Latest Yeovil Town News (Page 43)

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Following the publication of the financial accounts of Yeovil Football & Athletic Club, the parent company of Yeovil Town, football finance expert Kieran Maguire from the Price of Football podcast spoke with BBC Somerset’s Jack Killah on Friday evening.

You can listen to the conversation on BBC Sounds, but if you prefer to read rather than listen, here is what was said: 

JK: Can you explain what the latest figures show?

KM: They have not put out the full accounts so you have to join the dots in places, but it looks as if Yeovil Town lost around about £2.8m in season 2023/24. That is high by National League standards, it is certainly very high by National League South standards. Those losses had to be funded and it looks as if Martin Hellier has lent the club a lot more money and he has effectively written off some of the debts by converting them in to shares, so the club is being subsidised. It did not invest very much in terms of signings but that is always the case at National League South level. It owes around £1.9m to Martin Hellier’s company and it owes over £1m to the English Sports Council, so the club is in a lot of debt. Debt is not great, but it does not have to be disastrous and it really comes down to how the club is going to go forwards and make those debt repayments when they fall due and make progress on the pitch as well.

JK: Is it relatively normal for a club to be reliant on an owner? Is it standard practice for clubs to be in similar situations?

KM: The average losses for a club in the National League is around £700,000. We saw Stockport County promoted (to the Football League) a couple of seasons ago which cost the owner around £4m, closer to £5m, Wrexham, despite all the global interest in that club, lost over £4m being promoted, so you are reliant on somebody who tends to be successful in football to underwrite those losses and they become a bit like the Bank of Mum and Dad. It tends to be an ongoing relationship and I appreciate there is not necessarily a great relationship between certain aspects of the fan base (at Yeovil) and the owner and that is a shame. It makes a lot of sense to get everyone around the table and engage and explain why these losses are arising and what steps are being taken to fund them.

JK: I will run through part of the statement the club put out today. “Football clubs require a high level continual investment, during the year significant monies were invested by the Hellier Group and the increase in creditors identifies much of that balance with £1m capitalised in to equity in the period, and this demonstrates the commitment to Yeovil Town. Following promotion to the National League, the difference in strength and standard of teams has been clear compared to National League South, however, the strength and ability of (manager) Mark Cooper means we have played to a standard which has remained strong and competitive and continues to provide a good grounding to return to the Football League in the future.” That sounds like they believe there is a realistic basis to make a push to return to the Football League. In a situation like this with the debt levels we are talking about, what steps do clubs traditionally have to take to address this type of situation?

KM: They have to go cap in hand to the owner, it is as simple as that. Unless there are opportunities to generate additional income at the club which we have seen at some clubs which have used 3G pitches (as their main playing surface) but then if they get up to the EFL, they have to be ripped out. It is trying to utilise the facilities of the club for more than those 23 league games and however many home cup games you get during a season. Football is a bit of a silly business, you are having to pay wages 365 days a year, but you only have 25 or 30 days of money coming in. So if you can multi-function the stadium, generate closer links with the local community to make it a desirable place to how events and so on, that helps a little bit. But football clubs are notoriously expensive to run, and the comment that it is a big step up to the National League is true. Most clubs in National League South are part-time and when you get to the National League, probably 80% of them are on a full-time basis and you have those additional costs and the cost of living which is hitting us all as well.

JK: In terms of the National League, financially how much bigger is the league as a whole? The top three clubs, Barnet, York City and Forest Green Rovers, have massive budgets, has it changed dramatically over the last 5-10 years?

KM: It has. It is now division five of the English football season, there used to be a bit of a gap between League Two and the National League, but you have seen with the clubs that have become solid players in League Two after promotion from the National League, that they have to have some form of funding behind them. I was giving a talk at Oldham Athletic a couple of months ago and they were showing me some of their numbers. You do wonder why people go in to this, there is that sense of community and identity between owners and clubs a lot of the time and they want to elevate that by being benevolent but it is the most expensive hobby I know. I stick to stamp collecting!

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Yeovil Town boss Mark Cooper is focusing on the strengths his side showed in last weekend’s 3-0 victory at Solihull Moors ahead of the visit from AFC Fylde this weekend.

