Ian Perkins (Page 95)

Magic of the FA Cup? Maybe. Just maybe it could be ‘our year’ for a cup run after a rollercoaster match with fierce rivals Weymouth.  

Here are Sheridan Robins’ five conclusions from that 1-1 (2-1) penalty shoot-out win.  

The W*ymouth, Yeovil derby has been merely something which happened in our history for me, aged 30, and while no one wanted to be at the same level as them again, it is clear the bite of the tie has not been lost. The past two games have had atmospheres which have not been seen in at least five years, following relegation battles and the lack of away fans at National League level. I may be saying this because they have not beaten us in the past four matches against them – but I very much enjoy the fire in the fixture.  

Sonny Blu Lo-Everton is a supremely talented footballer – and wise beyond his years. I thought this was his finest performance in green and white with relentless running combined with wonderful skill which Weymouth’s back line could not handle. He also presented himself brilliantly in his post-match interview, seeming far older than his 19 years, but also with a lovely sense of joy that he just enjoyed playing for his club out there.  

Penalty shoot-outs can be low quality and exciting. It was probably a decider with one of the lowest numbers of decent penalties in history – yet it was edge of your seat stuff. Those you expected to score didn’t (Sean Shields, Tom Knowles) – and perhaps not your first choices dispatched it perfectly (Adi Yusseff, Dale Gorman). With Joe Quigley having missed in the dying seconds of extra time, too, the fact the Glovers managed to win that is quite something. I had thought we had seen the last of our penalty woes…but that is a worry for another day.  

We need to watch our opponents’ substitutes. A slightly more serious one – with both of W*ymouth’s goals coming from changes from the bench through Bearwish and McQuoid respectively. There is of course the question of slight naivety from our young side to concede goals so late, but our opponents did manage to change it up both times and affect us. Substitute Yussuf – of course – won the penalty late on, but other teams in our division seem to have stronger squads to affect change – but with Lewis Simper now back in contention, that may well change in the next few weeks. 

Terry Skiverton bleeds green and white. Ok, this is a cheat conclusion, as everyone knows this, but what a sight to behold to see a true Yeovil legend joining (and starting) in all the best chants with a host of young players he is helping to mould. He has been through so much with us and maybe doesn’t always get the credit he deserves. I have no doubt that Sir Terry Skiverton had a lot to do with the desire we saw on the pitch last night. 

Four games in the spin at Huish Park and things couldn’t be much worse. Here are my five conclusions from the dire draw against Weymouth.

I stick up for Joe Quigley, quite a lot. After Tuesday I thought we needed to change it up and take him out of firing line, and his performance against Weymouth validated that view. He was given a torrid afternoon by Josef Yarney. The defender physically dominated Quigley. He was sharper. Quicker to the ball and had the nous to earn free-kick after free-kick at the expense of Quigley. Our top scorer’s awful afternoon was compounded when he failed to retain possession from a corner in the 90th minute when trying to wind the clock down which allowed Weymouth to get the ball up the pitch and find an equaliser.

We stuck with a 4-3-3 with Charlie Wakefield up front and it worked nicely in the first 45 minutes. Wakefield took his goal nicely and caused problems for the Weymouth defence. As we dropped deeper in the second half we struggled to get Wakefield on the ball and couldn’t utilise his energy. Wakefield is becoming a bright spark in what has been a dark couple of weeks for the Glovers.

As the second half wore on, the eventual equaliser was as obvious as Phil Jevons putting away a penalty. Grant Smith was taking time on his goal kicks in the first half and in the second we were in no hurry to chase a second goal. Weymouth made tactical changes, brought on fresh legs up front and we dropped deeper and deeper. We made Omar Mussa look like Xabi Alonso in midfield, giving him time and space to dictate proceedings. Our changes saw us bring on a left back for Tom Knowles and move a left back into his position. We were about bring on Lewis Simper to kill some minutes but we never got him on the pitch. Our tactics in the second half invited Weymouth onto us and we paid the price. The resilience and robustness we lauded at the start of the season has been replaced by fragility and fear. 

There were the most vocal chants against our absentee owner who, once again, couldn’t find his way to Huish Park. As the silence continues, the vociferousness of opinion will only continue to grow and he only has himself to blame for that. It was time for someone to stick their head out before the Altrincham game. The longer this goes on, the more toxic the football club is going to become. We’ve talked about the need for total change on the podcast and it could not be clearer now. One of those at the table was at the game today, he has to know the supporters don’t want him running the club. 

We need change in the dugout. Darren Sarll’s race is run in my view. He exited down the tunnel rather than face the fans and I think the signing of Mitch Rose and his comments in the aftermath have caused irreparable damage to the relationship with some supporters. The quality of football is down there with his predecessor’s. Once we’re on the pitch, we can’t change shape or system effectively. I think he’s a manager who has got his hands tied behind his back by his boss, but his cosiness with the “custodian” who is letting the football club die is irreversible. He’s not the man to unite the fans and turn the tide in my view. With anyone else in charge at the club, I think we’d see Terry Skiverton managing on Tuesday and I actually wouldn’t mind it. Sadly, while Scott Priestnall’s at the helm, I don’t see any change happening and that’s why we need a takeover to be completed as soon as possible.