Match Reports (Page 21)

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Venue: Huish Park
Tuesday, March 22, 7.45pm kick-off

Conditions: Clear, cool night
Pitch: Continues to be a credit to the groundsman, held up well

Attendance: 1,732 (53 away supporters)

Scorers: Lawson D’Ath 11 (1-0), George Alexander 24 (1-1), Tom Knowles (2-1) 71

Bookings: 

Yeovil: Knowles 45, Worthington 83
Bromley: Webster 53, Vennings 55

Referee: James Durkin


Yeovil Town : (4-3-3)

Ted Cann

Mark Little, Josh Staunton (for Wilkinson, 75), Ben Barclay, Morgan Williams

Matt Worthington Dale Gorman  Lawson D’Ath (for Josh Neufville, 68)

Charlie Wakefield (for Olomola, 86) Reuben Reid Tom Knowles

Substitutes:  Jordan Barnett, Alex Bradley.

Bromley: Balcombe, Partington, Coulson, Arthurs (for Bloomfield, 76), Cheek, Whitely, Vennings, Alexander (for Alabi, 56), Webster, Cawley, Parsons (for Trotter, 46). Substitutes: Wagstaff, Forster.

Match Report

A stunning winner from Tom Knowles saw an impressive Yeovil Town turn up at Huish Park with a long-awaited winning performance in front of the home faithful.

The three points was nothing less than the Glovers deserved against a Bromley side who (at the start of the game, at least) still considered themselves in the hunt for a play-off place in the National League.

Lawson D’Ath opened the scoring after just ten minutes before a mistake by on-loan goalkeeper Ted Cann gifted Bromley’s George Alexander an equaliser on 24 minites.

It was a superb team goal after 71 minutes which won it, starting from a great pass by Cann to Reuben Reid, Dale Gorman and then substitute Josh Neufville whose delicious delivery found Knowles who made no mistake.

Here’s how Ian saw it from his position at Huish Park……

 

First half

Team news saw Darren Sarll replaced the absent Adi Yussuf, who had received a call-up by Tanzania, with Reuben Reid, only his second National League start of the season which he missed the first half of through injury.

Lawson D’Ath replaced Jordan Barnett in midfield for the other change with captain Luke Wilkinson returning on the bench having missed out of the squad in recent week.

The 2-0 win at Dover Athletic at the weekend seemingly sparked the Glovers in to life with a fast start and had two decent efforts inside the first five minutes. Reid drew a save from the keeper and from the resulting corner Dale Gorman‘s effort was parried away by on-loan Brentford keeper Ellery Balcombe.

In the hosts’ goal, Ted Cann, playing his second game since joining on-loan from West Bromwich Albion at the end of last week, was called into action with a low save shortly after which he dealt with comfortably.

Five minutes later the home side deservedly took the lead. Tom Knowles turned his full-back inside out and delivered a brilliant low cross which was turned in by Lawson D’ATH with 10 minutes on the clock.

That was the first goal seen by the Huish Park crowd since Adi Yussuf’s equaliser (yes, it was an own goal but the record books show it was Adi’s) in the 1-1 draw with W*ymouth at the start of February.

Reid was definitely in the mood and got another decent effort away which had to be dealt with by Balcombe.

The Glovers were not shot-shy in the first half and a typical Knowles strike from distance was matched by Balcombe, although the referee thought it hit the post. The visiting stopper was keeper his side in this.

Bromley his back in calamitous circumstances in the 25th minute. A low cross somehow snuck through Cann and put in the empty net by George Alexander.

Reid showed his back to goal credentials with a smart turn and shot which Balcombe was equal too.

Cann redeemed himself before the break with a good low stop from Alexander who was bearing down on goal.

Yeovil made a good account of themselves in the first half and offered a vast improvement on their previous Huish Park performances.

Half time: Yeovil Town 1 Bromley 1

Second half

Bromley came out for the second half the stronger, putting the pressure on their hosts who had some nervy moments, however, there was little in the way of chances for either side.
The first opportunity came fell to Yeovil on 58 minutes when good play between Reid and Wakefield got behind the visitors defence, but Gorman’s effort went over the bar.
Two minutes later, Balcombe was in action again with Josh Staunton having an effort turned over the bar from the on loan keeper and Michael Cheek was on hand to hack it away.
On 69 minutes, a lovely moment as those inside Huish Park rose to acknowledge the efforts of D’Ath and welcomed back Josh Neufville, who made only his second appearance in front of fans after making such an impact in front of empty stadiums last season.
Tom Knowles. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Great distribution from Cann (see the comments of Ed Turnbull in Gloverscast #154) found Reid with what was definitely a pass not a clearance, he controlled it beautifully and linked up with first Gorman, then Neufville did unbelievably to feed Tom KNOWLES to drill one home.

Two goals in a game for the second consecutive match and it came at home. This. Is. Not. A. Drill.

If Knowles needed more energy, that gave it to him. On 77 minutes, the human dynamo burst forward and he was brought down as close to the edge of the box as you can get – was it a penalty? The Thatchers End thought so. The resulting free-kick came to nothing.

With seven minutes remaining, a long throw by Cawley was missed by a wild punch from Cann and if a Bromley player could find it, it would only take a smashed effort to find an equaliser. Luckily it was Luke Wilkinson, on for Josh Staunton moments earlier, who was there to clear.

Neufville flashed an effort wide soon after before Cann came roaming outside of his box and was very lucky to be saved by the assistant’s flag. Having been saved by a similar decision at Dover at the weekend, it’s a bit of worry.

Wakefield was replaced by Olomola with four minutes of the game remaining, as Bromley turned the screw knowing that their play-off push is coming off the rails.

And it did. Two wins in a row, more than one goal scored in two games. We’re claiming this as a run of form.

Full time: Yeovil Town 2 Bromley 1

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Venue: Crabble
Saturday March 19, 3pm kick-off

Conditions: Glorious sunshine with a strong breeze.
Pitch: A bit soft, but generally in good condition.

