Cooper: We need to tap in to the power of Huish Park
Mark Cooper has challenged his Yeovil Town players to tap in to “the power of Huish Park” after an improved second half performance in the goalless draw with Maidenhead United.
The Glovers’ boss was pleased with the reaction of the crowd of under 2,000 when he introduced substitute Andrew Oluwaborie after a hour, a move which sparked more positive forward play from the National League’s lowest scorers.
Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Sheridan Robins after the match, the boss said he saw enough from his side to believe they will “be alright” despite having picked up their ninth draw of the campaign and failed to add to their two wins so far this season.
He said: “If we had started like we would have won the game, but you can see the problems. There is a real lack of confidence and a fear which is not good but the second half was good.
“I think once we get to grips with how I want to play, which is how we played in the second half, in terms of how we want to pass the ball and get our flair players on the ball one-v-one I think we’ll be alright.”
He added: “You saw the power of Huish Park in the second half, that is not going to happen by us just turning up, I said to the boys they have to give (the fans) something.
“In the second half, we gave them something and they got really behind the boys and they appreciated that and they enjoyed the second half. I think Andrew can be a crowd favourite.
“If we can play like we did in the second half for 70 minutes, the fans will be right behind us.”
The boss threw on Oluwaborie, who joined just hours before kick-off on loan from Peterborough United, and Gime Toure in the second half, but the hosts managed just two shots on target in the entire 90 minutes.
They have managed just 13 goals in their 18 National League matches, making them the division’s lowest scorers by two clear goals.
Cooper revealed after the match he is hoping to get international clearance to bring former Bristol City youngster Louis Britton in, but added that confidence was the issue with the club’s other forwards.
He said: “You have to believe that ball is going to come and land on your head. You have to be an optimist when you’re a striker, you have to believe you are going to get on the end of it and not hope. At the minute we are hoping.
“As a defender you have to be a pessimist and believe everything is going to go wrong and clear it, but in the other box we have to be optimistic and confident because we are hoping not expecting to score at the minute.
“We gambled in the second half, but if we can get more control in the middle of the pitch with the ball and get those exciting wide players that we have got and get Louis Britton’s clearance, who scores goals for fun, we will be alright.”
The boss concluded: “We have to take the positives which is (the point) we go away with and the second half (performance). I understand the first half where the players are down with a lack of confidence and a lack of belief, so you have to build that up.
“We’ll take a point, it takes us out of the bottom four and we go on to (Gateshead at home) on Saturday.”
Worthy: Goals will come
Matt Worthington is sure that Yeovil will start getting wins soon after the Glovers were held to a 0-0 draw against Maidenhead.
Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Sheridan Robins he said that a new manager with new ideas would start paying off soon.
“Hopefully everyone can see it was a big improvement from recent weeks, yeah, we are disappointed not to get the three points, but it’s an improved performance”
“Clean sheets always help, unfortunately we didn’t get one at the other end, but I’m sure that’ll come.”
Yeovil welcomed two new faces into the squad and Worthington was pleased with how Anthony Georgiou and Andrew Oluwabori got going on debut.
“I think the new additions, the wingers looked good coking on, (they) gave us some more attacking threat”
“I think they’re very direct, like to get balls in the box and it’s only a matter of time before we start scoring goals”
“…we know what the problem is, we need to score more goals, midfielders need to score more goals, strikers need to score more goals, but like I said, today was a much improved performance and hopefully going forward, we will get them”
Worthy also spoke about Mark Cooper, a manager he has worked with before, has begun his tenure as Glovers boss and he’s looking forward to seeing the improvements come.
“He’s got a very good footballing brain, you could see that from the first day he came in, the training sessions have been very good, very structured and we know what he wants and what he demands… performances will get better under him”
“Training has been really enjoyable, he wants us to start playing football, I think today you saw glimpses of us in possession but now we can just work on the final third”
Perry returns, Britton’s got talent
Yeovil Town Manager Mark Cooper confirmed that Walsall’s Sam Perry has returned to his parent club.
The midfielder didn’t feature in Tuesday night’s draw and post match Cooper confirmed he was no longer in his plans.
? @LouisBritton14
Furthermore, he confirmed he was waiting on the clearance to sign former Bristol City front man Louis Britton.
