Ian Perkins (Page 64)

Mark Cooper said he should have left Yeovil following the victory against Eastleigh and that the club didn’t get recruitment right before the transfer window shut, laying bare the division at Huish Park.

Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Sheridan Robins after the Glover’s 4-0 defeat at Gateshead, Cooper said: “I’ve been promoted out of this league as a manager, I think I know what a good National League player looks like. Obviously some people didn’t think that I knew that. We haven’t done the right thing and we haven’t reacted the right way to what we needed to do before the transfer window shut, in my opinion. The proof will be in the pudding and we’ll all get judged on that.”

You don’t need a PHD to read between the lines, with Cooper clearly taking aim at the club’s potential new owners. He added that the recruitment has affected the changing room: “I think it’s clear over the last few weeks it’s affected the changing room. In any business, if you don’t get your recruitment right you’re in for disaster. You’re always playing catch up and hopefully it’s a lesson for everybody, that in future, wherever we are that the recruitment needs to be solid.”

There was chants of “We want Cooper out” during the game, and Cooper understood the reasoning.

“It’s part of the job, you have to accept that. If you don’t win games, it’s coming. I think the reasonable, proper fans understand and know what’s going on. I wanted to come and build this club like I did at Forest Green for five years and make it into proper football league club. But you need support and you need backing for that,” he said.

When asked why he hasn’t walked away, Cooper said he wasn’t willing to walk out on the players, but that he “probably should have done after the Eastleigh game”.

Yeovil fell to a 1-0 defeat against Bromley yesterday in a result that could prove disastrous in the fight for National League survival. Ian was at Huish Park and here are his conclusions.

We were lucky it was 1-0. The scoreline didn’t really tell the story of yesterday. Bromley could have gone home having scored 5 or 6 with the chances they spurned. Grant Smith (as always) made some important saves but the visitors were profligate in front of goal. The Glovers struggled defensively on corners and throw ins and were carved open more than once. The early goal from Toppaloj gave Yeovil plenty of time to claw something back but…

We never looked like we were going to score. Unfortunately it was the usual story going forward. Chances created were few and far between. Alex Fisher had a chance from header which you expect prime Warren Patmore to bury, but not Fisher. The arrival of Griffiths, Pollock and Siziba made little difference. Harriott was bright and looked like he had something about him, but could only last the first half. We’ve added players that our new stewards say are ready to go and our manager says aren’t. On yesterday’s evidence, I’m with the manager on this one.

We missed our ball carriers. When you take out Jordan Stevens, Jordan Young, Matt Worthington and Lawson D’Ath, the squad loses so much. The pairing in midfield of Freckleton and Cooper never looked comfortable and it was only when we switched to a back three (argh wingbacks!) that we got good spells of possession. Anything good was going to come from Charlie Cooper but even he couldn’t work miracles with what was in front of him. All he could do was pass to his wingbacks but with Bromley’s organisation it was near impossible to cut through. We missed the pace of Young and Stevens and without Worthington we weren’t able to play out from the back effectively.

Something felt off yesterday. We’ve had some bad games this season, but that was down there with the Aldershot home game. I think for most of the season, the team have played together and worked for each other but yesterday felt so disjointed. It was a performance devoid of team spirit. Mark Cooper and Chris Todd, usually so animated on the touch line were not their usual selves. Cooper’s admission after the match that the new owners sign who they want to doesn’t tally with the approach talked about in the week. To me, the substitutions looked like Cooper was making a point of ‘here are your players, let’s see what they can do’. Despite all the positivity outside, morale at Huish Park appears lower than ever. There is clearly a growing divide between the boardroom and the dressing room and it couldn’t come at a worse time.

If we don’t fix it, we’re down. Results around us couldn’t have gone worse yesterday. Gateshead’s win and there two games in hand see us staring down the barrel. There’s no recruitment left to happen and this is our lot. Worthington will be back from suspension, but if we can’t get Stevens, Young and D’Ath fit enough for the run in then I’m worried. The new lads need to get up to speed and only can in matches, but we’ve got eight cup finals to retain our National League status. Unity comes from within the club and if the manager is being told who to pick and new players aren’t embedding into the group then we may as well call it now. Cooper is far from perfect, the recent form shows that, but with his experience and pedigree as a manager there’s no one more suited to pull us out of this. If a rash decision is made now, we’re in Marmon territory and we may as well look forward to trips to Bath City and Taunton Town next season.