Five Conclusions

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Green and White Radio’s Tom Bailey was in the stands on Saturday, as Yeovil Town defeated Maidstone United on penalties to progress in the FA Trophy. Here are his conclusions from the victory.

Cup progression at last!

For the first time since the FA Cup journey to Wrexham during the title season in 2023/24, Yeovil Town have progressed in a cup competition!

Fans have been clamouring for a cup run of some kind, and while we have no idea where we may go on this run, it’s giving us all some further hope, and further reason to buy-in to the Rowley regime.

Billy Rowley watches on | Pic by Gary Brown

Substitutions were played to perfection

Okay, maybe not the Michee Efete introduction, as that was clearly unplanned following the injury to Alex Whittle (he still played very well) – but Tahvon Campbell being brought on for a booked Aaron Jarvis, who seemed on a collision course for a red card on Saturday, was the smart call to keep 11 men on the field.

Clearly bringing on Josh Tobin was a great move, given he scored the goal that almost put Yeovil in the hat within 90 minutes, while Andrew Oluwabori gave Maidstone defenders some extra problems to handle on the right hand side.

All in all, Rowley and Simpson read the game well, and responded accordingly; proactive subs to finish the stubborn opposition off is so refreshing to see, long may it continue!

Michee Efete | Pic by Gary Brown

Leo Ramirez-Espain is real… and he’s good!

I think I was among many in raising my eyebrows when I saw Leo Ramirez-Espain’s name in the starting XI for Saturday’s game.

None of us have had any idea on how good (or bad) he may be, considering he’s only made two benches since he joined on loan from Watford in November.

As it turns out, we have another talented midfield option to add to our rotation, as he moved the ball nicely throughout his hour on the field, linking up with McGavin effortlessly.

Knowing we have McGavin, McCormick, Cousin-Dawson, Jolliffe, Tobin and Ramirez-Espain, with Cousin-Dawson as another option if required, is a great sign of the strength in depth we possess in midfield now!

Leo Ramirez-Espain on his debut. Picture courtesy of Tom Bailey.

Penalty shootout? Never in doubt…

Okay, I say this in jest, of course when the final whistle blew, every Yeovil fan naturally feared the worst, considering our recent history with penalties – the Campbell miss at Morecambe, the losses to Taunton and Needham Market to name but a few… and yet, every single player stepped up when it mattered most.

Most plaudits deservedly went to Jed Ward, who made two fantastic stops to give Yeovil the advantage, but all four takers (Brett McGavin, Luke McCormick, Tahvon Campbell and Andrew Oluwabori) deserve their flowers too for their courage to step up, and coolly slot home four spot kicks.

Jed Ward saves | Pic by Gary Brown

Who do we want next?

It’s a great feeling to not dread whatever is next, isn’t it?!

Nearly half of the National League sides have already been knocked out, and I’d fancy us against most opposition with the way things are going thus far with Rowley and co.

With the draw taking place on Monday evening, Yeovil fans will be sat eagerly anticipating whoever is drawn against the Glovers!

Josh Tobin celebrates with the fans | Pic by Gary Brown

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Gloverscast Ben was on BBC Radio duty on Saturday afternoon as Billy Rowley’s Green and White (well, red and black) army won their second game in a row. Here are his five conclusions.

“Luke McCormick, you little dancer”

There was so much to like about the performance on Saturday, but Luke McCormick stood out for me in every single sense.

McCormick is, probably, just a bit too good for this level. These players don’t come around all that often, the ability to look effortless in control of the ball is a joy to watch. 

He made the first goal, out on the left did all the hard work for a Jarvis tap-in, hit the post, forced the keeper into the save and right at the death turned a time wasting burst to the corner into a lovely finish into the far corner.

Everything Yeovil do well goes through him and Billy Rowley has clearly given him the freedom to be creative. 

Now, about that contract….

Luke McCormick celebrates his goal with the away supporters.

We did the ugly stuff

The wonderful play from McCormick and Co going forward will take the headlines and that’s fine, but let’s not take away from the rear guard action at the other end.