Britton, who has been in Ireland with Cork City and Waterford, has plenty of experience in the South West with loans at Torquay, Bath City and Yate Town.
He scored 10 goals in 17 for Waterford before joining Cork City where he lifted silverware.
Cooper said; “if we can get Louis Britton’s clearance, who scores goals for fun, we will be alright.”
Britton needs international clearance from the Irish FA as his registration crosses international borders.
Match Report: Yeovil Town 0 Maidenhead United 0
Venue: Huish Park
Tuesday 8th November, 7.45pm kick-off
Conditions: Wet and windy
Pitch: Slippery
Attendance: 1,906
Scorers: None
Bookings:
Yeovil Town: Bevan 42, Reckord 64, Oluwaborie 90+4
Maidenhead United: Asare 45, Beckwith 67, Adams 90+3
Referee: Robert Massey-Ellis
Yeovil Town (4-3-3):
Substitutes: Andrew Oluwabori (for Ewan Clark, 60), Gime Toure (for Georgiou, 84), Chiori Johnson, Ollie Hulbert, Malachi Linton.
Maidenhead United: Gyollai, Ferdinand, Asare, Massey, Nathaniel-George (for Clifton 90+3), Acquah, Arthur (for Keetch, 54), Smith (for McCoulsky, 87), Beckwith, Adams, Clerima. Substitutes (not used): Odutayo, Andre.
Match Report.
Yeovil Town’s ninth draw of the National League season was enough to move them out of the National League relegation zone in Mark Cooper’s first home game in charge.
But, more tellingly, it was also the eighth time this season that the Glovers have drawn a blank in front of goal and a failure to do much to force the Maidenhead United goalkeeper in to action was plain for all to see.
There was an improvement – if you set the bar at the last time out against Aldershot Town in Chris Hargreaves’ final match – especially when debutant Andrew Oluwaborie came on after an hour, but it still was not enough.
First half
On loan Leyton Orient winger Anthony Georgiou was handed a debut and fellow wideman Andrew Oluwaborie, signed just hours before kick-off from Peterborough United, was named on the bench as the Glovers set up with a three-man forward line in a bid to improve their record as the National League’s lowest scorers.
However, there was no place in the squad for Will Buse, Morgan Williams, Sam Perry, Lawson D’Ath, Charlie Wakefield or Jake Scrimshaw. Signs of changes being rung by Mark Cooper?
The first meaningful chance saw Kane Ferdinand take advantage of a Max Hunt error to test Grant Smith with an effort from the edge of the box and moments later another effort skidded off the slippery surface to force the keeper to awkwardly turn it wide.
But chances were at a premium in the opening 45 minutes. Jamie Andrews, starting his second match since joining on loan from West Bromwich Albion, was a bright spark on a damp night, he kept his head up and seemed a creative force in midfield.
As the half came towards an end, Owen Bevan was lucky to escape with just a yellow after a two-footed tackle on Ferdinand – call that one an ‘orange’ card with referee Robert Massey-Ellis perhaps given him credit
The best chance of the game so far fell to Emile Acquah as the game crept in to injury time. The striker’s effort shot took a ricochet off someone and forced Smith in to a fine stop to turn it over the bar.
We look better than we did last time out against Aldershot Town, but that isn’t saying much. Not much to warm you on a miserable evening.
Half time: Yeovil Town 0 Maidenhead United 0
Second half
To say the second half started in similar fashion to the end of the first would be an understatement. Ferdinand brought a stop out of Smith on 57 minutes but that was probably about as ‘exciting’ as it got….and I use exciting in the loosest possible sense of the word.
Perhaps recognising the risk of hypothermia setting in for those in the Thatcher’s Stand, Yeovil manager Mark Cooper introduced Andrew Oluwabori in place of Ewan Clark, who had a bright first half but again took some heavy knocks.
The change brought the impact it was seeking with Oluwabori added attacking impetus and sparking fellow debutant Georgiou into bombing forward.
A couple of dangerous balls in to the box from Georgiou were turned aside first by Josh Staunton and then from Max Hunt, but neither forced Daniel Gyollai in to a stop.
The keeper was called in to action on 71 minutes when Oluwabori found Alex Fisher who flicked the ball towards goal but was denied by Gyollai. A shot on target, folks!