Attendance:

Scorers: Ben Barclay 19 (1-0), Gorman 56 (2-0)

Bookings: 

Yeovil: Worthington (72)
Dover: Krasniqi (22), Hessenthaler (58), Judd (66)

Referee: Matthew Russell


Yeovil Town : (4-4-2)

Ted Cann

Mark Little, Josh Staunton, Ben Barclay, Morgan Williams

Tom Knowles (for Olufela Olomola, 84) Matt Worthington Dale Gorman  Jordan Barnett

Charlie Wakefield (for Josh Neufville, 75) Adi Yussuf (for Reuben Reid, 87)

Substitutes: Lawson D’Ath, Alex Bradley.

Dover Athletic: Parkes, Goodman, Collinge, Wilkinson, Judd, Ransom, Moses, Krasniqi (for Agbebi, 75), Gyasi, Pavey, Parfitt-Williams (Arthur, 46). Substitutes: Byford, Baptiste, Andre.

Match Report

Two moments of quality in front of goal were the difference as Yeovil Town scored twice to relegate bottom-of-the-table Dover Athletic at Crabble.

A tidy first-half strike from on-loan defender Ben Barclay to turn home Jordan Barnett’s free-kick was all the Glovers had to show from an opening 45 minutes when they were in complete charge.

The home side rallied at the start of the second half but a Dale Gorman free-kick curled in to the top corner on 56 minutes sealed the victory – and made it the first time we have scored twice in a league game since the end of November.

Goals, a clean sheet, three points and debuts from on loan goalkeeper Ted Cann and Josh Neufville, who looked lively having come off the bench for the final 17 minutes. What’s not to like about that?

Here’s how it played out on the Kent coast….

First half

Darren Sarll made four changes to the team which had been beaten at home against Grimsby Town the previous weekend with Ted Cann, Jordan Barnett, Adi Yussuf and Tom Knowles in for Grant Smith, Luke Wilkinson, Lawson D’Ath and Olufela Olomola.

Injuries kept out Smith (groin) and Wilkinson (calf) with D’Ath and Olomola dropping to the substitutes’ bench as part of tactical changes lining up in a 4-4-2 with Knowles and Barnett on the flanks and Yussuf up front with Charlie Wakefield.

Yeovil made a fast start with Knowles and Yussuf linking up for the former to put a shot wide on four minutes before Staunton was found by a Knowles but could not trouble Adam Parkes in the Dover goal.

But on 11 minutes, an error from Josh Staunton gifted the ball to Alfie Pavey, the home side’s top scorer, who took a long-range shot at Cann who scrambled it wide for a corner.

The speedy Michael Gyasi caused problems again soon after but his effort was blocked by Morgan Williams.

Ben Barclay. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

A great free-kick delivery by Barnett got the slightest touch from Yussuf and landed at the feet of Ben BARCLAY whose lifted a striker-esque finish over the head of Parkes on 19 minutes.

Up front, Yussuf appeared to be playing in a deeper position with Wakefield playing further forward, perhaps this was Darren Sarll being “a bit more experimental” as he put it after the Grimsby defeat. Early on, Yussuf was certainly more involved that Wakefield.

There was an understandable nervousness from a Dover defence which has leaked 75 goals this season and on 33 minutes a great bit of play by Knowles saw him put in a great cross but could not quite find Wakefield at the back post.

Wakefield had another couple of good moments soon after, but he could not get punish the hosts who did certainly were not yet willing to roll over for their visitors.

A ball in from Gyasi took a deflection which wrong-footed Cann and dribbled wide with Dover striker Djair Parfitt-Williams lurking. A definite let off.

The final ten minutes was almost played entirely in the Dover half but again the issue was turning their dominance in to clear-cut chances.

Knowles had the final chance of the half after a fantastic pass by Cann found him in a wide position on the right side but his shot from a tight angle was blocked.

Half time: Dover Athletic 0 Yeovil Town 1

Second half

If Dover’s players knew they were relegated at the start of the second half they didn’t show it.

Substitute Koby Arthur and the tricky Gyasi combining to cause problems against the Yeovil defence which had leaked eight goals in their previous six games, and an over-hit cross from Pavey had Cann scrambling and the on loan stopper had to do well to turn it over.

But, ten minutes after the break, Danny Collinge, the Dover defender who wrestling slammed Knowles to the ground at the end of the reverse fixture back in November, was robbed by, you guessed it, Tom Knowles who was then fouled for a free kick 25 yards from goal.
Dale Gorman. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Barnett, Knowles and Dale Gorman were all over the ball, but it was only going to be one man’s shot and GORMAN hammered an unstoppable strike in to the top scorer to make it 2-0. That was the first time since December 18 and the 3-1 FA Trophy win over Woking, and the first since since the win at Wrexham at the end of November.

More importantly in the context of this game, the goal removed the wind that was in the sails of the home side who had taken the game to Yeovil.

On 68 minutes, a long ball forward by Dover to Cann who came out of his box to collect it, but he was closed down by Gyasi who caught him out and rolled the ball in to an unguarded net. Luckily for the hosts, the offside flag was raised. Blushes spared.

The 73rd minute saw the return of Josh Neufville in a Yeovil shirt replacing Wakefield and 11 minutes later Olomola replaced Tom Knowles, who had put an energetic performance.

Neufville took up the position on the right side of midfield with Olomola joining Yussuf up front. Reuben Reid replaced Yussuf on 86 minutes.

Barnett picked up a loose ball and had a shot from distance which Parkes turned wide.

 

Full time: Dover Athletic 0 Yeovil Town 2

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Venue: Huish Park
Saturday March 12, 3pm kick-off

Conditions: Blustery despite being dry and bright.
Pitch: A bit sticky in the goal mouths, but looking good despite the recent rain.

Attendance: 2,422 (over 200 away supporters)

Scorers: Sean Scannell 9 (0-1), Dieseruvwe  57 (0-2)

Bookings: 

Yeovil: Luke Wilkinson 59
Grimsby: Max Crocombe 90+3

Referee: Aaron Jackson


Yeovil Town : (4-1-2-1-2)

Grant Smith

Mark Little, Luke Wilkinson (for Jordan Barnett, 67), Ben Barclay, Morgan Williams

Josh Staunton

Dale Gorman (for Tom Knowles, 61) Lawson D’Ath (for Sonny Blu Lo-Everton, 61)

Matt Worthington

Charlie Wakefield, Olufela Olomola

Substitutes: Alex Bradley, Adi Yussuf.