Make no mistake, Hartlepool are a good side, lots of very exciting players but Jed Ward in goal, the three in front of him and wing backs dealt with plenty of crosses, passes and waves of attacks and yet at no point did I ever really fear that they’d score.

A word for Finn Cousin-Dawson who did really well keeping Jamie Miley quiet and Alex Reid is, in my mind, one of the smartest forwards in the division and he didn’t have a sniff. 

Finn Cousin-Dawson. Picture courtesy of Gary Brown.

Glimpses of Rowley-ball

It’s still early days of course, but we’re starting to see what Billy Rowley is going to ask of this team.

We’re going to have to have our hearts in our mouths a few times when we play neat little passes in defensive areas, but we’re also going to see the ball move quickly. We’re going to see little neat triangles used to get us through our phases of play and we’re going to play the brave passes forward.

Not all of them will come off, but I cannot knock a team trying something brave, something we haven’t seen, arguably, for years.

I don’t think Yeovil fans want perfection, but they want us to have a go, play the conditions and make brave decisions, we did on Saturday, and that worked wonders.

Billy Rowley | Photo by Gary Brown

I really enjoyed it – so did the 98.

That feeling! Those pre match butterflies were in hope rather than fear. I saw us win at Solihull – same outcome, worth the same number of points to the season’s tally – but this FELT different. 

Maybe it’s the simple words of confidence from the manager or how other fans feel around us, but it was a genuine joy to watch the game. To see players playing without weight on their shoulders allowed the fans to follow suit. I said that the players ‘need to go first’ in the chicken-and-egg battle between supporters upping their support and players giving them something to support, and they have in these last two games.

I feel it, I’m in, hook, line and sinker! I’m prepared to be patient, prepared for imperfection, but the players have now gone first and given us all something to support, so the least we can do is follow suit. 

The scenes at the end were a disgrace.

Morgan Williams and Jermaine Francis both saw red for their part in a post-match melee, just about every player and staff member were involved in the fracas and quite who was or wasn’t in the wrong doesn’t really matter, but what followed from a home-end supporter has left me seething.

Players and supporters have back-and-forth moments at every ground, every weekend and there’s always passion and emotions run high, but one thing remains constant; the barrier between players and fans.

That barrier was breached on Saturday with someone charging out of the crowd towards the crowd of players. Some quick thinking by Finn Cousin-Dawson probably stops the supporter from reaching his intended target at full throttle before others – including home players – usher him away, But the fact he got a far as he did, unchallenged is a disgrace. Players should feel safe on the pitch, as should fans in the stand. 

I hope that Hartlepool will engage in a proper investigation, not just into the individual, but into their own practices on match day. Every person I dealt with was brilliant on the day, but one idiot has ruined it for the whole club. The FA charges will surely follow in the new year. 

Other than that one idiot, a near perfect away day for the Glovers

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Another new era began at Huish Park yesterday. Ollie Marsh was in the Thatchers Stand and here are his Five Conclusions from the Glovers’ 2-1 win over Boston United.

We saw a glimpse of the standards we can hit. While the opening 45 minutes were certainly nothing to write home about, the first ten of the second half showed what this team is capable of when they’re firing on all cylinders, which hopefully Billy Rowley can get us doing. It’s been a while since we’ve seen it (Sutton away was almost two months ago!) but we were popping the ball around, finding pockets of space in the final third and – get this – we actually scored a couple of goals!

Michee Efete changed the game. Ironically, Josh Sims had been one of our brighter sparks in the first half, but Efete made things happen as soon as he was introduced, helping us really come out of the traps after the break – and it was his cross that lead to the opener. We haven’t seen Efete since Scunthorpe at the start of the month, but considering how well he slotted in today, it would be surprising if we didn’t see more of him under Rowley.

Michee Efete | Pic C/O Gary Brown

There was a touch of class about Luke McCormick’s two goals. They won’t be Goal of the Season contenders by any means, but the composure showed on both occasions – especially when confidence across the squad has looked low – was more impressive than it seemed.

