Latest Yeovil Town News (Page 420)

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Ian, Ben and Dave chat about the 2-1 win over Eastleigh and the run of fixtures. Plus we take your ever-important questions.

Thanks for listening!

Remember to add Gloverscast.co.uk to your favourites and check the website daily for the latest news from Huish Park.

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook, enjoy some retro content on Instagram. Leave us a review and share the pod with a pal.

If you want to take part in the quiz, have an idea for the website or just want to send us a message, email gloverscast@gmail.com. 

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It was an unbeaten weekend of Junior Premier League action for the youth sides representing the Yeovil Town Community Sports Trust this weekend.

The Under 11s were held to a draw at home to Cheltenham Town with the Under-12s winning away at Bridgwater United.

The Trust’s Under-13s, Under-14s and Under-16s sides all picked up wins over the South Somerset Regional Talent Centre, which bizarrely list Huish Park as one of their training centre.

We say bizarrely because the centre also advertises that a number of local Football League clubs scout their matches/training– let’s hope they weren’t there this weekend and the lads from the Trust stay in green and white.

Yeovil Town Under-18s also returned to action going down 1-0 at home to Torquay United in the South West Counties Youth League.

It was the young Glovers’ first match for a fortnight following a postponement last weekend, although a number of players did feature for the first team in the Somerset Premier Cup win at Larkhall Athletic in the week.

 

 

 

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Two wonderful strikes from Tom Knowles and Adi Yussuf saw Yeovil Town grind out a 2-1 win at home to Eastleigh.

The win moves the Glovers up to 13th in the National League table, eight points off the play-off places and the relegation zone.

Here are BBC Radio Somerset correspondent Sheridan Robins‘ five conclusions from the victory.

We have been told not to fall in love with footballers, but that ship may have sailed with Tom Knowles looking back to his best. Not only was his opening goal a superb finish from distance, but his hard work off the ball to win it back in midfield showed his character and desire to get the ball and run with it. In the difficult run of form, Knowles wasn’t given the freedom he needs to create these moments of brilliance but in recent weeks he and Wakefield have created space and subsequently look dangerous in every attack.

Luke Wilkinson is the difference between a successful season and a not so successful one. I don’t think his impact on the pitch (and I have no doubt off it as well) should ever be understated. He provides leadership, never misses a header, and provides stability midfielders need to be able to push higher up the pitch and attack. His injury frustrations are hopefully now over, and I don’t think it is any coincidence that we came back so strongly from being pegged back to 1-1, with him back on the pitch leading the defence.

Jordan Barnett will provide a huge amount of assists this season. He seems set for a sustained spell in defence, following the news Jack Robinson will be on the sidelines for 4-6 weeks with an ankle injury, and while Barnett has thrived in a midfield three in recent weeks, his crosses from full back yesterday were fantastic. He is becoming a real fans favourite with his passion but his left-sided balla from set pieces and open play will cause teams problems and, especially with Wilko back in the frame, I expect us to start scoring more from corners and free kicks.

Darren Sarll has created a similar team spirit to the 19/20 season. Much has been said about how young this side is, but their attitude is beyond their years. The work-rate is second to none and for top scorer Joe Quigley to be dropped to the bench for a sustained amount of time, whilst not reacting badly, is credit to Sarll’s man management. Quigley’s appearance for the last 20 minutes was game-changing, and his flick on for Yussuf’s goal was excellent centre forward play.

Huish Park felt like a fortress again. There are clearly still off-the-field issues to be sorted and nothing should distract from that. However, the performance on-the-pitch against Eastleigh spurred the crowd on and the support from the stands was second to none. Huish Park felt like it did before the pandemic – full of optimism and appreciation for the desire of the players. Yeovil are now unbeaten in their past four home matches and need to build on that to look up the table rather than down it.

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Yeovil Town manager Darren Sarll.
Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Yeovil Manager Darren Sarll spoke of his praise at the attitude of his side after a gritty, but impressive, 2-1 win over Eastleigh on Saturday.

Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Sheridan Robins, the gaffer said it may not have been a beautiful game, but he saw a lot that he liked from his side.

“I don’t think it was very pleasing on the eye, the performance, but for effort, togetherness, physicality, physical performance, attitude – any of those key fundamentals I thought it was 10/10” (we know you mean 7/7, really)

“To recover after the (Eastleigh) goal was great, I had a feeling we would recover with (Luke) Wilkinson back out there, because of his experience. I thought their desire to win a game of football was incredible.”

The two Glovers’ goals came from super strikes from Tom Knowles and Adi Yussuf and the Manager spoke of how they’re both showing some of their best form

“I thought the first half performance was the better of the two halves, for us, especially offensively, but I didn’t feel like we had that ruthless mentality.

Tom Knowles in action for Yeovil Town.
Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

“It was only every going to be a wonderful strike like Tom produced, that allowed us to go in one-up”

“I thought we played with a lot of creativity first half… I thought (Dale) Gorman was outstanding with Knowles, feeding him the ball and the front three were a real threat”

“We all know Tom is capable, it’s only ever a matter of time, Tom’s very much a ‘flurry’ goal scorer, so hopefully that’s the start of a good return from him now.”

“I thought (Joe) Quigley was outstanding when he came on, Sonny (Blu Lo-Everton) played in three or four different positions and Morgan Williams made the most telling contributions late on with his block”

“I’m really pleased for Adi, he looked fitter today, he looked sharper – I’m sure he was delighted to play on Wednesday (vs Larkhall in the SPC – for context, add sarcasm) – but I don’t care, he had to play, because he needs to get fitter and as he gets fitter we’ll see that”

“I was really pleased for Adi, because he worked hard today, I think he endeared himself to our supporters today”

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Jack Robinson in action for Yeovil Town. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Yeovil Town Manager Darren Sarll confirmed after the win over Eastleigh that on-loan defender Jack Robinson is likely to miss over a month of action following ligament damage sustained in the FA Cup win over Yate Town.

Robinson, currently on a temporary deal from Middlesbrough, is only scheduled to stay at Huish Park until January 10th but Sarll spoke of how impressed he has been with the defender and hopes to see him back in green and white.

Sarll said; “Jack Robinson, unfortunately, last week at Yate, he caught a cross on the end of his toe and has opened his ligaments up, so I would have thought he would be 4-6 weeks”

“He’s been brilliant and we wish him a speedy recovery because we’d like him back”

The Manager also noted that all three Glovers’ subs vs Eastleigh were down to knocks, with Charlie Wakefield, Matt Worthington and Tom Knowles all withdrawn as precautions following slight niggles.

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Luke Wilkinson.
Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Yeovil Town Club Captain, Luke Wilkinson made his return to the team as the Glovers secured a 2-1 win over Eastleigh on Saturday.

Wilkinson was back in the starting line up partnering Max Hunt in the centre of defence allowing Josh Staunton to push back into midfield.

Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Sheridan Robins after the game, he said it was great to be back in the squad.

“It’s great to be back out there, it’s been way too long, it gets frustrating after a while, the boys have been brilliant for a month, really hitting form, it’s nice to be back out there and being able to help”

Focusing on the game, Wilkinson was full of praise for whole squad after taking the lead in the first half, before being pegged back – but Adi Yussuff scored the winner late on.

“Tom (Knowles) got his goal a couple of weeks ago against Woking and they seem to come in a flurry – it was a brilliant strike, it was an even-ish game up until that point”

“We had a bit of a spell, where Eastleigh came back into it, they got on top, they got a goal, but the subs came on and they changed the game. Adi (Yussuff) deserved his goal today, he worked hard, tirelessly for the team, and it was a brilliant strike again”

“You see the boys want to get in that form, you see the blocks the lads are putting in, in the goal mouth scramble, was unbelievable, that was from Morgan Williams who came on as a sub, and the rest of the boys, everyone was throwing their body in front of the ball”

Focus turned to the future, with Wilkinson returning from injury and the squad being boosted by a few additional bodies, the defender said the team would go into the game vs Dagenham full of confidence.

