Latest Yeovil Town News (Page 418)

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Venue: The Hive
Saturday, 2nd April, 3pm kick-off

Conditions: All four seasons in one
Pitch: “Crumbly” – Reuben Reid.

Attendance: 1,393 (288 from Yeovil)

Scorers: Tom Knowles (0-1) 8, Ephron Mason-Clarke (1-1) 23,  Adam Marriott (2-1_) 70, Reuben Reid (2-2) 82.

Bookings:

Yeovil: Wakefield ’30, Gorman ’36, Gorman ’85, Wilkinson ’90
Barnet: Beard ’26, De Havilland ’29

Referee: Tom Bishop

Yeovil Town : (4-4-2)

Ted Cann

Mark Little, Luke Wilkinson, Ben Barclay, Morgan Williams

Matt Worthington, Dale Gorman, Lawson D’Ath (for Sonny Blu Lo-Everton, 62), Tom Knowles

Charlie Wakefield (for Josh Neufville, 72), Reuben Reid (for Olufela Olomola, 86)

Substitutes: Jordan Barnett, Alex Bradley.

Barnet: Askew, Richards-Everton, Hall, Marshall, Mason-Clark, Marriott, Greenidge, Fonguck, Beard, Woods, Grego-Cox. Subtitutes: Howe (for Hall 82) Walsh (for Marshall 87) De Havilland (for Woods ‘3), Granville, Azaze.

Charlie Lee’s first game in caretaker charge of Yeovil Town saw him earn a point after an action-packed draw at Barnet.

Having taken the lead when Tom Knowles robbed the hosts from a hapless free-kick, burst forward and smashed home an eighth minute opener, only for Ephron Mason-Clark and Adam Marriott to put the Bees ahead with a goal in each half.

But, with just eight minutes remaining and the visitors finishing strongly, Reuben Reid grabbed his second in as many games to grab a well-earned point.

The travelling contingent from Somerset were in fine voice at The Hive and our own David Coates (who didn’t travel from Somerset, of course) was among them – here’s how he saw it…..

Match Report

Caretaker boss Charlie Lee changed absolutely nothing about the line-up – and why would you after three wins in your last three? – and stuck with the same squad which beat Southend United seven days earlier.

He and his ‘assistant’/injured midfielder Josh Staunton arrived on the the touch line to chants of ‘Charlie Lee’s green and white army’ from the away end, and the players he put out showed from the off that they were picking up where they left off.

Matt Worthington burst forward from the kick-off and within seconds of the start and testing Barnet keeper Jake Askew with an early effort.

If that was a signal of intent that Yeovil Town were not changing, Barnet boss Dean Brennan’s frustration will have grown after seeing Sam Woods limp off after just three minutes. Brennan had vented his anger at the number of players in the treatment room in his pre-match interview and there was another.

Tom Knowles scores v Southend. Pic: Mike Kunz.

Six minutes later he had even more to complain about as Yeovil took the lead. Barnet made a complete hash of a free-kick and Tom KNOWLES’ pressure saw him win the ball, burst forward and smash a beautiful angled shot home for the opener.

On 15 minutes, Luke Wilkinson headed wide from a Dale Gorman set piece before the centre half was the vital at the other end clearing, off the line as Barnet began to turn up the pressure.

It was a Gorman who had the next effort with a trademark free kick from range, albeit he forced Askew in to a smart stop after 22 minutes.

But two minutes later, a quick Barnet break led by Rob Hall saw the ball drop to Ephron MASON-CLARK who smashed a ball home off the underside of the bar to draw the hosts’ level. Morgan Williams was certainly struggling with the pace and trickery of Mason-Clark, so it was no surprise the see a goal come from that side.

Adam Marriott flashed a shot just wide shortly after and from there the game became a lot more even with Yeovil’s best opportunities coming on the break.

On the stroke of half-time, a set piece found the head of Ben Everton-Richards whose effort was easily stopped by Ted Cann in the visitors’ goal. It seemed both teams were waiting for a offside flag which ultimately never came.