Jake Wannell could be indispensable. If Saturday was anything to go by, playing out from the back is firmly in Billy Rowley’s footballing philosophy – from what I’ve seen, it’s not something our ever-changing and confidence-devoid defence particularly excels at. With a hungry looking Boston forward line looking to pounce on every opportunity, it was often the composure of Wannell that dug us out of trouble. The Somerset Cannavaro’s assured approach acted as a calming presence on more than a few occasions, something we’ll need.

It felt good today. It was important to get the three points for myriad reasons – to get the new gaffer off to a good start, to lift the increasingly flat mood from supporters, and of course because we’ve been looking over our shoulders more and more in recent weeks. Yeovil fans have welcomed Billy with open arms this week, and there were signs in those post-match celebrations that there’s a relationship there waiting to be formed between the new boss and the Glovers faithful. Let’s harness that feeling, get a bit more positivity running through the squad, and see how far that can take us. Billy Rowley’s green and white army!

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Yeovil Town either ended their run of three straight defeats or extended their run without a win to eight matches with a goalless draw at fellow strugglers Morecambe on Saturday. Regardless of your perspective, the Glovers created enough chances to have come away from the gloomy Lancashire coast with three points and instead had to settle for just one. Dave was among the 110 supporters in the away end and here are his conclusions.

What’s the definition of insanity again? Turns out it wasn’t Albert Einstein who said “the definition of insanity is doing the same thing again and again and expecting a different result“, but Yeovil Town fans were left wondering if it was an accurate description having seen the starting line-up. The same eleven which failed to get a single shot on target against Southend United seven days earlier were starting again with strikers Tahvon Campbell, Harvey Greenslade and the forward-thinking Andrew Oluwabori left on the bench. Now, I may not have the coaching badges of Richard Dryden or Jerry Gill, but I have seen enough football to know James Daly is not a number nine. Yet he was expected to play it and, guess what? It was not until a change of shape and the introduction of Greenslade and Campbell that we really started to press Morecambe.

The first half was utterly forgettable. Those supporters in the away end who paid for the privilege climbed aboard a coach at 6.45am on Saturday morning must have been questioning their own sanity when the half-time whistle sounded. That said, I ‘only’ travelled 45 minutes each way and I began to question my own. It was the answer to the question we raised on Friday’s podcast of what would happen when a team which can’t score meets a team that concedes a lot. The result? Not very much.

110 fans were in the away end at Morecambe.

The second half was better – just. I have to add some kind of a positive (yes, this is the positive one), we did create more in the second half. The introduction of Greenslade in particular and Campbell to an extent had an impact and we created opportunities, but could not take them. That said, I could not believe I was seeing us pick up two yellow cards for wasting time over throw-ins when we were going for three points against a team below us in the table which had only kept two clean sheets all season before this match. Ah, I ended the positive one with a negative. Sorry.

Relying on a lottery. Tahvon Campbell will make the headlines for his second half penalty miss, but it is unfair to put the blame solely on this moment. Junior Morias, Luke McCormick and Josh Sims all had great opportunities to test Morecambe keeper Jamal Blackman with efforts and were off target with every one. It was difficult to judge whether it was a poor penalty or a good save from the angle the away fans were in at the Mazuma Arena on Saturday but, having seen it back on a replay, I’m going to give the credit to the keeper. 

If not now, then when?: This feels like we are sleep walking in to a real problem. Listening to Richard Dryden speak after the game and saying that “it’s not the end of the world” if we don’t get three points at home to Boston United next weekend, I feel very nervous. Is he doing what he can to take the pressure off his players or is he really naive enough to not realise the seriousness of our situation. Yes, it is only November, but if we don’t wake up to the problems we are seeing, we could do it in March and wonder why we didn’t act sooner. I have said on the podcast before that I am sure Dryden is a great coach but for me he is not a manager. Owner Prabhu Srinivasan was at Morecambe and at the home game against Southend United and if he is not starting to wonder if something needs to be done, I have to ask, when is he going to think that? If this is “all part of the blueprint“, I think we need a new plan!

