuhl in the first half for a full-blooded challenge and Frank Nouble took some hefty tackles towards the end of the match. There was a bit of spat between Nouble and Cullen and an exchange between Mark Cooper and the opposition dugout was heated too.

We are dominant, but have to continue respecting the opposition. With a nine point gap and a game in hand at the top, we are undeniably the frontrunners now. If we weren’t before, we are the team everyone will be looking to beat to break this record-breaking run. Belief is so high right now, that with every fixture you can’t help but be confident, but it’s crucial we continue on the path we’ve taken so far. Mark Cooper won’t let confidence turn into arrogance. Every opponent is examined studiously, standards are not going to be allowed to slip and we have to remain classy in victory.

Yeovil Town extended their unbeaten run to thirteen and went six points clear at the top of the table with a game in hand with victory over Dover. Here are Ian’s Conclusions from Huish Park…

Sonny Cox earned his goals. For all the talk about Jake Hyde being back in the side, it was Cox who really left his mark. After an evening on the wing at Torquay, he was down the middle behind Hyde yesterday and he was in the right place at the right time to take his two goals smartly. He struggled to make an impact in the first half but as Dover’s legs tired and Yeovil found their rhythm Cox found space to get on the ball. For such a young player, he’s showing real versatility and great character.

Jordan Young had an off day. Young has been electric so far this season but it was a classic case of trying too hard from Young yesterday. His set pieces were not that standard we’ve come to expect and in the first half, I lost count of how many times he cut inside and put it over the bar. Mark Cooper talked about his half time word being ‘patience’ and there was definitely a bit of impatience on Young’s part in the first half.

The Wannell and Williams partnership continues to improve. It was a solid performance from the Glovers as Dover failed to muster a single shot at Joe Day’s goal. While it was a controlled defensive display from the entire team, Wannell and Williams were cool, calm, and composed in possession. Williams, signed as a centre back in 2021 has played nearly every position other than centre back up until Hampton & Richmond on the 23^rd of September. Since then, he and Wannell have forged a dominant partnership that’s handled every single challenge it’s faced. The way Wannell has progressed over the season is remarkable. Right now, he’s winning everything aerially, he’s not giving strikers a sniff and his composure with the ball is superb.

Familiar patterns of play are emerging. Over the past few matches, the work that’s been going in on the pitch is clear. The link up play in the wide areas with the fullbacks high and getting crosses into the box is becoming instinctive now: Young cuts inside, Michael Smith is on the overlap and the cross comes into the edge of the box. We’ve seen that move in every match lately. It took time to get into the flow yesterday and Dover defended resolutely, but those early days of the season with groans of “get it forward” are a distant memory now.

These record breakers deserve the plaudits. That’s thirteen then. It wasn’t the goalfest- I was hoping for, but it was another game where we dominated and found yet another way to win. Confidence is high and the belief of the supporters is there. The team has won thirteen games in a row (nine in the League, beating Gary Johnson’s promotion winning team in 12/13) and has played some excellent football to boot. The fixture schedule is relentless but I genuinely believe we have the squad, the pit-crew and the management to keep this going.  On to Farnborough…

Ian was in the Torquay Press Box for Yeovil’s 3-1 win last night. Here are his Conclusions from an enjoyable night in the English Riviera.

We got to show off our attacking depth, again. The contrast in the two sides couldn’t have been clearer from the starting line ups. Torquay are ravaged by injuries and missing key players and Mark Cooper was able to bring Jordan Young and Sonny Cox back into his line up, with Jake Hyde, Jordan Stevens and Will Dawes ready to come off the bench. Last night we got to see Cox in left-midfield rather than centrally and he gave a battling performance up against Shaun Donnellan. He faded as the game wore on, but showed another string to his bow in the green and white shirt. Frank Nouble had another good performace, Rhys Murphy should have bagged and Young was at his mercurial best again.

It was a man of the match performance from Sonny Blu Lo-Everton. That was probably Lo-Everton’s best performance in a Yeovil shirt. He was diligent defensively, certain in possession and full of energy. His first half goal was brilliantly struck, showing that when allowed the space Torquay did, he’s able to punish teams. He’s had to wait for his chance, much like Josh Owers did, but there’s so much competition in centre midfield at the moment and anyone who does get dropped will feel harshly done by right now. 

Torquay didn’t really lay a glove on Yeovil. For all the talk about Torquay being our closest rivals this season (and their good home record) we’ve definitely faced tougher tests this season. They’ve got their injury woes, and have added loanees in the past couple of weeks but we kept them at arm’s length for most of the game and for a spell in the first half they couldn’t get near us. There is a long way to go still and we have all the momentum. If, as many predicted, the Gulls are to be our title rivals this season, they have a lot of work to do.

The run continues. This unfathomable, unbelievable run of wins keeps going and off the back of dismal lows of April (and the decade prior) it feels so much sweeter. BBC Devon’s commentator asked if ‘Yeovil always play like that?’ after the match and my answer was ‘yeah, pretty much.’ The performances has been remarkable in these past few weeks, different game plans for different opponents from different levels have shown how prepared Mark Cooper is for any challenge. The supporters are well and truly on board and each game feels more winnable than the last. The connection with players gets closer with each victory too. I don’t think you can underestimate how much closer the HP Source series makes you feel to the players too. Seeing those moments where people’s guard is down, and they appear more relaxed makes such a difference.

Mark Cooper still wants more. Even with 12 wins in a row, it feels like Cooper knows there’s even more to come from this squad. But for a lapse on their goal, Yeovil were pretty dominant throughout at Plainmoor, but you can sense that Cooper really wanted to make it a statement victory. Murphy could have, probably should have scored two. Nouble cuts it back to Worthington when he probably should have smashed it goal, Jordan Young has a great 1v1 in the second half and a couple of better final balls could have seen even more chances to score. I think he wants to really put a team to the sword and Saturday’s visitors are second from bottom, Dover Athletic…