The Lancashire outfit picked up an impressive win of their own last weekend with a 3-0 home win over promotion-chasing Forest Green Rovers, but sit third from bottom of the table and looking to build on that result in Somerset.

Speaking to BBC Somerset reporter Jack Killah ahead of the game, the manager said he was not too surprised at the result and had been focusing on building on his side’s own morale-boosting win during training this week.

He said: “At this stage of the season you get so many strange results. York went to Braintree and lost, we could easily have beaten York the week before, we try not to look at other results, we just get our heads down and do what we need to do. It is a great result for Fylde, they played really well, they were aggressive, pressed and looked really organised and sometimes you catch teams like Forest Green on an off day. But we are at home and if we play anything like we did at Solihull we have a big chance, if we run like we did against Solihull and get after the opposition, we can get a result.

“There is another argument to say that if they were coming here and they were safe they could come here and go and play their stuff. It is about fully respecting the opposition, they have some good players, but they are in the relegation zone for a reason. We have to fully respect them and the fact they had a good result last week, we will be organised and on the front foot and look at how we can hurt them with our weapons and I am sure we will give them some problems.”

Harry Kite who has joined on a short-term deal until the end of the season

Cooper said new midfielder Harry Kite, who has joined on a short-term deal until the end of the season, was the only addition he is expecting to the squad which faced Solihull.

The former Exeter City player has been without a club since turning down a new contract with the League One club at the end of last season. He suffered a hamstring injury which required surgery in the summer and then a calf injury during his recovery, but has been training at Huish Park in recent weeks. You can read what the 24-year-old said to the club’s official channels – here. 

On the new arrival, the manager said: “He is another player that understands his role, he has played 50 games in League One I think. If Harry Kite had not picked up the injury he has, him coming to Yeovil would never be in the mix because he would be going to a top end League One club. He got really unlucky in the summer because he turned down a new contract with Exeter to try and expand him football knowledge and career and he missed out on a deal and got a bad hamstring injury. He came to watch one of our games with a view to signing, then he injured his calf, and now he is back fit and has been training with us for the past two or three weeks when we have been able to assess him and he is in a position when he needs some minutes and he is going to stay with us until the end of the season. I really hope that he shows what he showed at Exeter, he’s tenacious, he can run, he understands the game. If he shows what he showed at Exeter, we have another terrific midfield player on our hands.”

Asked whether he hoped that, if things went well with the player’s fitness, it could lead to a longer stay at the club, the manager added: “It is one of those, if he comes and does well, I am sure there will be bigger clubs interested, but I am sure we have given him the chance and shown him a bit of loyalty to get him back going, so that might weigh heavily in our favour. Having watched him for the last couple of weeks, he really understands the game and he is really mobile and aggressive.”

Ahead of the victory at Solihull last weekend, the manager spoke about their being “light at the end of the tunnel“ on some long-term injury victims including defenders Michael Smith and Jake Wannell. Midfielder Brett McGavin has been ruled out until the end of the season with an injury sustained in the 1-0 defeat to York City during the last outing at Huish Park.

Otis Khan returned to Huish Park having had a spell at the club between 2016 and 2018

One player who impressed last weekend was winger Otis Khan, signed on loan from Oldham Athletic ahead of the fixture, but Cooper was not surprised at the impact the Pakistan international made.

He said: “Otis understands the game tactically, he understands what he needs to do and where he needs to be, that comes through experience. Sometimes with younger players they just see the ball and run and have different assets, whereas Otis understands how to press, where to be when he hasn’t got the ball and he has got quality as well. The more of those players you have in your team, the better, and we were really lucky to get Otis for the money. We would have liked to have more players like that, but getting the availability is much harder.”

Following the win at Solihull, Cooper described the 244 travelling fans as “proper fans”, adding: “They travel three hours, and they cheer the team on from start to finish. No negativity. And it’s really good. Maybe it’s a coincidence, when the fans get behind you, you can win a game.”