Grimsby Town: Crocombe, Efete, Smith, Waterfall, Amos, Jones (for Abrahams, 85), Burgess, Clifton, Scannell (for Sousa, 79), Dieseruvwe (for Taylor, 82), McAtee. Substitutes: Pearson, Maguire-Drew.

Match Report

*cut* *paste* Yeovil Town‘s inability to score a goal saw them slip to another National League defeat and extend their run without a win to nine matches.

Yet another misfire in front of goal meant the two goals scored by second-from-bottom King’s Lynn Town saw them pass the Glovers in the division’s scoring chances. You heard it right, folks, we now have the second worst scoring record with only bottom club Dover Athletic doing worse.

The performance was actually an improvement on the 3-0 defeat against Dagenham & Redbridge four days earlier, but two pieces of poor defending led to goals either side of half-time.

A header off the outside of the post from Ben Barclay at the end of the first half was as near as the home side came to scoring.

Here’s how it went at Huish Park…….

 

First half

Darren Sarll made three changes from the midweek defeat against Dagenham & Redbridge with defender Mark Little and midfielders Matt Worthington and Lawson D’Ath coming in for Jordan Barnett, Alex Bradley and Tom Knowles, who were all named on the substitutes’ bench.

The Glovers lined up with Charlie Wakefield paired alongside Olufela Olomola in a front two with a diamond in midfield with Worthington at the tip, Staunton at the base and D’Ath and Dale Gorman on the left and right respectively.

Wakefield had the game’s first opening chance when he cut in from a wide position and had a shot which Max Crocombe in the visitors’ goal had to deal with.

But, it was the visitors who took the lead after nine minutes (three later than the previous game, I guess!) when Sean SCANNELL out fought Morgan Williams to win the ball, cut in from the left and beat Grant Smith, who will be disappointed to concede that – albeit not as disappointed as the second against Dagenham four days earlier.

All credit to Scannell for the finish, but it was another soft goal to concede from a side which has relied on its defensive solidity to overcome its inability to score.

Olomola lashed one over the bar soon after as the Glovers tried to rally after going behind early again, but they got a let off shortly after when captain Luke Wilkinson brought own John McAtee inside the box after 19 minutes. Referee Aaron Jackson waved away appeals, but you have certainly seen those given.

Olomola had another opportunity when he headed Josh Staunton‘s cross wide as the goal-scoring issues were very apparent.

Probably the biggest frustration was the desire to play the ball long in blustery conditions, leading to misplaced passes and so many nearly moments.

As the half moved in to the final third, Grimsby began to turn the screw with full-back Michael Efete firing a shot in to the side netting on 33 minutes, but the better chance fell to Harry Clifton two minutes later.

Scannell put his midfield colleague through for a one-on-one with Smith, who did superbly to deny him….but he really shouldn’t have been given a chance.

Ben Barclay. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Five minutes before the interval, Yeovil’s best chance of the half fell to defender Ben Barclay when his header from D’Ath’s corner came off the outside of the post. How many times can you write the word ‘nearly’ before it loses all meaning?

The statistics at half-time told the story with Yeovil enjoying the greater number of attacks and comfortably ahead in the ‘dangerous attacks’ stakes (36 to their 11) with four shots off target. Sadly, as the cliché goes, there’s only one statistic that matters.

An improvement on the previous match though. That’s positive, right? I’m trying here, folks.

Half time: Yeovil Town 0 Grimsby Town 1

Second half

With the wind behind them shooting towards the away end, Grimsby made a strong start with Clifton forcing a save out of Grant Smith on 49 minutes. The ball almost dropped to McAtee, but Josh Staunton was there to intercept it.
Just before the hour mark, the visitors doubled their advantage after another defensive mistake when a corner was swung in and Emmanuel DIESERUVWE was given time to volley home.

Make no mistake, the performance up until this point was an improvement on the ‘performance’ against Dagenham, but the same failings we have shown all too often in front of our own supporters cost us.

There can be no question about Darren Sarll’s desire to up the attacking ante which he demonstrated by bringing Knowles and Sonny Blu Lo-Everton on for D’Ath and Gorman shortly after going two goals behind.

Sonny Blu Lo-Everton and Tom Knowles. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

On 67 minutes, an injury to Luke Wilkinson, who the manager admitted was a doubt ahead of the fixture, was then forced off and replaced by Barnett with the Glovers switching to a back three with Barclay, Williams and Little in defence.

If you wanted to sum up our quality in front of goal, as the matchday announcer read out the amount of added minutes, Barnett found himself with the whole goal to aim from close range and yet Grimsby defender Luke Waterfall cleared it off the line.

We could have been out there all day and still not scored. Again.

Full time: Yeovil Town 0 Grimsby Town 2

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Venue: Huish Park
Tuesday March 8, 7.45pm kick-off

Conditions: Rain before the match.
Pitch: Skiddy due to the rain but in good nick.

Attendance:

Scorers: Paul McCallum 6 (0-1), Paul McCallum 22 (0-2), Junior Morais 63 (0-3)

Bookings: 1,836 (23 away supporters)

Yeovil: Barnett 32,
Dagenham: Rance 45,

Referee: Adrian Quelch


Yeovil Town : (4-3-3)

Grant Smith

Morgan Williams, Luke Wilkinson, Ben Barclay, Jordan Barnett

Alex Bradley (for Lawson D’Ath, 60), Josh Staunton (for Matt Worthington, 78), Dale Gorman

Charlie Wakefield, Olufela Olomola (for Adi Yussuf, 71) , Tom Knowles

Substitutes: Mark Little, Reuben Reid.

Dagenham & Redbridge: Justham, Wright, Reynolds, Comley, Hare, Johnson, Rance, Sagaf (for Robinson, 89), Weston, McCallum (for Akanbi, 90) , Morais (for Walker, 75).
Substitutes: Balanta, Zouma.

Match Report

 

A piece of sloppy defending followed by two absolute howlers saw Dagenham & Redbridge run out comfortable winners at Huish Park.