The pie was decent – there, there’s a positive!

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There was yet more disappointment at Huish Park yesterday with a late goal consigning a much-improved Yeovil to defeat. Here are Ian’s Five Conclusions.

Luke McCormick goes down in the penalty box | Photo by Gary Brown

We improved – again. After the Carlisle draw I wrote: That was just the tonic the supporters needed after the poor run. Many – me included – feared a bit of drubbing at the hands of a team that is unbeaten in October but we really showed that there’s more to this team than what we’ve seen of late. The same applies this time, but it’s an unsustainable way. The longer this run goes on, the more those three wins in September look to be a postive reaction to the chaos of Danny Webb’s departure. Things have ‘calmed’ down since then and while Yeovil keep turning a corner to improve the performance, Dryden’s men just can’t get a win. 

It was an entertaining game. I thought both sides competed well in a fairly even affair. There was spirit in both teams and it didn’t feel like 18th vs 7th for a lot of the match. Mistakes at the back allowed Southend to spurn some glorious chances but we stuck with playing out (which I’m okay with) and when got through the lines we did create moments. Once again though, we tired towards the closing stages where other teams seem to find another gear, or their substitutes make an impact. Their late winner was a real kick in the knackers but I don’t think many will argue that Southend didn’t do enough to get all three points.

Jed Ward
Pic Gary Brown

Where would be without Jed Ward? The glove man was imperious – again – in the Yeovil goal, keeping out a handful of efforts and saving his teammates bacon on more than one occasion. It’s not the first game (but it would be nice if it’s the last) where if were not for the Rovers loanee, Yeovil would have been on the end of a cricket score. As it was, he pulled off some blinding saves to keep the Southend attackers stumped.

Chances are hard to come by. If you don’t make the goalkeeper make a save, you can’t expect to get anything and that was the story yesterday. Southend’s keeper didn’t have a shot to save. Yeovil worked openings and got shots away that were charged down by defenders, but we’re back to “bits and pieces” around the box being called chances. We tried something different with the front three I thought it looked okay in the first half. Morias, Sims and Daly had energy, pace and fluidity that caused some problems when the wingbacks got involved too. Despite the attacking options on the bench, I don’t think Oluwabori or Jarvis improved us when they came on for the tired legs. We’re dangerously closed to lauding final third entries as our ‘Special One’ once did, but if we dont start testing keepers we’re not going to get points.

The echoes of 2022/23 are ringing. Sadly, I think we’re in a dog fight and I’m worried. That miserable relegation year is not a distant memory and there are parallels from that season. Changing manager early in the season, struggling to hit the back of the net, patching up a team until January. This time, however, we have committed owners who, I believe, genuinely have the best interests of the club at heart. Prior to kick off yesterday, Prabhu Srinivasan talked to BBC Somerset about the ambition to reach the EFL by the end of next season. I have no doubts that the new owners have invested in the club. Before selling the club, Martin Hellier said how the club was costing £200,000 a month to run and that number will not have changed – it will probably have increased. The problem is that on the face of it – and on the pitch – that investment is just enabling the club to stand still/regress. We really need to hope this ‘blueprint’ starts bringing results or we’ll be back to regional football.

Not pretty reading | Photo by Gary Brown

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Yeovil Town went down to a 1-0 defeat at Scunthorpe United yesterday, a result which stretches their run without a win to six matches and pushes them in to 18th place in the National League Premier Division table. Dave was among the Glovers’ fans who made the trip to Lincolnshire and here are his conclusions on the match.

It was an improvement on four days earlier…..: Admittedly it is a very low bar after the team were booed off the pitch following the 2-0 home defeat to Wealdstone, but there was some improvement. Four days earlier, there was very little effort and even less quality from Yeovil and in this match you could not fault the effort the players put in. It was a stupid mistake which led to goal and we simply did not have the quality to get the breakthrough at the other end. In the second half, I was torn between thinking we were taking the game to Scunthorpe and that the hosts were just keeping us at arms length. We have seen a lot of the top sides in this division by this stage of the season and there was not much difference between us and Scunthorpe – but they are fourth in the table and we are 18th.