Asked whether he thought that the atmosphere away from home helped his side, he said: “There have been lots of things said this week about comments that have been made and I think it is important that if you support your team, you support them through thick and thin. For the 90 minutes, you get behind them, they are going to make mistakes because it is National League football. Teams that have fan bases that consistently get behind their team in good and bad are the ones that invariably have good results. The easiest thing in the world to do is to berate your team when you are struggling and they make a mistake. The hardest thing to do is get behind them and if you see people nailing players, I think you have a duty as a fan to say that is out of order and we need to back our team. If the team has played rubbish at the end of the game, you have every right to (criticise them) but during the team get behind the players, that is what being a supporter of a team means to me. The away fans last week were fantastic and at home the majority are really good fans, but there seems to be a minority that whatever you do they are really negative and that does not help anyone.“

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Former Exeter City midfielder Harry Kite has joined Yeovil Town until the end of the season having signed ahead of the National League player registration deadline this week.

The 24-year-old, a product of the academy at St James’ Park, has been training with the club in recent weeks as he looks to come back from a serious injury which has hampered his progress since he left Exeter at the end of last season.

In the 2023/24 season Kite made 20 appearances in League One and in the previous campaign he appeared 44 times in all competitions.

Speaking to the club’s official channels, the player said: “I am from the area and always keeping tabs on clubs within a close proximity of Exeter, I know a couple of lads here as well and I had a chat with the manager earlier in the season when I had an injury and it did not really progress from there.

“Now I am back fully fit and raring to go and I felt it was the right move for me at this time. I was out of contract in the summer, then pulled my hamstring which required surgery and then when I was coming back I pulled my calf which set me back another month. I have to give full credit to Exeter who let me come back and do my rehab with them which was really important at this stage of my career to make sure my rehab was done right, so I am really thankful for them. Now I feel it is really important to get as many games as I can between now and the end of the season.

“I recognised that I needed a week or two of training having been out for such a long period and to gradually progress myself in to games between now and the end of the season. If I can get some full 90 minutes in between now and the end of the season, that will make my season much better.”

Kite has been impressed with what he has seen from the Glovers’ squad during his period training with them and believes he can bring something to the squad. He joins shortly after it was confirmed that Yeovil midfielder Brett McGavin will miss the rest of the season after picking up an injury in the 1-0 home defeat to York City earlier this month. 

He added: “We have a really good squad and they have been unlucky with injuries. The lads were obviously up in the play-off positions earlier in the season and I think we have got a good enough squad to be in that position again. Every season is long and you are going to have ups and downs and I think we can have a really strong end to the season and see where that leaves us.

“I think I am an energetic, ball-winning midfielder, one of my main attributes is winning the ball out of position so I would like fans to think I will show 100% commitment and passion. It is really important that I know what the players’ strengths are and I think I can complement them well and there’s no reason we can’t have a strong end to the season.”

In April 2024, Kite, who made 101 appearances for Exeter, scoring seven goals, spoke to Devon Live about his decision to leave the club he had been with since the age of nine, saying: “I feel like for me now, looking selfishly towards my career, I feel that a move would benefit me just with new experiences and new challenges.“

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Yeovil Town Badge on huish park

Yeovil Town lost almost £2.8m during last season’s return to the National League Premier Division, the accounts of the club’s parent company have shown.

The accounts for Yeovil Football & Athletic Club Limited show the club is being kept afloat by owner Martin Hellier selling “assets from within a property portfolio” and highlight uncertainty about the club’s ability to continue as a going concern.

The balance sheet for the year until 30th June 2024 show the club’s debt rose from £3.47m in 2023 to £6.26m in 2024, a loss of £2,799,082 during the period.

On Friday morning, the club published a statement on the accounts which said: “The financial statements for the year to the 30th June 2024 report on the first full season under the ownership of Hellier Trading Group Limited.  A season considered highly successful in our promotion, and welcome return to the National League.

“The year saw increased revenues across all areas, including, but not limited to, increased gate receipts, commercial income and hospitality. 

“During this period, substantial investment has been made at the club, and infrastructure around the ground, including the new fan zone, performance area, car parks re-laid, and home changing rooms transformed. 

“The team’s performance on the pitch has had a huge impact on the match day experience for the fans, and you have all responded in kind with tremendous support, both home and away. 

