Ian Perkins (Page 78)

The Glovers let two leads slip against the league leaders, but showed a big improvement on their last two matches. Here is Ian’s conclusions from the 2-2 draw with Chesterfield.

Chiori Johnson has waited patiently and taken his chance. Through no fault of his own, Morgan Williams missed out yesterday and patiently waiting in the wings has been summer signing Chiori Johnson. Johnson took his chance and was one of the bright sparks of the game. He provided an outlet going forward on the right and looked the most natural of the players who’ve played wingback so far this season. Jamie Reckord has been our main wide threat before yesterday and as a result we’ve ended up focusing our play on the left, Johnson gave us the opportunity to get it down the right too.

Josh Staunton was solid in the heart of defence. I know there’s still a debate about whether to play him in centre midfield, but his performances in midfield against Scunthorpe and Eastleigh haven’t inspired confidence so far. In the middle of a back three, he’s looked stronger in my view. Wrexham and Dagenham were highlights, and we can add Chesterfield to that too. He got a goal (I think) but he led in typical fashion and was a rock in defence. I think we can put to bed the midfield discussion.

Gime Toure was in the mood. He gambled early on and hassled the Chesterfield defence to earn an early goal and his afternoon was probably his best in a green and white shirt so far. He scared the Spireites back line with his direct running, hunted down loose balls and got himself in a dangerous areas that caused panic amongst the Chesterfield defence. Can he do it consistently? Can any of them? I don’t know, but I enjoyed what I saw from Toure.

We need to find a way to see these games out. We’ve let leads slip against Altrincham, Eastleigh and Chesterfield and got three points from those games rather than nine, which would make us all feel a lot more happier than we are. While we were resilient against Dagenham and hung on, albeit with our backs firmly planted in the wall, against Chesterfield we had a bit of everything but lacked the concentration in key moments. Shortly after the opener, Grant Smith decided to go on a walkabout and wiped out Joe Quigley, giving us a set piece to contend with, which we didn’t. Why he decided to cover Jamie Reckord’s position needlessly, only he can explain. The delivery on the corner for the second goal just seemed to catch the Glovers napping. The flat delivery to the edge of the box, the weak shot, the hashed clearance and poor marking. You can forgive worldies from distance and genuine class, but the equalisers yesterday felt of our own doing.

We need to reproduce these performances against the rest of the league. The drastic improvement from York and Eastleigh needs to be more than a one-off. If this is what we can do, it needs to be the standard. Not just the level for the likes of Wrexham and Chesterfield. In our season preview podcast, Adam Virgo said how the big games look after themselves, it’s the ones you ‘should win’ that cause problems. If that doesn’t sum up our season so far, I don’t know what does. We need to make these passing, pressing, “blood and guts” (Staunton 17:9) performances the norm – not the exception.

Former Yeovil Town FC media officer, Alex O’Loughlin, was summarising for BBC Somerset at Eastleigh yesterday evening. Here are his conclusions from the 1-1 draw in Hampshire.

We don’t look like scoring. There’s a general consensus surrounding football that as long as you’re creating chances, results will eventually come and concern can fall by the wayside. I, however, remain concerned. The goal last night came from a glaring error from Eastleigh goalkeeper Joe McDonnell (although credit must go to Malachi Linton for being alert and Sam Pearson for a subsequent smart finish), but the keeper didn’t even have an opportunity to atone for his mistake. Unless the drizzly haze at the Silverlake Stadium played tricks on my eyes, I can’t recall another meaningful attempt on goal. That’s a worry, especially when Linton, Pearson, Charlie Wakefield, Lawson D’Ath and Alex Fisher were all on the pitch at some point.

The curious case of Charlie Wakefield. Having been crowned ‘the best on earth’ following a scintillating first season at Huish Park, it’s just not happening for Chaz at the moment. Understandably subdued when deployed as a wing-back, he didn’t get into the game in an attacking sense at all at Eastleigh – no sight of the lung-busting runs or weaving his way to the byline before picking out someone in the middle. Credit, though, must be awarded for a tenacious defensive display. Charlie continually tracked back to double up with Morgan Williams and his effort can’t be questioned. I just hope we can find a system and tactics that gets the best out of him. ‘A silky winger, is just what we need’.

Alfie Pond who? I’m aware this has all been a bit doom and gloom, so to chirp us up a little, I think we can look forward to watching more of Owen Bevan this season. After Alfie Pond’s unexpected departure on deadline day it seemed as if the back four was to be left weakened, but if last night is anything to go by, Bevan has firmly grasped one of the centre back spots. Brave, commanding in the air, quick on the turn and with a bit of s***housery that we all enjoy watching, the Bournemouth loanee stood out on a disappointing night. Without trying to over-hype the young lad, it was Steven Caulker-esque how he slotted straight in and looked a cut above the rest.

A point on the road is never to be sniffed at, but it’s only a good point if we win on Saturday. Despite the odds being stacked heavily in Chesterfield’s favour at the weekend, the lads need to produce a performance that ends in victory – the Wrexham display (although a draw) should give us some form of hope. In an ideal world, the Spireites are dispatched and we have four points from a possible six – happy days. The alternatives are either two points or, worse still, one point from a possible six and, quite possibly, a drop into the relegation zone. Gulp.

Some things are bigger than football, and seeing Marcus Stewart in the dugout was a heart-warming moment. The outpouring of support from all corners of the footballing world following the announcement of his diagnosis with Motor Neurone Disease highlights just how well-respected Marcus is, both as a footballer who was capable of mesmerising brilliance, and, more importantly, as a wonderful human being. It was great to see the passion that Marcus adds on the touchline and as a Glovers family, we’ll be behind him every step of the way.