“We will keep ticking off each game as it comes, we’re back to Dagenham next week, we will prepare properly for that and go there and try and win the game.”

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Venue: Huish Park
Saturday, November 13 2021, 3pm kick-off.

Conditions: Cloudly but dry.
Ground: Continues to look in great condition.

Scorers: Tom Knowles 41 (1-0), Harry Pritchard 68 (1-1), Adi Yussuf 76 (2-1)

Attendance: 2,494 (253 away supporters)

Referee: Sunny Gill

Bookings:
Yeovil Town: Barnett (38), Moss (41), Wakefield (50)
Eastleigh: House (53)

Sendings off:
Yeovil Town:
Eastleigh:


Yeovil Town : (4-3-3)

Grant Smith
Dan Moss, Max Hunt Luke Wilkinson, Jordan Barnett
Matt Worthington, Josh Staunton, Dale Gorman
Tom Knowles Adi Yussuf Charlie Wakefield

Substitutes: Sonny Blu Lo-Everton (for Wakefield, 65), Joe Quigley (for Worthington, 72), Morgan Williams (for Knowles, 88),  Alex Bradley, Max Evans

Eastleigh: Joe McDonnell, Josh Hare, Michael Kelly, Andrew Boyce, Tom Broadbent, Cav Miley, Jake Hesketh, Tom Whelan, Harry Pritchard, Tyrone Barnett, Ben House.

Substitutes: Hill (for Hesketh, 65), Harper (for Kelly, 65), Whitehall (for Pritchard, 85), Maghoma, Hollands.

Match Report

An exquisite goal from Tom Knowles and Adi Yussuf in each half stretched Yeovil Town‘s unbeaten run to five games – yes, we’re counting the Somerset Premier Cup.

It was an at times ill-tempered match where the Glovers had to battle against an Eastleigh side above them in the National League table at the start of play and boasting some real quality in their ranks.

But, come the final whistle, it was Yeovil who moved up to 13th place with their visitors dropping to 15th.

Here’s how it played out at Huish Park…..

First half

An ankle injury to Jack Robinson saw the on-loan Middlesbrough defender saw Jordan Barnett drop back to left-back, with Max Hunt  and Luke Wilkinson reunited in the centre of defence.

That meant Josh Staunton moved forward in to a midfield three alongside Dale Gorman and Matt Worthington with Morgan Williams dropping to the substitutes’ bench.

Yeovil continued their habit of making a fast start to matches and enjoyed the better of the game for the opening 15 minutes.

However, as has also been the case this season, it was quality in the final third which prevented them from turning their possession in to serious threats on goal.

Despite the home side dominating play, it was Eastleigh’s Harry Pritchard who had the best early chance firing over from just inside the box after four minutes.

The visitors came in to the game more as things progressed with full backs in Michael Kelly and Josh Hare in the thick of it with top-scorer Ben House and defender Tom Broadbent both having opportunities.

A good piece of interplay on between Charlie Wakefield and Tom Knowles saw the latter test Eastleigh keeper Joe McDonnell  with an effort on 24 minutes.

The best chance of the first half fell to Adi Yussuf nine minutes later. A long throw by Knowles was flicked on by Hunt to find the striker six yards out but his header was off target after 33 minutes.

The game threatened to boil over on a couple of occasions with both Barnett and Dan Moss booked inside three first half minutes by referee Sunny Gill – last seen giving a yellow to Yeovil keeper Grant Smith for his ‘shagger hips’ after the FA Cup replay at W*ymouth.

But, it was a majestic moment from Tom KNOWLES that broke the deadlock with two minutes of the half remaining. A great pass by Wilkinson found him on the edge of the box from where he unleashed a stunning shot compared to Cristiano Ronaldo by ex-Glover Nick Crittenden on BBC Radio Somerset.

How different the half looked as a result of that moment of magic. The visitors undoubtedly had the better chances of the half albeit on the counter attack, but – even more importantly – the hosts led at the interval.