But, the final chance of the half fell to Wakefield. Following good hold up play by Worthington saw him find Mark Little who broke in to the box and his shot was deflected out to Wakefield whose effort was tipped over the bar.

Half- time: Barnet 1 Yeovil Town 1

Second half

The second half started with Knowles, the highlight of the first half, having a shot just wide before having another blocked.

But, as the game progressed, neither side did too much to threaten with an effort wide from Knowles and one over the bar from Marriott the best the game had to offer.

If a goal was going to come, it would be a mistake and that was how it proved with the Bees taking the lead on  70 minutes. A loose ball in midfield gave Hall the chance to break forward and, having been allowed to walk through the Yeovil midfield, the ball broke to  MARRIOTT who shrugged off Mark Little to fire Barnet in front.

The response from Lee was instant sign was instant with Josh Neufville coming off the bench for Wakefield.

Within minutes of coming on, the Luton Town loanee was involved breaking forward and playing in Reid whose laid the ball off to Gorman whose effort was turned aside well by Askew.

From the resulting corners, Luke Wilkinson appeared to take at least two arms to the head, but referee Tom Bishop was unmoved.

Reuben Reid scores v Southend. Pic: Mike Kunz.

But on 82 minutes Yeovil drew level after constant pressure saw the ball ping-pong around the box before Gorman’s ball in from the left break to REID who smashed it home.

Three minutes later the striker found himself in a great position again but took one touch too many and opportunity disappeared as quickly as it arrived.

Great play by Neufville moments after let substitute Sonny Blu Lo-Everton who jinked his way past two defenders but his shot came back off the post.

Moments later Ben Barclay rose highest from a corner and inexplicably headed wide with the goal at his mercy.

If there was a team who was going to win it at the end it was Yeovil, but a point a piece was probably a fairer result.

Full time: Barnet 2 Yeovil Town 2

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Reuben Reid opens the scoring in the 2-0 win over Southend. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Charlie Lee has named his first starting XI as interim manager and has made a grand total of… zero changes.

Hardly surprising given the Glovers are on a three match winning streak though.

There’s no return to the squad for any of the injured cohort with Grant Smith, Max Hunt and Jack Robinson continuing their comeback.

The only alteration sees Josh Staunton miss out on the squad after having a scan in midweek on a hernia problem, Sonny Blu Lo Everton is back among the subs.

Team in full.

Ted Cann

Mark Little, Luke Wilkinson, Ben Barclay, Morgan Williams

Tom Knowles, Dale Gorman, Matt Worthington, Lawson D’Ath

Reuben Reid, Charlie Wakefield.

Substitutes: Barnett, Bradley, Lo Everton, Olomola, Neufville.

 

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Listening to Josh Staunton talk to the ‘Football, Bloody Hell’ show on 3 Valleys Radio this week was not easy.

Here we have a 26-year-old man with an injury which, in any other walk of life would have been operated on weeks ago, saying that he and his (in many cases even younger) team-mates have absolutely no idea if they have a job at the end of next month.

Any Yeovil Town fan knows all about the ‘will they? won’t they?’ situation with the takeover of the club, the apparent complete absence (at least publicly) of chairman and owner Scott Priestnall and a rudderless ship at Huish Park which has allowed manager Darren Sarll to walk away and join a rival club – and who can blame him?

Just read this that Josh told Adi Hopper at 3 Valley Radio:

Yeovil Town captain Josh Staunton.
Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

“We are surrounded by uncertainty now and it is disappointing when you get to this stage of the season and you don’t know if you are wanted or unwanted.

“That is not just me, that is every player that is out of contract, we would like some sort of clarity of whether we need to look elsewhere or are going to be offered something.

“One of the benefits of having a younger team, that blind loyalty is there. If we had a group of older players who were more family-orientated, I think it would be a lot more toxic around the dressing room.