Visiting striker Paul McCallum, whose own goal gave the Glovers the win in the reverse fixture, put them ahead after six minutes and when a clanger from Grant Smith gifted the striker a second on 22 minutes it was game over.

Junior Morais added a third in the second half from another mistake in the Yeovil back line which has been such a strength of this season and, in depressingly familiar fashion, we failed to muster anything going forward.

We loaded the bullets in the Dagenham gun and invited them to shoot us in both feet – and they did it in professional fashion.

Here’s how it played out…….

First half

Team news saw on loan striker Olufela Olomola return having missed the previous two matches through injury, he replaced Jordan Barnett who shifted back to left-back.

Mark Little dropped to the substitutes’ bench with Morgan Williams replacing him on the right side of defence.

After three minutes, Myles Weston, who caused the Glovers’ problem in the reverse fixture, took a run at Williams and fired in a shot which took a small deflection off the centre back-turned-full back and forced Grant Smith in to his first save.

That was a warning and the poor start got worse. Josh Hare got away down the other side and put the ball in for the unchallenged Paul McCALLUM to fire the Daggers ahead.

Sensing blood, the visitors kept attacking a wobbly looking Yeovil and an error by the normally reliable Josh Staunton gave midfielder Dean Rance the chance to shoot and Smith was again force in to a fine stop.

With Barnett playing his first game at left-back for a long while and Williams playing on the right, there were some unfamiliar combinations across the hosts’ side which Dagenham seemed to sense pressing us extremely high up the pitch and getting results.

Grant Smith. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Grant Smith’s free-kick with no Dagenham player around him, he’s tried to be clever and clip a ball to Williams, but did not even get past Paul McCALLUM who chested it down and fired it in to an empty net. His 12th goal of the season, he’ll never score an easier one.

Having not scored more than twice in a league game since November, the writing felt like it was being daubed on the wall. In fact, when was the last time we came back from 2-0 down to get anything? AFC Fylde away in December 2019. The last time at Huish Park? A 2-2 draw with Dagenham in October 2015.

Having executed their plan to perfection, the next stage was to frustrate their easily irritated hosts and, again, did it perfectly all the way through until half-time which was met by a few boos.

Half time: Yeovil Town 0 Dagenham & Redbridge 2

Second half

The second half saw a reshuffle in midfield with Staunton playing further forward and Dale Gorman now the man picking the ball up from deep, but as caretakers of the ball, we were lacking.
Having seen a further 15 minutes of his side huffing and puffing, Darren Sarll introduced a player more than capable of holding on to the ball in Lawson D’Ath who replaced Alex Bradley.
But, instead of that being a spark, another defensive howler gifted the visitors a third. Junior MORAIS got the wrong side of both Luke Wilkinson and Ben Barclay, who have looked so solid since the latter’s arrival, and ran through to score.
If there was any wind was left in the Yeovil sails, it was extinguished. Incidentally, the last time we came from three goals down to win a match was the 5-4 FA Trophy win at Doncaster Rovers nearly 20 years ago.
Fear not though, Adi Yussuf replaced Olomola on 71 minutes. In fairness, it was not Fela’s night. He had no service and was almost entirely anonymous.

Dagenham goalkeeper Eliot Justham probably did not need to wash his kit after this one, he hardly broke a sweat.

A miserable night.

Full time: Yeovil Town 0 Dagenham & Redbridge 3

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Venue: Meadow Lane
Saturday 5 March, 3pm kick-off

Conditions: Cold and breezy.
Pitch: Like a snooker table in comparison with what Chesterfield served up in the previous match.

Attendance: 6,943 (223 away supporters)

Scorers: Alex Bradley 47 (1-0), Alex Lacey 90+4 (1-1)

Bookings: 

Notts: Francis 41, Chicksen 54, Rodrigues 70, Sam 73.

Yeovil: Bradley 54, Williams 90+6.

Referee: Matthew Dicicco


Yeovil Town : (4-3-3)

Grant Smith

Mark Little, Luke Wilkinson, Ben Barclay, Morgan Williams

Alex Bradley, Josh Staunton, Dale Gorman

Jordan Barnett, Charlie Wakefield, Tom Knowles

Substitutes: Lawson D’Ath (for Bradley, 63), Matt Worthington (for Barnett 79), Sonny Blu Lo-Everton, Reuben Reid (for Knowles 87), Adi Yussuf.

Notts County: Jaros, Chicksen, Cameron (for Lacey, 28), Rawlinson, Richardson (For Kelly-Evans, 57), Francis (for Mitchell, 79), Palmer, Rodrigues, Sam, Roberts, Wooton.

Substitutes: Lacey, Kelly-Evans, Brunt, Nemane, Mitchell.

Match Report

Yeovil Town’s inability to kill a game off saw them denied an impressive win at promotion chasing Notts County who grabbed a late equaliser.

Having gone ahead just two minutes in to the second half when Alex Bradley capitalised on a defensive mix up, the Glovers had to withstand pressure from the hosts.

Just when it looked as if they might manage that, Alex Lacey’s header deep in to nine minutes of stoppage time added on meant the visitors settled for a point.

Here is Coatesie’s perspective from the away end at Meadow Lane….

First half

Having been exposed on the break on a couple of early forays forward by the home side, the first proper chance came on four minutes on a break away led by Charlie Wakefield who picked out Tom Knowles but his shot was deflected wide for a corner.

Eli Sam, the Notts striker with five goals in his last five matches, had a header smartly stopped by Grant Smith soon after, before Kyle Wootton’s deflected effort was blocked on the line by Luke Wilkinson.

A lot of the home side’s threat was coming down the flanks with Sam on the left and Callum Roberts on the right.

On 22 minutes, it was Roberts’ whipped ball in from the right wing which found Ruben Rodrigues whose diving header went wide with only Smith to beat. Golden opportunity.

Notts lost captain Kyle Cameron on 28 minutes after  an innocuous looking tussle with Knowles. He was replaced by former Glover Alex Lacey, and moments later Ben Barclay put a header in to the hands of hosts’ keeper Vitezslav Jaros from a Knowles long throws.

Six minutes from half-time, a ball through from Alex Bradley set Barnett away down the left but his ball in to Wakefield was over hit giving Notts the chance to clear. It was yet another almost moment for us going forward.