We huffed and we puffed, but (again) we could not blow the house down.

….but we still came away with nothing: I realise I just said it, but saying we put in the effort does not change the fact that we still came away with nothing. In his post-match interview, Harvey Greenslade said that the players and the management would “not paper over the cracks” with this thought and we absolutely cannot. The truth is that our league position is unacceptable for a club which should be pushing towards the top end of the table. That is not ex-EFL arrogance, when you look at the size of our crowds, the stature of the club and the quality we undoubtedly have in the squad, we should be doing much better than we are. Stating the obvious I know, but focusing too much on being a bit better than absolutely useless is not the way to change things.

Can’t fault the desire to change it: Having left it too late to make changes to tackle the poor conditions against Wealdstone, you cannot fault Richard Dryden’s desire to change personnel at Scunthorpe. Kyle Ferguson, who I had spoken about deserving an opportunity on the podcast the previous day, and Josh Sims, presumably still working his way back from injury, got hooked for Alex Whittle and Aaron Jarvis at half-time and then Junior Morias, Tahvon Campbell, James Daly and Dan Ellison all appeared in the second half. But, see next conclusion….

There were a few words exchanged between manager Richard Dryden and a couple of supporters after the match at Scunthorpe.

We have to admit that there’s some players who are just not good enough: The simple truth is that there are some players in our squad who are simply not good enough. Not every player, but when you come away from as many matches as we have over the past season-and-a-half empty handed, the facts do not lie. We have a squad which can probably muddle through until the end of the season and retain our league status, but is that really the ambition of the now not-so-new ownership? We were promised competitiveness – not a revolution, but a competitive squad – and yet today we lie exactly in the position where we finished last season. And we can all agree that was not good enough.

The supporters deserve better: Again, Harvey Greenslade said it in his post-match interview, the 93 supporters who travelled all the way to Lincolnshire deserve better. Actually, make it 92, I only travelled two-and-a-half hours across the country to get there and when I arrived home, the supporters’ coach was only halfway home. There were a few who voiced their opinions towards Richard Dryden at the end of the game and got a few verbals back from him. I understand that it comes at a very raw moment literally minutes after a defeat and I am sure the way their arguments were constructed were not the most nuanced, but that is not a good look. These people deserve better, listen to them, nod and say ‘I know, thankyou for coming’. The credit is not in the bank to be getting in to arguments.

93 Yeovil Town fans made the trip to Scunthorpe – they are not all in this picture!

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After 10 days off, it was not a happy return to Huish Park for Yeovil Town. Here are Ian’s Five Conclusions from a miserable night under the lights.

Where was the intent? From the kick off Wealdstone seemed to show all the intent, energy and desire. They controlled the ball – albeit it was Cooperball-esque – but we were never able to keep it and build our own pressure. Every scrap of something we had was a ball out to Oluwabori or Plant and hoping they could make something happen. All over the pitch we were sloppy with our passing and I thought, tactically, we had no answer to the visitors. Even if you take the conditions into account, Wealdstone had no problems and we cannot use it as an excuse. Wealdstone looked the like the home team last night [insert jab about training in Bristol] and that’s pretty damning.

Aaron Jarvis’ effort goes inches wide. Picture courtesy of Debs Curtis.

One step forward, two steps backwards. The improved performance against Carlisle United gave supporters a nugget of hope. We appeared to have turned a corner and the hope was to build some momentum. Maybe get some players back in and fit. Sadly, Sims and McGavin weren’t ready and yet again we still looked leggy. Oluwabori had little impact, Morais made no difference from the bench and Jarvis and Campbell were feeding off scraps. Even the Efete and Nurse, who I though looked good in the last outing, barely completed a pass to a teammate. Maybe the Carlisle draw (only our second all season) papered over the cracks, but our next two are even more difficult against Scunthorpe and Southend.