“Especially at this time of year when people are worrying about their futures.”

Now the first thing to say is to praise Josh for his honesty and openness. There are few players in our squad – or indeed any squad in recent years – that clearly have the best interests of the club at heart more than Josh, so this is clearly something he has deep concerns about.

You can read more of what Josh said here or if you want to listen to the full show – try and skip the bits where Adi talks about things vibrating on his thighs (!), you can do that – here.

Now, I know that a footballers’ career is naturally more transient, but, even if you justify this situation that way, what of the other people who are employed by the club? The people looking after the stadium, running our community organisation, doing the finances, the media, all the other things that keep our club going.

Yesterday we paused and reflected on the tragic death of former captain Lee Collins and read heart-breaking tales about the demons which tormented him off-the-field.

As you will have heard Ian say on the latest podcast, we need to make sure the memory of Lee’s story stays with us as a football club – in our thoughts and our actions.

Lee’s concerns included about his future. Yet we have young people who find themselves with the same concerns and yet this seems to be happening. I ask again – how is this being allowed to happen?

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Barnet boss Dean Brennan is expecting to be without a number of players when they welcome Yeovil Town to The Hive tomorrow.

The manager was not giving away an names when he spoke ahead of the National League fixture, but he did speak (repeatedly) about his frustration at the capacity of the club’s treatment room.

He said described his players resilience to injury as “rubbish” which is something the Yeovil Town squad can relate too from last season.

Brennan said: “I can’t have this amount of players in the treatment room, it just can’t go on and we need to find a solution quickly.

“The recovery and where we are getting injuries is something we have to look at.

“In 11 years in management I have never known anything like this and, as a club, we need to change this.”

Despite this apparent issue, the Bees go in to the weekend off the back of decent run of three wins in their last five National League fixtures.

Their 2-1 win at Maidenhead United last weekend puts them eighth in the form table over the last six matches, with Yeovil in 11th having picked up nine points from a possible nine.

The wins including a 6-0 spanking of bottom club Dover and an impressive home win over high-flying Boreham Wood albeit they lost last time out on home soil going down 2-0 against Woking.

Prior to that run, the Bees had picked up just one win since the start of December with a run of eight defeats and four draws which began when Adi Yussuf’s early goal saw them go down 1-0 at Huish Park on December 11.

Barnet’s Ephron Mason-Clark is shown a red card at Huish Park in December.
Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Ephron Mason-Clark, who was red carded for a headbutt in the closing stages of that match, is a man in form.

He scored the winner in the 1-0 win over Boreham Wood and was outstanding against Maidenhead last weekend.

Adam Marriott, who missed the defeat at Huish Park to attend the birth of his child, was on the scoresheet last weekend and has six goals in his last ten outings.

He scored a late equaliser for King’s Lynn Town as they nicked a point off Yeovil on the opening day of the 2020-21 season.

FROM THE MANAGER

Bees’ boss Dean Brennan is still expecting a tough game from Yeovil Town even after the departure of his “good friend” Darren Sarll from the Huish Park hot-seat.

Speaking ahead of the game, he said: “They like to play a diamond and 4-4-2 in recent weeks.

“They have loads of pace and creativity in midfield, experience with (Luke) Wilkinson at the back who is a good organiser and Charlie Lee who has stepped in knows this level inside out.


“So we are still expecting a very tough game, they have good players and have done very well with everything that is going on in the background of their club this year.”

TEAM NEWS

Despite the best efforts of the interviewer for the Barnet YouTube channel, boss Dean Brennan was not giving away any details about which members of his squad he is expecting to be without.

But, as you can read above, the fact he will not be able to field the same time he did seven days ago is a cause of great annoyance.

Winger Ephron Mason-Clark and midfielder Sam Beard both appeared as substitutes for England C in their 4-0 defeat to their Wales counterparts in midweek.

A FOOT IN BOTH CAMPS

The last connection between these two clubs that we can think of, former Glovers’ youth team product Mitch Brundle left the Bees by mutual consent in January.