In terms of clear cut chances, Rodrigues’ header wide was as good as it got for either side in a scrappy opening 45 minutes.

For a side pushing for promotion with a dearth of attacking talent in their squad, Notts County have not lived up to their billing and us….surprise, surprise, we look a side sorely lacking a striker.

Half time: Notts County 0 Yeovil Town 0

Second half

Any fans returned from the half time break late will have missed a misjudged header back to Jaros which found the younger keeper all at sea. The ball eventually broke to Alex BRADLEY who lifted it over the stranded keeper.

Alex Bradley. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

That seemed to spark the home side in to action and on 53 minutes danger man Roberts got on the ball and fired a ball in to the near post where Rodrigues stabbed it goalwards but Smith denied him with an instinctive stop with his feet.

On the hour mark, Gorman’s free-kick found Wilkinson in the middle but he could not quite get enough contact to give Jaros more than a simple save.

As the game reached its closing stages, the wind off the nearby River Trent started to pick up and free-kicks were causing both defences.

On 77 minutes, another deep free-kick found Wilkinson in a bit dissimilar position to the one he found himself in at Chesterfield seven days earlier. This time he could not get clean contact on it.

There was battling, hassling, harrying from a Yeovil side who truly do not know when they are beaten, but the biggest lift came when nine minutes of injury time came up on the board.

Some of the stream of home fans leaving Meadow Lane turned around, sending something was about to happen and, a couple of minutes in to the nine it did. A lofted free-kick in found the head of Alex LACEY who seemed to have the freedom of the penalty area to head home.

But, it wasn’t over there, moments later the ball broke to D’Ath who brought it forward and squared it to substitute Reuben Reid. The ball ran under his foot and away to safety.

Full time: Notts County 1 Yeovil Town 1

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Venue: Technique Stadium
Saturday 26 February, 17:20 kick-off

Conditions: A cold breeze
Pitch: Well worn, especially around the edges. Looked atrociously bobbly on the telly

Attendance: 5371 (128 away)

Scorers: Kellerman 45

Bookings: Barclay 31, Kellerman 57,

Referee: Thomas Parsons


Yeovil Town : (4-3-3)

Grant Smith

Mark Little, Luke Wilkinson, Ben Barclay, Morgan Williams

Matt Worthington (Lawson D’Ath 68) Josh Staunton Jordan Barnett (Lo Everton 77)

Charlie Wakefield, Adi Yussuf (Reuben Reid 82), Tom Knowles

Substitutes: Max Evans, Alex Bradley

Chesterfield: Loach, Miller, Whittle, Maguire, Grimes, King, Kellerman, Whelan, Mandeville, Quigley (Denton), Asante (Khan)

Subs: Williams, Rowley, Kerr

Match Report

Yeovil Town fell to a 1-0 defeat on the road at promotion chasing Chesterfield this evening with a stunning first half goal from James Kellerman settling the game.

The Glovers had the best of the first half, and could have been 2-0 up had efforts from Luke Wilkinson and Tom Knowles been centimetres in different directions.

Two out of form sides cancelled each other out in a largely uneventful and scrappy second half as the Glovers finished the day 14 points away from the playoffs.

Here’s how Ian saw the game, from the comfort of his living room…

First half

It all got a bit hairy at the back for Chesterfield in the 5th minute. Jordan Barnett’s lofted hopeful ball was chased down by Charlie Wakefield who beat Scott Loach to the ball and headed towards goal. The ball didn’t carry, though and was cleared off the line as Tom Knowles bared down on the Spireites defender.

Chesterfield’s first sniff at goal came 5 minutes later, through a left-footed shot from Akwasi Asante. The striker’s effort, from the left side of Yeovil’s penalty box flew wide of Grant Smith’s right hand post.

Luke Wilkinson should have put the Glovers ahead after quarter of an hour. Barnett’s delicious freekick fell to the skipper just outside the six-yard box with the whole goal to aim at, but centre back bobbled his shot into the ground straight at Loach, who got a smidgen of a touch on it to help it over the bar.

Grant Smith was at full stretch minutes later, as Grimes leapt above everyone in the box to head towards the top right corner.

On a bobbly surface, the Glovers certainly tried to play more than their opponents and were unfortunate not to go into the break 1-0 up through a wonderful strike from Tom Knowles that rebounded off of the bar.

In typical Yeovil fashion though, after having the better of the first half, they fell behind in stoppage time at the hands of a brilliant strike from James KELLERMAN. Ben Barclay cleared a Chesterfield cross which landed nicely at the feet of an unmarked Kellerman who seemed to slow time down to unleash an unsaveable effort into the corner of Smith’s goal. 0-1

After a strong first half performance, Yeovil could feel aggrieved to go in behind.

Half time: Chesterfield 0 Yeovil Town 1

Second half

Chesterfield, buoyed by their goal, came out the much stronger of the two sides in the second half applying plenty of pressure to the Glovers.

Yeovil had one of those ‘what could have been’ moments in the 52nd minute, where had Adi Yussuf made the right pass, he could have put Charlie Wakefield in on goal. As it was, the cohesion was totlly lacking and Yussuf conceded possession to Chesterfield.

Yeovil had another opportunity to counter moments later and Wakefield was cynically fouled by Kellerman. Luke Wilkinson lined up the resultant free kick, but could only find the side netting.

Yussuf should have pulled Yeovil level in the 65th minute. Josh Staunton flicked Knowles long throw into the heart of Chesterfield’s 6 yard box and the Yeovil striker’s contact wasn’t good enough to beat Loach, depite the appeals of some Yeovil players.

The quality of the game deteriorated through the second half and Chesterfield kept Yeovil at arms length, without creating anything for themselves, other than a header for Grimes in stoppage time.

Full time: Chesterfield 0 Yeovil Town 1

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Venue: York Road
Tuesday, February 22nd, 7.45pm kick-off

Conditions: Cold but dry
Pitch: Sandy in the penalty areas and cutting up everywhere else.