Goals goal goals. Nine matches at home this season, nine goals, three of which came against Gateshead. 25 goals at home last season, 18 at home in 22/23, 20 in 21/22.  Bar the National League South season (46), we’ve not had many chances to cheer during League matches. It feels like a tale as old as time in the National League, we struggle to created chances for our strikers. Last night was no different, Jarvis nearly got on the end of a cross in the 2nd half, but he and Campbell spent so much time coming deep to get the ball and bring others into the game but they get zero service. Oh for a Sonny Blu…

Mussa ran the midfield. Wealdstone’s number four seems to love Huish Park. Back in October 2021 he pulled the strings for W*ymouth in Yeovil’s 1-1 FA Cup draw and he did it again last night. Cool on the ball, fancy feet get out of tight spots – which set them on their way to a second goal – and read the game expertly. With McGavin and Maddox to return from injury to add to Joliffe and McCormick in the midfield, I really hope we can see some of that in our midfield. Or maybe, we can sign him in January? It’s not always raining sideways Omar.

What’s left this season? We’ve not even reached firework night and I feel like the reasons to believe this season are ebbing away. The minor momentum and good-will from Carlisle vanished last night with boos ringing around Huish Park on full time. Hopefully the FA Trophy draw is kind to us and we get can get a decent run in that. But, I’ve not seen enough consistency to think we can achieve anything more than mid-table this season. I hope I’m wrong on that and hope that preparation for 2026/27 is going on in parallel because, if the attendance is going to stay over 2,000, we need something to believe in.

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Have we all taken a breath and calmed down a little bit? Nope, Gloverscast Ben hasn’t either. It wasn’t Yeovil’s finest hour and a half of the season up at Spotland, Ben was on BBC duty, here are his Five Conclusions.

It was just too easy.

Not sure I need to say any more do I? It’s just not acceptable to allow the best team in the league to have the time and space we did on Saturday afternoon.

In too many key areas, too many of their key players had the freedom of Lancashire to pick their pass and dominate from start to finish. 

A couple of crunching tackles from the likes of Ferguson and FCD and a little hustle and bustle from Aaron Jarvis up front pretty much all the Glovers had going for them. You can’t stand off the best in the league, and expect anything other than a rout. 

I’m not entirely sure how much of a gulf in quality there is between the two sides – and I mean that – but the gulf in confidence, direction and plenty more intangible qualities was there for all to see. It could have been a cricket score. 

In a midfield muddle.

So, what are we doing in the middle of midfield then? FC-D, a central defender with all the effort and desire in the world. But he’s not a midfielder. I like FC-D, I think he’s way better than the universal square peg role. 

But he got pulled out of position by his far more dynamic opposite numbers, and that gave the likes of Devante Rodney so much space and time. It shouldn’t be on him to play that role, it’s not fair anymore.

Luke McCormick has probably got the most class and quality on the ball in the side, but his head looked to drop. He didn’t chase the play for the second goal, and was desperately looking for help around him. A free-to-roam McCormick is one of the best we have, we just cannot give him that security.

So, will Jacob Maddox fill that void? Probably not. It’s not worth rushing Brett McGavin back from a back problem that’s clearly causing more problems than first thought? Definitely not. Then there’s the Charlie Cooper shaped elephant in the room doesn’t seem to have an end point either.

We need a Matt Worthington/Charlie Lee/Dale Gorman/Paul Wotton [delete as appropriate]. A proper breaker upper that will allow those around him to be at their best. 

Confusing calls.

Anyone else surprised to see the new left back, George Nurse given the nod over Alex “79 YTFC Appearances and very, very few poor ones” Whittle? I was. 

“Welcome to Yeovil, mate, here are some of the finest attacking wing backs the league has to offer.” – For what it’s worth I thought he grew into the game and will be an asset for the next month or so, but give the guy a chance to get his feet in the door. 

I think Josh Sims has, overall, had a positive season, but on body language and early misplaced passes alone, I was surprised at the fact that he wasn’t sacrificed at the break as opposed to Oluwabori. 