The midfielder has linked up with Southern League side Farnborough so, as far as we can tell, there’s no-one in the either squad with a foot in both camps.

If we’re not allowed to have Jordan Barnett as a connection, then a few other players  who have a foot in both camps include:

  • Mitch Brundle – Yeovil Town (2012-13), Barnet (2021-22)
  • Scott Loach – Yeovil Town (2015), Barnet (2019-2021)
  • Ben Nugent – Yeovil Town (2014-15), Barnet (2020-21)
  • Sam Hoskins – Yeovil Town (2013-2015), Barnet – loan (2014)
  • Keanu Marsh-Brown – Yeovil Town (2012-13), Barnet (2013-15)
  • Iffy Allen – Barnet (2012-15), Yeovil Town (2015-16)
  • Dean Parrett – Yeovil Town (2012), Barnet (2020-21)
  • Bondz N’Gala – Yeovil Town (2011-12), Barnet(2014-16)
  • Izale McLeod – Barnet (2010-2012), Yeovil Town (2016)
  • Sam Cowler – Yeovil Town – loan (2012), Barnet (2012-13, 2014-15)
  • Giuliano Grazioli – Yeovil Town (1995), Barnet (2003-2008)

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Goalkeeper Grant Smith could be available for Yeovil Town‘s trip to Barnet this week having sat out the last three games through injury.

Grant Smith. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Caretaker manager Charlie Lee said the keeper had impressed in training this week and would be in contention for the match in North London.

On loan West Brom keeper Ted Cann has been between the post for the past three games – all of which have ended in wins for the Glovers.

Speaking on Friday ahead of the match, Lee said: “Grant is looking good, we will see how he is today, it’s good to have him firing. He’s nearly fully fit.”

Striker Adi Yussuf is back at the club having been missing for the past fortnight on international duty with Tanzania and the boss said he would be assessed in training today.

Central defender Max Hunt has had a slight set back as he makes his way back from an ankle injury which has kept him out since the end of January.

Charlie said: “Hunty has done well, he’s having a little problem with his quad. He’s not too far away, but not for tomorrow.”

The game will be Lee’s first in the hot seat following the departure of Darren Sarll to join National League rivals, Woking, but he has done his homework on Barnet, who Yeovil beat 1-0 in the reverse fixture in December.

Of the opponents, he said: “We have looked in to Barnet and we know they have good players. They have had an up and down season similar to us, but we have to do what we have been doing lately.

“We know what we are good at and we have to do that.“

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New Yeovil Town manager Charlie Lee has said he is “up for the challenge” having been thrust in to the first-team manager’s job by the departure of Darren Sarll this week.

He will take charge of the team for tomorrow’s visit to Barnet having led training all week and taken the team through remembering the first anniversary of the death of ex-skipper Lee Collins this week.

Charlie Lee. ? Mike Kunz

Speaking on Friday ahead of the trip, he said: “I’m up for the challenge, it’s a really good opportunity for me to have a go at picking the team and taking the training, it’s a great opportunity and one I am really looking forward too.

“It’s a great group of lads and they are really up for helping me, I will be leaning on the players a lot.

“We are just taking it game by game, I said to the players this week ‘this is where you learn to be winners’, if you want to win anything in your career, you have got to take every game as it comes, you can’t waste anything.

“Some people might think there’s nothing to play for – your playing for yourself, your family, contracts and the fans, who have been brilliant with this group of players all season.

“We owe the club and the fans to make sure we are ready for every game and we will be.”

The former combative midfielder added that he did not expect the team’s style to change from that adopted by Sarll and  said he would take the same approach to management as he did as a player.

Hesaid: “I expect players who are playing for me, for however long that is, to work hard and give everything every game and find that bit of quality when it’s needed.

“It has been going really well these last few games and I have been really happy where we are and now we have to not take our foot off the pedal. We have to keep going and be ready for Saturday.”