Attendance: 1153

Scorers: Olomola 18, Ferdinand 44

Bookings: Wilkinson, Williams, Massey, Clerima

Referee:


Yeovil Town : (4-4-2)

Grant Smith

Mark Little, Luke Wilkinson, Ben Barclay, Morgan Williams

Lawson D’Ath (Jordan Barnett 62), Josh Staunton, Alex Bradley(Adi Yussuf 87)

Charlie Wakefield, Olufela Olomola (Reuben Reid 54), Tom Knowles

Substitutes: Matt Worthington, Sonny Blu Lo-Everton

Maidenhead United

Gyollai, Beckwith, Blissett (Smith 77), Clerima, De Havilland, Donnellan, Ferdinand, Kelly, Massey, Sheckleford, Sparkes (McCoulsky 83)

Substitutes: Adams, Parry, Upward

Match Report

A first half goal for both sides saw Yeovil Town earn a point on the road at Maidenhead United this evening.

The Glovers had two goals disallowed on the night, but Olufela Olomola’s 18th minute opener. Kane Ferdinand levelled things up before half time and neither side could find a winner in the 2nd half. Although, Reuben Reid was denied a late winner by an offside flag which our man at the ground, David Coates couldn’t understand.

Here’s how he saw the game… 

First half

It was Maidenhead danger man Josh Kelly who had the first opportunity, the ball breaking to him inside and Grant Smith was equal to his effort from a tight angle.

Shortly after Olomola was found from a long throw by Tom Knowles but could not get an effort in on goal.

The first opportunity half-chance for the Glovers as Tom Knowles’ long-throw escaped everyone and fell to Olufela Olomola who couldn’t get a clean connection on the ball.

But on 14 minutes, the visitors had the ball in the net when Alex Bradley (released from incarceration) found Luke Wilkinson at the back post and he headed home.

A pint went up from the away end but it was in ruled out for climbing – seen a lot worse.

The officials levelled it up on 16 minutes when Maidenhead were denied by the offside flag. Smith pulled off a fine save before a barrage of shots with the ball in the net from Remus Clerima, but the flag denied him.

The deadlock was broken on 18 minutes when Knowles’ persistence saw the ball broke to Olufela OLOMOLA whose effort took a deflection on its way in to the net. If Adi get the one against W*ymouth, they one belongs to Fela. 1-0

A free-kick from Dan Sparkes came rattling back of the back off the bar and, from the second ball, a superb intervention from Ben Barclay denied the home side on 24 minutes.

For the remaining 20 minutes, neither side threatened with the combination between Olomola and Lawson D’Ath proving fruitful without carving out a meaningful chance.

The punishment came a minute from the break when a corner from Sparkes appeared to be missed everyone including Smith for Kane FERDINAND to prod home the equaliser. 1-1

Nathan Blissett put a header wide for hosts moments later, but the game was level at half time.

Half time: Maidenhead United 1 Yeovil Town 1

Second half

The first action of the second half saw Olomola hit with a heavy tackle. The loanee got up and carried off, but went down in the 55th minute replaced by Reuben Reid.

In only his second match, Olomola again showed flashes of what he is about and his desire to have a shot shows a lot of what we have been missing up front. Let’s hope the change was precautionary.

Sparkes had a free-kick deflected wide, which Smith may have got a touch on, it was hard to see from the away end. But there was no doubt the keeper did superbly to deny Sparkes with a smart stop on 63 minutes.

D’Ath was replaced by Barnett and he took much of the quality out of midfield, and at the other end it was Sparkes versus Smith.

The Magpies’ number 11 fizzed in another effort from the edge of the box which the keeper turned wide with another stop.

In the away, the supporters broke in to a burst of The Great Escape and there was a feeling of holding on.

Knowles had a free kick deflected wide before another effort from the edge of the box was dragged wide.

Three minutes from the end we threw Adi Yussuf as a Hail Mary, but there was no sign of divine inspiration.

It almost came when a minute in to stoppage time a corner was met by the head of Wilkinson and broke to Reid and whose stabbed it in, only to be denied by the the offside flag.

The linesman had his flag up early but, for the life of me, I don’t see how he can be offside from there.

Three points for either side would have been an injustice, so perhaps there was a divinity involved.

Full time: Maidenhead United 1 Yeovil Town 1

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Venue: Huish Park
Tuesday, February 15th, 7.45pm kick-off

Conditions: Clear
Pitch: Good

Attendance: Not announced

Scorers: Alex Bradley 21, Sonny Blu Lo-Everton 33

Referee: Richard Hulme


Yeovil Town : (4-4-2)

Max Evans

Mason Hunter, Finlay Ridout, Morgan Williams, Jordan Barnett

Matt Worthington (Benjani Jr) Toby Stephens Alex Bradley

Sonny Blu Lo-Everton

Reuben Reid (Fin Skiverton) Adi Yussuf (Sam Hodges)

Substitutes:

Cheddar (5-4-1) Dan Jackson, Kyle Sampson, Jamie Laird, Joe Woodley, Steve Holland, Chris Coombs, Kris Bell, Ricky Bennett, Ethan Reed, Harry Taylor, Robbi Maggs. Substitutes: Webster, Groom, Biggs, Hucker, March.

Match Report

Yeovil Town are through to the semi finals of the Somerset Premier Cup after a 2-0 win against Cheddar at Huish Park.

All the action was in the first half with goals from Alex Bradley and Sonny Blu Lo-Everton and plenty of efforts at goal.

The second saw Bradley hit the post, and a couple of half chances for Cheddar but the Glovers were more than comfortable on the night.

First half

Cheddar came out of the gates pretty quickly and their number 8, Ricky Bennett had a hopeful effort float wide of Max Evans goal less than a minute in.

After that Yeovil’s superiority took hold and they controlled proceeding as you’d expect. Matt Worthington’s lofted pass released Jordan Barnett on the left and his cross was a touch too high for Adi Yussuf.

A few minutes later, Yussuf should have put Yeovil a goal ahead after being released in the penalty box. His left footed shot struck the post, though, and Sonny Blu Lo-Everton couldn’t get the rebound on target.

Chris Coombs tickled the top of Evan’s crossbar with a delivery from the right hand side which drew a sharp intake of breath from the die hards at Huish Park. Real who?