I don’t know why Kyle Ferguson was the central defender sacrificed with 20 to go, I think he possibly thought similar as he begrudgingly sat down. He at least stuck his head in where it hurt a few times and clearly had his heart on his sleeve throughout.

New signing George Nurse talks to Josh from BBC Somerset.

Unused and unrequited?

We only used three subs again and I think we should note that in Junior Morias and Tahvon Campbell, two of the summer’s more ‘high profile’ signings didn’t get a look in. 

Would their relative experience have offered something a bit different in the front line? The ability to get within the same post code as Aaron Jarvis? Maybe, we don’t know – but like the Whittle thing, (who himself only got 12 minutes) – that’s a lot of ‘been there and done it’ not getting game time whilst new lads, young lads and out of position lads look a bit lost.

Surely time is up on Ben Wodskou too, nothing against him but since scoring against Brackley he’s played just about as many minutes for Birmingham Under 21s (170ish) than Yeovil (200ish). He’s taking up a loan spot and that’s something we need to use effectively with a thin squad. 

Which direction are we going?

I think the one thing that came out of it was I just didn’t understand what the idea is right now on the pitch. We look rudderless. I wasn’t sure of the game plan or even how we were looking to make an impact on the game after the goals. 

There were times that players even looked like the message wasn’t getting out there. When Whittle came on he passed on a word or two and both Luke McCormick and George Nurse looked a bit… “Who, me? Where? In there? Errr….okay“.

Byron Pendleton was our furthest man forward at points, and I couldn’t help but feel like it was all getting a bit too complicated.

I hate the fact that I’ve named names in these conclusions, because I actually don’t think we have a bad squad – in fact, I know we don’t – but something has to change to restore some confidence, belief and direction.

I think a return to some simple football, some simple tactics, (4-4-2, anyone?) is a way to resolve the current chaos.

We could be competitive with top six sides, but right now, simplicity is key. It might take some tough calls – three central defenders into two doesn’t go, for example – but we’re 6-0 down across the last two league games without really landing a punch and we’ve been dumped out the FA Cup by 10 part timers.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Plenty of the 107 fans at Spotland would be forgiven for thinking they’d gone insane on Saturday.

Jed Ward about to save another Rochdale attack.

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Yeovil Town’s FA Cup dream came to a premature end at the first hurdle for the second successive season yesterday. The Glovers were beaten by a Hemel Hempstead Town side which played for more than an hour with ten men. Dave was among the travelling contingent and here are his conclusions.

 

Out fought. Out thought. Out. We were simply second best in every department and I have to say right off the bat that Hemel deserved their win. From the opening whistle, they simply wanted it more and we never seemed to have a plan to counter them. You can put a misplaced pass or a scuffed shot down to the surface, but time and again we were pulled apart and gave them time and space to run. At the risk of sounding like the old man (I know, I am), but I miss us the Cup giving our players the hunger and desire I saw from Hemel. 

How it was not 2-0 at half-time I will never know!

Are we sure they had ten men? An extension on Conclusion #1, but two occasions in the second half I had to count Hemel’s players to be sure. Aside from a few moments around the time we scored, they never looked like they were a man down. You can see why they are in the form they are in the National League South. Defensively they were outstanding and we simply could not find a way through. 

Where did our desire to attack go? If I had not seen highlights of the games at Aldershot and Sutton, I would have believed they were AI inventions. In the first half, it was only when Andrew Oluwabori got on the ball that we ever had any purpose going forward and in the second only when Byron Pendleton came on did we look to get balls in from wide positions. There is quality going forward in this team, but we simply did not show it.

What are we doing here? Hearing Richard Dryden say we had tried and failed to attract players to strengthen the squad is a major red flag. But should we be surprised? We’ve heard about ‘The 3 Cs’ from our owners -calmness, competitiveness, community, in case you forgot. But it’s not easy to stay calm with no obvious plan about how we’re going to be competitive. A manager who feels stop gap no matter how much we’re told he’s not, players signing on 12-month deals, what are we selling people here? It feels like we’re living hand to mouth waiting for……what? 