The new boss said the Glovers’ squad would need the backing of supporters as much as they are ever have done as they start life without Sarll.

He spoke about “everything that has been going on behind-the-scenes” which we interpret as meaning both the loss of Lee Collins but also the uncertainty around the ownership of the club.

Speaking this week, midfielder Josh Staunton admitted the lack of clarity was unsettling for the club’s young squad.

Lee said: “The fans have been unbelievable with me in all my time at the club and the hardest time we had was when they were not in the ground.

“That was heart-breaking because we had built up such a good relationship and we missed them this season.

“The best thing about this season is how well the fans and the players have connected with everything that is going on behind the scenes.

“I would be lying if I said we didn’t need them between now and the end of the season, we are going to need them as much as we ever have. If they keep turning up, we will keep playing as hard as we can.”

Lee admitted he had not been expecting to take up the managerial hot-seat so soon having returned as assistant manager in February.

However, he said he had been looking to get in to coaching ever since he left Huish Park as a player at the end of last season having already completed his coaching qualifications.

Asked whether he saw himself as a contender for the job, permanently he said: “That is something I am not thinking about, at the minute we have to take it game by game and we would be foolish to do anything else.

“I have no idea what the future holds for me in this role, but I know we have a game tomorrow and we have to prepare for it.

“You realise when you have been in the game more than 20 years, things like this happen. You never expect it to be you, but you have to be ready to embrace it when it does happen.”

Asked about Sarll, who quit Huish Park to take up the manager’s job at National League rivals Woking on Monday, Charlie added: “The Gaffer is a great man. What he did at Yeovil people realise but they might not know what he did for the club and players especially.

“The players especially owe him and Terry (Skiverton) and Craig (Wight) a great deal for what they have done in the last year of our lives.

“He will be successful wherever he goes. I will be in touch a lot and we wish him all the luck, that’s all I can say. He should be very proud of what he did in his time at Yeovil.”

 

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Josh Staunton has called on those involved in deciding the future of Yeovil Town to give its players clarity on their future.

The midfielder said the ongoing speculation around a potential takeover of the club is unsettling for the squad with every player except defender Morgan Williams out of contract come the end of the season.

He was talking on the ‘Football, Bloody Hell’ programme on 3 Valleys Radio – listen here – and said the players had heard nothing from owner Scott Priestnall or any of the groups bidding to buy the club.

Josh Staunton has been playing with a hernia injury in recent weeks.
Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Staunton has been playing through the pain barrier due to a hernia in recent weeks and admitted he is concerned he could be left looking for a new club whilst injury.

The 26-year-old said: “We are surrounded by uncertainty now and it is disappointing when you get to this stage of the season and you don’t know if you are wanted or unwanted.

“That is not just me, that is every player that is out of contract, we would like some sort of clarity of whether we need to look elsewhere or are going to be offered something.

“One of the benefits of having a younger team, that blind loyalty is there. If we had a group of older players who were more family-orientated, I think it would be a lot more toxic around the dressing room.

“Especially at this time of year when people are worrying about their futures.”

He was speaking with days after the departure of manager Darren Sarll, who joined National League rivals Woking on Monday after the club failed to discuss new terms with him with his contract up this summer.

Staunton said: “If anyone else was looking like they would be made redundant in any other job and they were offered a new job, no-one would begrudge them.

Darren Sarll, who took a job as Woking manager on Monday. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

“We are not in the position where we can take a year off and it won’t hurt our bank accounts, like Premier League footballers, we are normal people and we require jobs to live.

“The gaffer has two young kids, a wife and if someone gives you a secure contract, I would never begrudge him that security. That is what has cost Yeovil because he will be a massive loss to the club.”

He added that he was having a scan on his groin hernia this week to assess the damage and said his own team-mates had warned him about the situation he was in.

He said: “I had a long conversation with one of the boys at the weekend who was saying to me ‘you are putting yourself at risk, you don’t know if the club want you’ because I am playing with injury.