Cheddar nearly scored an own goal worth of the Somerset Premier Cup Blooper Blu Ray in the 17th minute with an ricochet flying towards goal that Dale Gorman would have been proud of.

20 minutes in Morgan Williams appeared on the edge of the box and struck a fierce effort that took a deflection of the bar.

From the resulting corner, played short, Alex BRADLEY did his best Tom Knowles impression cutting inside and drilling a left footed shot inside Dan Jackson’near post. 1-0.

The best back to goal striker in the Somerset Premier Cup showed what he was all about half an hour in. Holding off three defender before shooting straight at the keeper.

The Glovers doubled their advantage in the 33rd minute through with neat interplay releasing LO-EVERTON on the right of the the penalty box and he finished comfortably. 2-0

Two goals up and confidence flowing, Sonny had another effort from distance which was flapped at by the Cheddar keeper.

Not to be out done by Sonny, Bradley had a swerving effort from distance himself which forced the purple-clad Jackson into a flying save to his left.

The woodwork shook again just after 40 minutes, this time Toby Stephens left Jackson rooted to the spot willing the net not to bulge.

Half time: Cheddar 0 Yeovil Town 2

Second half

It took a few minutes to liven up in the second half and the first opportunity fell the Glovers way.

Yussuf was played into a good position on the left side of the box, he shot was saved, but had he squared it to Reid, the goal was a sure thing…I expect.

The second half didn’t liven up much more. A couple of half chances for Cheddar went awry.

Bradley came close to scoring he second with a good low shot rebounding off the post and across the line.

Darren Sarll introduced Fin Skiverton, Sam Hodges and Benjani Jr towards the end but it was a good outing for two of the youngsters in Mason Hunter and Finlay Ridout who both completed 90 minutes.

Full time: Cheddar 0 Yeovil Town 2

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Venue: Silverlake Stadium
Saturday, February 12th, 3pm kick-off

Conditions: Dry but still
Pitch: Fine

Attendance: 2716 (no away figure given)

Scorers: None

Referee: Lee Collins

Bookings:
Yeovil Town: Gorman ’79, Knowles ’83, Bradley ’90+
Eastleigh: Miley ’30, De Barr ’67, Hill ’83, Boyce ’83,

Sending off: None


Yeovil Town : (4-3-3)

Grant Smith

Mark Little, Ben Barclay, Luke Wilkinson, Morgan Williams

Josh Staunton, Dale Gorman, Jordan Barnett (Yussuff ’88)

Charlie Wakefield, Olufela Olomola (Lo-Everton ’72), Tom Knowles (Bradley ’90)

Substitutes: Max Evans, Alex Bradley, Rueben Reid, Sonny Blu Lo-Everton, Adi Yussuf.

Eastleigh: McDonnell, Boyce, Broadbent, Hare, Harper, Hill, Miley, Pitman, Pritchard, Whelan, Whitehall.
Substitutes: Hesketh (for Pritchard 62), De Barr (for Whitehall), Barnett (for Pitman 88), Bragg, Kelly.

Match Report

It was another story of what could have been for Yeovil Town as our ability to find a killer ball or a goal (or both) saw us peter out to another goalless draw.

The story was one of two sides with inability to turn chances in to meaningful opportunities with Yeovil dominating the play in the first half but a late strike from debutant Olufela Olomola was as good as it got.

After the break, the visitors imposed themselves on the game, but it was Glovers’ defender Ben Barclay who came closest to scoring when his header came off the top of the crossbar from a corner.

A late surge from the Spitfires saw a fine stop from Grant Smith parried to striker Tyrone Barnett who fired wide.


First half

The talk of the team news was a (third) debut for Olufela Olomola, following his arrival on loan from Hartlepool United until the end of the season.

He was joined in a front three by Tom Knowles and Charlie Wakefield with Mark Little returning at right back and Jordan Barnett coming in midfield. Jack Robinson and Matt Worthington dropped out from the midweek defeat at Wealdstone.

The first chance for either side came after ten minutes when done good approach play broke to Tom Knowles from the edge of the box and his effort was tipped over over Joe McDonnell in the hosts’ goal.

Ben Barclay’s header flashed over from a corner three minutes later, but that was all Yeovil had to show for the greater attacking pressure in the opening 20 minutes.

There was not much opportunity for Olomola to show much until the 23rd when he lashed a shot just over but a neat link up with Knowles shortly after to set Wakefield away showed what the new boy can bring. Charlie’s run was just too soon to beat the offside flag, however.

There was good movement, nice touches from the new boy, enough to suggest a partnership with Knowles and Wakefield could be fruitful – but just lacking that final well, anything.

Then with the final minute of the half ticking away, Dale Gorman latched on to a loose ball fed it to Olomola inside the box and the striker got his shot away but crept over. Best chance of the half.

The fact that Grant Smith did not have a meaningful effort to deal with says everything about the hosts’ attack and the visitors’ defence.

Indeed, a weakness in the structurally unsound away end from jumping Yeovil fans proved the highlight of the action in that direction during the opening 45 minutes.

Half time: Eastleigh 0 Yeovil Town 0

Second half

A bit of harem scarem in the both boxes did not lead to an effort on goal until the 53rd minute when Wakefield cut inside the box and found Josh Staunton whose shot was blocked.

Though they could not have created less than their first half tally, the opening 15 minutes of the second period with winger Ryan Hill in the thick of the action.

Spitfires’ striker Brett Pitman put an effort over soon after before defender Josh Hare’s low ball in to the box shortly before the hour mark took a deflection off a Yeovil defender and away.

The momentum had certainly swung the way of Eastleigh, but on the 66th minute a corner found Luke Wilkinson at the back post and his header across goal came to defensive partner Ben Barclay who got his head to it but saw his effort come off the top of the bar.

Olomola’s afternoon came to an end when he was replaced by Sonny Blu Lo-Everton. It was far from a dream return for the former Southampton youngster, but there seemed to be enough in his performance to think he will help out lacklustre attack.

After 75 minutes, former Yeovil midfielder Tom Whelan fired a shot over from fully 20 yards which in the second period could be counted as an opportunity.

Barclay broke forward and his shot was deflected wide, and that is what it is going to take to break the deadlock. A mistake, a lucky break, a moment of brilliance.