Rochdale next. Gulp. Next up, top of the league Rochdale away from home. That one speaks for itself. Another clear week, another chance to take a breath and I hope the pain we all feel – and yes I include the team, they must feel it – gets a reaction.

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It was a big old bump back to reality yesterday as Boreham Wood put Yeovil Town to the sword in a 3-0 defeat for the Glovers. Mike Hudson was at Huish Park and here are his Five Conclusions.

It was always going to be a tough one. Boreham Wood have readjusted to this level as if they never left, with Luke Garrard’s side scoring plenty of goals and winning plenty of games since returning to the National League. Meanwhile, we’ve been recovering from a turbulent start to the season with impressive wins against struggling Sutton, Altrincham, and Aldershot. This recent form has rightly created a lot of positivity over the last ten days. However, Saturday was always going to be a much bigger test, and give us a much clearer picture of where we are as a club. The answer was humbling. In truth, at times it looked like we were playing a club a level higher than us, rather than a few places in the table at the start of play. There was plenty of fast flowing, attractive and attacking football at Huish Park on Saturday, but it was coming from the away team.

Jed Ward
Pic Gary Brown

We had our backs to the wall from the outset. The warning signs came fast and early as we struggled to deal with the Boreham Wood press and attack. The boys in Green and White struggled to keep hold of the ball for any length of time, and we spent a lot of the game penned in our own half as a result. While there is much to say for not changing a winning formula, after the shift these players have put in of late, this game was probably the time to add some freshness. Of course hindsight is 20-20, but in a game in which we were always likely to spend large periods without the ball, legs were going to be important and unfortunately I think we were lacking them. As we neared half time, the huge positive was that we had somehow stayed in the game, but as the stormy conditions continued, their second goal on the stroke of half time knocked the wind out of our sails completely.

Too many players were off it. I’ll say it again… Boreham Wood are a good side. They are playing the type of football I dream that we one day might. But we won’t get anywhere by just admiring them as a superior team. We have to reflect on our own performance, and the reality was too many players weren’t at it. There were mistakes and poor decision a-plenty. It would have been a tall task with everyone firing at 100%, but with a lot of players below par and a few really struggling it was mission impossible. That’s not a criticism of this squad, who have been unreal of late. It was an almost an inevitable outcome of lots of games, lots of turmoil, a small squad, and two teams with seemingly different ambitions. They kept battling to the end, and we arguably had our best period in the last quarter of the match.

Jed Ward is ridiculous. I know it’s nothing new, but what a keeper we have between the sticks. It’s rare that you lose 3-0 and your keeper wins Man of the Match, but he deserved the accolade. Three goals did not flatter Boreham Wood at all, and without some brilliant stops and quick thinking, it could easily have been six. We were humbled at home, but Jed stopped it being an humiliation.

Jed Ward
Pic Gary Brown

This team need help from above. The games are going to keep coming thick and fast, and if we have any intentions of a much needed cup run, alongside remaining competitive in the League, this team will need some help. Charlie Cooper, Jacob Maddox and James Daly getting closer to a return, may just feel like new signings. The board tried to dampen the fan noise after Danny Webb’s departure by promising increased funds, but so far we haven’t seen that turn into scarf based social media posts. It would be good to see some fresh bodies through the door soon, especially with bookings piling up, and a couple of players picking up knocks on Saturday. We saw how quickly a season can ebb away in the second half of our last campaign, and we are going to be asking a lot of our paper thin squad to keep going through a busy winter period. More than that, it would be good to see some sign of intent from this new ownership, and plans that extend beyond the end of the season. Huish Park crowds are not growing back to the 3000 number at the moment, although they were in fine voice considering. Also I do have this nagging feeling of discomfort …  Yes, context is very important, and there is lots of that, but personally I don’t want this club to get too used to being content with home losses to ‘better teams’ at a level we should aspire to be getting out of. Not for long anyway.