“I’m getting through until the end of the season and someone might not want to pay for my operation at the end of the season, so I could be trying to find a new club whilst I am requiring surgery.

“All these things, even if they do not directly affect you, they take your toll.”

We at the Gloverscast are sure we speak for every Yeovil Town fan when we say to Josh and the rest of the team – we want you at our club and we are sorry you are being put in this situation.

And, to those who are making these decisions, read what this young man is saying – both on his behalf and those of his team-mates – and think what your actions (or lack of them) are doing on a human level.

This is now about more than the ownership of a football club – do the decent thing and speak to these people about their futures.

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Yeovil Town‘s debt to Sport England has increased by a further £197,000, meaning the club is now almost £1m in the red.

The latest filing to the accounts of Yeovil Town Athletic & Football Club, the company which runs its football operations, and Yeovil Town Holdings, which owns the land surrounding its Huish Park stadium.

It showed that the club’s loans to Sport England rose from £801,538 to £998,538 due to a charge registered on March 26.

The latest increase in debt comes as the club filed its accounts for the 12 months up until June 31, 2021, when it owed ‘just’ £582,950.

The accounts show that, at the end of June, “the directors have reviewed likely future developments and remain of the opinion that the company still has adequate resources to meet its obligations and shareholders have agreed to continue to support the club financially where necessary.

“Therefore there is no reason to believe that the club will have to cease trading as a result of inadequate financial resources, or any other foreseeable event.

“As such the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements continuing to be adopted.”

Scott Priestnall, left, alongside now former Glovers’ manager, Darren Sarll. Priestnall and fellow director Glenn Collis are the only directors of the companies against which the club’s loans have been charged.

In other words – everything’s fine, nothing to worry about. Whether that situation remains nine months and two additional Sport England loans later, is another question.

This is the third loan which the companies behind the club, which list chairman Scott Priestnall and fellow director Glenn Collis as directors, have taken out against the club.

In case you needed a recap, this is the timeline:

  • 12 February 2021: Yeovil Football & Athletic Club Ltd (YF&AC) agree a loan of £689,538 from Sport England.
  • 17 March 2021: The loan is created as a legal charge on the club.
  • 31 August 2021: The club confirms it has borrowed an additional £112,000 from Sport England with a charge taken by Yeovil Town Holdings Limited (YTHL).
  • 12 October 2021: YTHL confirms it has satisfied the  £112,000 loan.
  • 13 October 2021: A new charge filed against YF&AC is registered which confirms it has taken on loan of up to £801,538.
  • 26 March 2022: New charges which appear on the accounts of both YF&AC and YTHL shows a further £197,000 loan has been taken out with Sport England, raising the debt to almost £1m.

You may recall it was the response to a Freedom of Information request by the Gloverscast published in June which confirmed the original loan amount, see – here.

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The Football Association has confirmed the Glovers spent £26,834 on intermediaries and agents between Feb 2nd 2021 and January 31st 2022.

This obviously covers all deals done during the summer and specifically references deals for; Grant Smith, Jordan Barnett, Mark Little, Dale Gorman and Adi Yussuf.

Elsewhere in the National League, $tockport County were the biggest spenders, topping £130,000 during that time with £80,000 of Wrexham’s Hollywood pounds also spent on agent fees.

Bath City were the cheapest side listed with just £580 listed.

This was a significant rise from the year ending February 1st 2021 with the Glovers forking out just £1,287 during that previous year.

Meanwhile in the year ending January 30th 2020 saw Yeovil fork out £19,837

The full list for 2022 is below.

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It’s been a year since we learned of the passing of our captain Lee Collins.

On this episode of the Gloverscast, we’ve spoken to Elliot Watts about the amazing ride he, and many others, are doing to raise money for Mind in Somerset in memory of Lee Collins.

We also caught up with Kevin Gall and Abby Carter about the upcoming Legends Game and what is means to them! Plus we’ve got an exclusive player announcement!