Half time: Yeovil Town 1 Eastleigh 0

The first opportunity of the second half fell to the visitors when House got the wrong side of Wilkinson, who was grateful to his keeper Smith who came out to deny the visitors’ top-scorer.

Visitors’ captain Andrew Boyce headed a Whelan free-kick wide with another good opportunity just before the hour mark, before a neat bit of interplay involving created another opening for Yussuf who could not make the most of it.

On 65 minutes, Yeovil manager Darren Sarll replaced Wakefield with Sonny Blu Lo-Everton with his Eastleigh counterpart Ben Strevens introduced Ryan Hill and the pacey Vincent Harper in place of Kelly and Jake Hesketh.

That sparked the visitors who upped the tempo and and they pulled the game level  after 68 minutes with the first goal conceded  by Yeovil in 429 minutes.

Hill was involved finding House who slotted in Harry PRITCHARD, his first effort was blocked but he was able to turn in the rebound for the equaliser.

Sarll responded throwing on top-scorer Joe Quigley in place of Worthington and within eight minutes of going behind, the home side were ahead again.

A great ball by Smith picked out Quigley whose flick on found YUSSUF and he smashed an unstoppable strike for his third  goal in green-and-white.

In the 87th minute, Quigley had an opportunity to add to his tally for the season, creating a chance by his own persistence but his shot was blocked by McDonnell.

There was a heart in mouth moment in the dying moments of five minutes of added time when House looked to be shoved in the box, but referee Gill gave nothing.

Full time: Yeovil Town 2 Eastleigh 1

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Josh Staunton returns to the heart of midfield for the visit of Eastleigh to Huish Park in the National League today (3pm kick-off).

The 26-year-old is replaced at the centre of defence by Luke Wilkinson, who makes his first league start since the defeat to Chesterfield on September 18.

Max Hunt returns from a one-match ban to replace Morgan Williams who drops to the bench after starting the 5-0 FA Cup win at Yate Town last weekend.

Hunt replaces Jack Robinson who misses out with an ankle injury with Jordan Barnett dropping back to left-back.

For the visitors, former Glovers Tom Whelan and Michael Kelly both start.

Yeovil Town: Grant Smith, Dan Moss,  Luke Wilkinson, Max Hunt , Jordan Barnett, Matt Worthington, Dale Gorman, Josh Staunton, Tom Knowles, Adi Yussuf, Charlie Wakefield.

Substitutes: Max Evans, Morgan Williams, Alex Bradley, Sonny Blu Lo-Everton, Joe Quigley.

Eastleigh: Joe McDonnell, Josh Hare, Michael Kelly, Andrew Boyce, Tom Broadbent, Cav Miley, Jake Hesketh, Tom Whelan, Harry Pritchard, Tyrone Barnett, Ben House.

Substitutes: Maghoma, Harper, Hollands, Hill, Whitehall.

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Yeovil Town Under-18s play their first South West Counties Youth League match in a fortnight.

The young Glovers host Torquay United Under-18s in the Alvington Playing Fields on Saturday morning.

Their home game with Bath City Under-18s last weekend was postponed.

Five age groups representing the Yeovil Town Community Sports Trust are also in action in the Junior Premier League this weekend.

The Under-11s, Under-14s and Under-16s will host Cheltenham Town and South Somerset in their respective age groups, whilst the Under-12s and Under-13s travel to Bridgwater United and South Somerset respectively.

 

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Third from bottom of the away form table and third from top at home is the story of Eastleigh’s season this year.

The Spitfires have lost just once on their own patch in the first game of the season against big-spending Wrexham.

But, away from home, only an 88th-minute winner at Wealdstone has seen them pick up three National League points on their travels. Their other point on the road came in a 1-1 draw at Barnet on September 11.

In their last game out they went down 2-0 at Boreham Wood to go out of the FA Cup at the first round stage last Saturday.