Max Hunt put a header wide four minutes later, but that was honestly about as near as we came to mustering a meaningful shot on target.
The statistics speak for themselves – two shots on target and two shots off target in 90 minutes of football.
We’re out of the bottom four at the expense of Scunthorpe United who take on Wrexham on Wednesday night, but beyond that positives are hard to come by.
Full time: Yeovil Town 0 Maidenhead United 0
Hargreaves: I will learn from Yeovil experience
Chris Hargreaves said he will learn from the experienced of his disappointing spell as manager of Yeovil Town.
The former boss has issued a statement through the League Managers’ Association saying he was “hugely disappointed” to have been sacked after picking up just two wins in three months in charge.
The statement in full reads:
“I would like to start by thanking the staff and players for their efforts and support during my time at Yeovil Town.
“I was extremely proud to be given the opportunity to manage the club and naturally I am hugely disappointed to have left. In my short tenure, I believe that many of the team’s performances this season should have contributed to a higher points total and that this would have improved as the season progressed. We were competitive against some of the teams with the highest budgets in the league and on many occasions, showed huge potential.
“The experience, while disappointing, is something I will learn from. I am keen to get back on the grass and will be doing everything I can to ensure that my next job is the right one for me to achieve success for a club.
“I wish the board, supporters and everyone at Yeovil Town FC the very best for this season and beyond. I sincerely hope that they can achieve their objectives in the near future.”
Team News: Maidenhead United (home)
New signing Anthony Georgiou is handed an immediate debut as Yeovil Town go in search of three points against Maidenhead United at Huish Park tonight (7.45pm kick-off).
The Cypriot winger lines up in a three-man frontman led by Alex Fisher and supported by fellow loanee Ewan Clark with captain Josh Staunton, fellow loanee Jamie Andrews and Matt Worthington in midfield in a 4-3-3 formation.
Fellow new boy Andrew Oluwabori, who joined on loan from Peterborough United ahead of kick-off, is one of four forwards named on the bench with Ollie Hulbert, Gime Toure and Malachi Linton.
Substitues: Chiori Johnson, Gime Toure, Ollie Hulbert, Malachi Linton, Andrew Oluwabori.
Oluwabori wings in to Huish Park
Yeovil Town made Peterborough United youngster Andrew Oluwabori their second winger to arrive at the club in 24 hours.
The 21-year-old’s arrival was announced ahead of the home match with Maidenhead United which he will be available for selection for alongside Anthony Georgiou, who joined from Leyton Orient on Monday.
Oluwabori, who has joined until 7th January making him available for ten matches (assuming it’s up to and including the 7th and a trip to Wrexham), spent the start of the season on loan at National League North side Kettering Town, scoring four times in ten appearances.
He becomes the seventh loanee at Huish Park joining Georgiou, Jamie Andrews, Sam Perry, Ewan Clark, Owen Bevan and Will Buse, if we assume that Sam Pearson’s stint in Somerset has ended after his return to Bristol City which was billed as “temporary” at the time.
Announcing the signing, the Glovers said: “Described as a front-foot winger, Andrew spent his early years in the academy at Huddersfield Town. He departed the Terriers prior to the 21/22 season and was picked up by Peterborough in September 2021.”
He made three substitute appearances in two-and-a-half months on loan at Boreham Wood last season.
Glovers add flying Ant
Yeovil Town have announced the short term signing of Anthony Georgiou, on loan from Leyton Orient.
Georgiou is a Cypriot international winger who was on the books of Tottenham through the youth ranks making a number of first team appearances for Spurs in pre season games.
He has also spent time on loan in the EFL.
Speaking to the Club’s YouTube channel, Georgiou said he was happy to be at Yeovil and getting going.
“The gaffer was really positive talking about me, and that’s what you want, to feel wanted somewhere, it’s a good thing to have.”
“As an attacking player, you want to get on the ball and create and that’s what my job is to do here.”
He describes himself as “mainly a winger” but says he wants to create and score some goals… which is absolutely fine by us!
Welcome to Somerset, Anthony!
Gloverscast #208 – “You’re a cheeky little monkey”
On this episode of the Gloverscast, Ian, Ben and Dave chat about the defeat to Woking and the aftermath of it. We look ahead to Maidenhead and take your GCQs.