“Taking all the above into account, football clubs require a high-level continual investment.  During the year, significant monies were invested by the Hellier Group. The increase in creditors identifies much of that balance, with £1m was capitalised into Equity during the period, which demonstrates the level of commitment to YTFC. 

“Following promotion to the National League, the difference in strength and standard of teams & competitors has been clear compared to the National League South. However, with the strength and ability of Mark Cooper and the team, we have played to a standard which remains strong & competitive, and continues to provide a good grounding to return to the Football League in the future.

“I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to everyone involved with the club at every level. To our dedicated staff, players, and coaches—Your hard work and commitment do not go unnoticed. To our fans, your unwavering support is the backbone of Yeovil Town Football Club, and we would like to thank you all for your passion and loyalty. 

“Achieve by unity – long may our success continue.”

Earlier on Friday morning, football finance expert Kieran Maguire, co-host of the Price of Football podcast, posted about the accounts on X/Twitter on Friday morning. For those of you not on it, here is what he said:

 

The highlighted sections read as follows:

“The directors have considered the future working capital requirement of the club and have concluded the club is now reliant on the ultimate controlling party, M Hellier, being able to inject sufficient working capital into the club to support is financial position from the sale of assets outside the Hellier Trading Group. This is expected to come from the sale of assets from within a property portfolio which therefore will be reliant on market conditions and the ability to facilitate the sale of those properties to meet the financial obligations as they fall due. As a result, the directors prepared the financial statements on a going concern basis but have concluded that material uncertainty exists that may cast significant doubt on the company’s ability to continue as a going concern.”

“As stated in Note 1.2 (see above), these events or conditions (i.e. the losses highlighted), along with other matters as set forth in Note 1.2 indicate that a material uncertainty exists that may cast significant doubt on the company’s ability to continue as a going concern. Our opinion (that is the opinion of auditor Joseph Doggrell, an audit partner at Albert Goodman LLP) is not modified in respect of this matter.”

So, what does this all mean outside of the complicated numbers and language used in the results? Well, it ‘material uncertainty’ is not a term which is used lightly in accounts and it underlines the financial state of the club which the chairman has spoken about on his own social media saying he is putting £100,000 of his own money in to the club every month. This statement is certainly validated by the statements around sales of assets within his own property portfolio.

It must be said that since June 30th 2024, there has been a lot of changes in the club’s playing staff with a number of experienced players – which often equates to higher earners – leaving the club which will have reduced the wage bill.

You may recall in the the fans’ forum held with Martin Hellier and manager Mark Cooper at Huish Park in January, the chairman answered a question from our own Ian Perkins who asked about the financial health of the club. You can watch the forum in full on the club’s YouTube channel – here – and the question in question begins at 31 minutes 20 seconds in to the live stream of the forum.

As we reported at the time, the owner said:  “It is in a far more stable position than it was. The first call I had when I came in was from HM Revenue and Customs saying ‘we are going to wind you up tomorrow if you don’t pay this large amount of money and you have to pay more next week. The first ten days probably saw us paying out five digit numbers every day, so we probably cleared away £500,000 of debt within ten days of arriving.

“We had numbers of staff paying bits and pieces on Ebay to pay bills, so the first thing was steadying a ship which had capsized. We have put £3.8m in to the club which is money we will undoubtedly not get back, but that is my problem. So it is a far better position than it was, but it is still a tough gig as it is for any club that is below the EFL and even at EFL you are breaking even. We are in it for the long run and because we love the club and clubs in this league exist for as long as the chairman is funding it. It is hard to make the numbers work but we came in with a long-term target of EFL. If you map that out from the beginning to where we are now, I would say that journey is going well. It will continue to need money, but that is what it is.”

As the owner says, the club “will continue to need money” and, as long as that money is available, the club continues.

You can view the published account documents below.

YEOVIL FOOTBALL AND ATHLETIC CLUB – CLICK HERE

YEOVIL TOWN HOLDINGS – CLICK HERE

 

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Ross Martin, we really must stop meeting like this…

This weekend’s home game against AFC Fylde gives us the chance to get one of our favourite, match day photos back out (see below) as Ross Martin returns to Huish Park for the third time this season.