They lost on-loan centre back Josh Low in the week after he was recalled by Bristol City with captain Andrew Boyce and Christian Maghoma, who had an unsuccessful loan at Huish Park whilst a Tottenham Hotspur in 2015 when he failed to make an appearance, the regular starters in the heart of defence.

Low has made just eight appearances since joining in the summer and not featured since the defeat at Southend at the start of October, suggesting the Robins were unhappy at his lack of game time.

Striker Ben House is their top scorer with four National League goals this season although he is yet to find the net since bagging the winner at Wealdstone.

Familiar faces include midfielder Tom Whelan, formerly of Brympton parish, who joined in the summer having been surprisingly released by Chesterfield.

Michael Kelly, who played 21 times in green and white last season, has also made himself a regular fixture in the Eastleigh side.

Also, catch our chat with Eastleigh YouTuber Ahmad on our latest podcast – here.

FROM (OUR) MANAGER

Speaking ahead of the weekend, Yeovil Town manager Darren Sarll spoke about the 3-1 defeat on the last visit by the Spitfires to Huish Park in December last year:

“They beat us well and truly last year here. I have worked with (Eastleigh manager Ben) Strevens as a player, he was an intelligent player and he does very well and the club does well.

“(Former Southampton midfielder, Jake) Hesketh is a good player for them, Tom Whelan is a very good player, so they have a lot of threat in their team.

“All these games are a war of attrition, but we go in to it knowing what our best looks like and feeling our best as well.”

 

TEAM NEWS

Eastleigh seem unlikely to be changed from their FA Cup defeat at Boreham Wood last weekend with no injuries or suspensions.

Boyce and Maghoma seem likely to start in the centre of defence after keeping a clean sheet in the 1-0 home win over Maidenhead in the last National League outing a fortnight ago.

Former Cheltenham and Bristol City loanee Tyrone Barnett scored in that game and is expected to start alongside top-scorer Ben House up front.

 

A FOOT IN BOTH CAMPS

We have already eluded to the two most obvious connections who are almost certain to be in the visitors’ line-up this weekend.

Tom Whelan was a regular feature in the first month of Darren Sarll’s time at Huish Park featuring in the first eight matches of the 2019-2020 National League campaign.

But, having seemingly fallen out of favour, he was allowed to leave on loan from Chippenham Town and then W*ymouth in the National League South, eventually being exiled to the Bob Lucas Stadium.

In fairness, in the murky depths of the Dorset coastline he shone and eventually saw sense and moved to the National League paupers of Cashterfield where it is fair to say he tore us a new one in a 3-0 win in Derbyshire last season.

Whelan is proving something of a dead ball specialist for Eastleigh this season with his three goals coming from penalties and a sumptuous free-kick in the win over Altrincham the other week.

Scotsman Michael Kelly is the other connection likely to feature for the Spitfires following his release by Bristol Rovers in the summer.

The left-back who filled in when Carl Dickinson was unavailable for much of last season has been a regular starter this season.

Christian Maghoma on the other hand joined us in November 2015 promising to mirror the achievements of Steven Caulker.

He departed without playing a single match and went on to play for Arka Gdynia in Poland for two years before returning to England with Gillingham last summer. He joined Eastleigh on loan from the Gills at the start of the season.

In the green and white corner, Glovers’ captain Luke Wilkinson and a six-game loan spell at Eastleigh whilst a Portsmouth player back in 2010.

There’s a few other players with connections with both clubs including full-back Joe Tomlinson who played in the youth set up at Huish Park before arriving at Eastleigh via Bognor Regis and Hungerford – what a journey!

He impressed at National League level and made the step up in to the Football League at Peterborough United in the summer.

Striker Ryan Bird scored eight times in 36 appearances for Yeovil in the 2015-16 season before moving to Eastleigh where he managed three in 16 the following year.

Other connections include Yemi Odubade, Alefe Santos, Aaron Martin, Marcus Barnes, Alex Lacey, Oscar Gobern, Jake Howells and a striker called Thomas Clarke, the latter having a Wikipedia entry as impressive as his lower league journeyman career.