Brilliance was in short supply, from as the resulting corner, the hosts took the ball away and broke away only for Gorman to make a ‘necessary’ foul. Unfortunately, it led to a booking, his inevitable tenth of the season. A two-match ban awaits.

Seven minutes from the end, Wakefield broke forward and forced a good save out of McDonnell.

Grant Smith didn’t have a lot to do, but he did pull off an important stop at the end. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

In the aftermath, Knowles charged down the keeper, Hill took exception and put a hand in to the throat of his opponent. Referee Lee Collins decided it was a booking apiece. Hill can certainly count himself lucky not to have seen red.

But the best chance of the match took until the final chance of the match when Smith reacted smartly to push a shot out as far as substitute Tyrone Barnett who inexplicably fired wide.

Full time: Eastleigh 0 Yeovil Town 0

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Venue: Grosvenor Vale
Tuesday, February 8th, 7.45pm kick-off

Conditions: Dry and still
Pitch: A bit thin in places and a bit of a slope

Attendance: 1,175 (135 away supporters)

Scorers: Josh Umerah 38 (0-1), Nikola Tavares 43 (0-2), Dale Gorman pen 62 (1-2)

Referee: Aji Ajibola

Bookings:
Yeovil Town: Williams 77, Wilkinson 85
Wealdstone: Wickens 63,

Sending off: 


Yeovil Town : (4-3-3)

Grant Smith

Morgan Williams (for Alex Bradley, 78) Luke Wilkinson Ben Barclay Jack Robinson

Matt Worthington (for Sonny Blu Lo-Everton, 57) Josh Staunton Dale Gorman

Charlie Wakefield Reuben Reid (for Adi Yussuf, 57) Tom Knowles

Substitutes: Max Evans, Alex Bradley, Toby Stephens Sonny Blu Lo-Everton, Adi Yussuf.

Wealdstone: Wickens, McAvoy, Cook, Okimo, Tavares, Mascoll (for Mundle-Smith, 73), Ferguson, Henry, Elito (for Browne, 82), Umerah, Jackson (for Cooper, 64).
Substitutes: Browne, Sesay, Dyer, Mundle-Smith, Cooper.

Match Report

Shoddy defending and a lack of goal threat saw Yeovil Town‘s awful form against the National League’s lower ranked sides Wealdstone.

The performance lacked the energy which has characterised many performances this season, whilst their part-time opponents displayed it and got themselves 2-0 ahead at half-time.

A penalty kick from Dale Gorman gave the visitors almost half-an-hour to salvage some respectability from the performance but our powder puff attacking play let us down yet again.

 

First half

Reuben Reid was brought in as part of a front three supported by Tom Knowles and ex-Stones’ man Charlie Wakefield in place of Jordan Barnett, who missed out with an ankle injury which saw him go off in Saturday’s goalless draw with Solihull Moors.

The other change saw Jack Robinson replace Mark Little, who played 76 minutes at the weekend as he continues his recovery from foot surgery, with the Middlesbrough loanee in at left-back with  Morgan Williams coming on the right side.

It was an end-to-end start with the home side starting the fastest. The speedy Ira Jackson which Grant Smith in the visitors’ goal had to turn over after six minutes, and five minutes later a poor goal kick from the stopper landed to Josh Umerah whose shot well blocked by Williams.

The first meaningful effort for the visitors fell to Wakefield who twisted and turned and unleashed a shot which Fulham loan keeper George Wickens did well to keep out.

On 21 minutes, Yeovil had the ball in the net when Dale Gorman surprised us all by floating a ball in (rather than his trademark shot) and he effort was well turned home by Josh Staunton whose run was mistimed and the flag was raised against him.

Knowles had an effort stopped by Wickens soon after and if the either side could finish a chance, this could have been a lot more entertaining. Give us Kabongo Tshimanga and we could be top – honest!

The big difference with this first half performance from Yeovil was that defensively we looked wobbly against one of the few teams who have scored less than us this season.

But, out of nothing, the shot from Jackson was partly blocked by Ben Barclay and despite that taking the sting out of the ball, Josh UMERAH was quickest to get in front of Luke Wilkinson and the ball to stab it home. 1-0 to the home side on 38 minutes.

Then four minutes later it was 2-0 through more shambolic defending, this time from a corner. Aaron Henry’s ball found its way to the back post and, whilst the visitors’ defence were statuesque and it landed at the feet of Nikola TAVARES.

We’ve been told that our lack of goals means we cannot afford to make mistakes, but there’s two we’ve made. Ugh.

Half time: Wealdstone 2 Yeovil Town 0

Second half

A high, wide and not so handsome effort from Gorman and a 20-yard shot from Knowles were as near as the visitors got to testing Wickens in the hosts goal.

But, in an attempt to change the game, Darren Sarll introduced Sonny Blu Lo-Everton, who spent the end of last season with Wealdstone, and Adi Yussuf in place of Matt Worthington and Reid.

Dale Gorman scored the visitors only goal from the penalty spot.
Credit: Weymouth Flickr

It seemed that something had to come from nowhere for Yeovil and on 62 minutes it did. Gorman appeared to be going nowhere inside the box and he was brought down and GORMAN stepped up to coolly slot home the penalty. 2-1.

You would have hoped that would have put the visitors’ tails up, but unfortunately it did not seem to spark much of a reaction.

In the final 30 minutes, the biggest problem for Yeovil seemed to be getting the ball off their hosts with the next biggest problem doing anything with it when they got it.

It took until ten minutes from time for either side to fashion a chance. Initially Umerah had a shot blocked for the home side and then the game swung to the other end where Knowles and Gorman both had efforts before the ball broke to Robinson whose effort went wide.

Former Glovers’ winger Rhys Browne, on as a substitute, nearly added the old boy’s curse to the indignity already felt by his old employers but one effort crept just the wrong side of the post and then was denied by a good save from Smith.

The result in one of our games in hand over those in the top half of the table was yet another missed opportunity for the Glovers.

We remain in 12th place in the National League, ten points off the play-off places and 19 points off W*ymouth who occupy the division’s last relegation spot.

Full time: Wealdstone 2 Yeovil Town 1