Firstly, Mr Martin was in charge when both Dagenham and Redbridge came to town, a single Ciaran McGuckin goal was enough to see off both teams.

He was back not long after, arriving at the home of Somerset football on Boxing Day where he oversaw a 2-2 draw between the Glovers and Eastleigh.

He’s officiated one Fylde game this campaign, a 1-0 loss away at Wealdstone.

In total, 15 National League games have seen him brandish 58 Yellow Cards, One Red Card and pointed to the penalty spot twice.

Ross Martin will be assisted by Dean Treleaven and Grzegorz Kornasiewicz with Ashley Clarke marshalling the dug outs.

Referee Ross Martin sent off by Jolly Green pre match, a bit harsh, maybe.
Pic Gary Brown

Yeovil Town FC (First Team) v AFC Fylde (First Team)
National League – Premier    
Referee: Martin, Ross
Assistant Referee: Treleaven, Dean
Assistant Referee: Kornasiewicz, Grzegorz
Fourth Official: Clarke, Ashley

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Only three more away games left for Glovers fans this season [Insert Sad Face Emoji]

For those looking to get sorted ahead of time for our trip to Eastleigh on April 21st, tickets are now on sale.

CLICK HERE TO BUY TICKETS

Click the big ‘Tickets’ button, and you’ll be taken to this screen, where you can select tickets in SOUTH STAND 1.

At time of writing, no tickets in the East Stand Terrace are available.

Choose your seat of choice, pick which ticket applies to you and follow the instructions to check out, if you have an account, you can log in, or “Check Out As Guest” bypasses this.

The ticket system is programmed to prevent you from leaving a single seat on the end of the row, so do bare that in mind.

Lets dive into all the extra details you may need on a Match Day – all this info is taken directly from the Eastleigh Website.

Firstly, you can buy a car park pass for the game (£10), these are available in the same place you bought the ticket, the link for that is HERE

Wheelchair users

We currently have an accessible viewing platform that fits three wheelchairs and three personal assistants which can be seated either next to, or behind the wheelchair user. This depends on the number of wheelchair users using the platform on a match-by-match basis.

Ambulant disabled supporters

Away supporters

There are 11 step free seats at ground level solely for away fans which can be increased or decreased depending on the anticipated number of traveling supporters.

We would offer the step free seats to supporters who are unable to manage stairs or personal assistants attending with wheelchair users. Wheelchair spaces are available on ground level behind the perimeter fence surrounding the pitch.

Supporters with autism or other sensory needs

We very much understand that being prepared and having an understanding of facilities available ahead of matchday can help you prepare ahead of your visit. We have recently invested in some ear defenders that are available to use. Please speak to a steward or come into the club shop before entering the stadium to enquire.

If required, we would be more than happy to welcome you the opportunity to visit the ground on a non-matchday, where you will have the opportunity to be shown around by a member of staff. During this visit, any questions can be asked, and supporters and their families/carers can see where the facilities are and where the most appropriate place to sit/stand would be. Please bear in mind though that this will be dependent on availability (particularly the section of the blue seated ‘main stand’ level with the half way line where most seats have already been reserved).

Toilets

Away supporters

There is a toilet in the away end which is accessible for ambulant disabled fans but it is not wide enough to accomodate a wheelchair. Wheelchair users will need to speak to a steward in order to use the wider accessible toilet at the other end of the Nuffield Health Stand past the home fans. There are also fully accessible toilets in Sherwoods restaurant and in the Hangar bar for away supporters to use before turnstiles open.

Tickets

Disabled supporters in receipt of higher rate DLA/PIP (mobility/care) are entitled to a free personal assistant ticket which can be obtained in person in the ticket office by presenting the DLA/PIP letter.

 

Tickets are also available for the away game at Altrincham on Saturday 5th April.
Details for that can be found HERE

 

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Josh Sims and Alex Whittle have both found themselves in different Team of the Week line ups.

Sims, who twisted and turned his Solihull Moors left back into next week, made the Non League Paper side whilst Whittle (… or should that be McGWhittle) earns a spot for the league sponsors after his Captains’ performance and worldie of a third goal.

You absolutely love to see it.