Latest Yeovil Town News (Page 85)

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New signing Sean McGurk has pleased to get 70 minutes under his belt as he made a goal-scoring start to life as a Yeovil Town player.

The Swindon Town winger, who arrived at Huish Park on a one-month loan deal on Christmas Eve, opened the scoring with a close range finish after 49 minutes of the 2-2 draw with Eastleigh on Boxing Day.

He started alongside fellow loanee Kofi Shaw in behind lone striker Aaron Jarvis and impressed with some good touches before being replaced by substitute Frank Nouble on 71 minutes.

Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Mark Stillman after the game, he said: “The point of me coming here was to play games and get minutes under my belt. It has been a couple of weeks since I have had, but it was good to be out there. The result is not what we wanted and we should have come away with the win but personally to get minutes was good.

“I got told on Christmas Eve to come down and I trained and then played today, but you always have to be ready and today I hopefully showed I was ready.

“In the first half I thought I was sloppy on the ball which may be because I have not played for a few minutes. My quality on the ball is a lot better than that and I know that, but the goal showed what I know can bring to the team. Kofi played it across the box and I was just trying not to focus on the bobble too much and just passed it in.”

The action was the 21-year-old’s first action since he appeared as a 76th-minute substitute in Swindon’s Vertu Trophy win at Wycombe Wanderers on December 10th. He will be in contention as Yeovil travel to third-placed Forest Green Rovers on New Year’s Day.

He added: “I spoke to the manager  (Mark Cooper) and the fitness staff and told them I have not played much, so to come in and play 90 minutes would be unrealistic especially with the game on New Year’s Day.”

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Yeovil Town manager Mark Cooper said his side should have come away from today’s Boxing Day fixture against Eastleigh with more than a point.

The Glovers looked to have snatched the win when defender Morgan Williams headed them in to a 2-1 lead with 89 minutes played, but they conceded a goal three minutes in to second half stoppage time and had to settle for a draw.

Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Mark Stillman after the game, Cooper said: “We played lots of good football, we had to deal with a lot of direct balls forward which you have to do against Eastleigh, but we scored two great goals but we did not see it out against two balls in to the box which we did not defend.

“Up until the last 15 ,minutes I thought we dealt with them okay. They scored (their first goal) with a long throw-in which we should do better with and then a hopeful ball forward and we did not track the runner. When we go 2-1 up we have to see it out, we have to have a more character than that. To play as well as that and not win is really frustrating, I thought we looked a really good football team.”

Yeovil took the lead when new signing Sean McGurk, signed on a one-month loan deal from Swindon Town on Christmas Eve, opened his account on 49 minutes, but they were pegged back ten minutes from time when Eastleigh defender Lloyds Humphries headed home.

Kofi Shaw in action. Picture courtesy of Gary Brown.

Bristol Rovers’ loanee Kofi Shaw picked up the sponsors’ Man of the Match and at the time of writing is the leader in the Gloverscast poll – cast your vote here – after an all-action display. The Gas appointed former Brighton & Hove Albion defender Ingo Calderon on Boxing Day morning and Cooper admits he does not know how that will impact on Shaw’s loan. The 18-year-old joined at the end of October with the deal billed as “until January“.

The Glovers’ boss said: “Kofi is a young player and you have to pick the right times to bring him in and out of the side. He is still a baby, he has just turned 18,  but he is Bristol Rovers’ player, they have just appointed a new manager and we will wait to see if they want to bring him back to assess him but hopefully we can keep him.”

McGurk was put straight in to the starting line-up having joined just before Christmas following the departure of winger Dylan Morgan to National League South leaders Torquay United. But, asked whether he expected to have further new faces before the New Year’s Day trip to Forest Green Rovers, Cooper said he was doubtful.

He said: “We probably will not sign anyone because of registrations over Christmas period. We have let some players go and people have a bit of a meltdown, but we are trying to improve the squad and that is just part of football, that is evolution, you have to keep progressing. If you look at Sean McGurk’s quality today, he is an improvement and you have to keep doing that so we can keep competing at the top end of the table.”

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New signing Sean McGurk goes straight in to the starting line-up for Yeovil Town as they take on Eastleigh at Huish Park today (3pm kick-off).

The winger, whose arrival on a one-month loan was announced on Christmas Eve, is one of three changes with Bristol Rovers’ loanee Kofi Shaw, who scored in the 2-1 defeat at  Hartlepool United last weekend, and Josh Sims also in the XI.

Out of the team go defenders Michael Smith, Dom Bernard and striker Frank Nouble, who are both named on the substitutes’ bench.

 

 

 

 

 

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Put that dry turkey down and get down to Huish Park, Eastleigh are coming to town.

Form Guide…

Eastleigh are coming into this game off the back of a six-match unbeaten streak. They beat Maidenhead United 1-0 on Saturday with a single goal from Guadeloupean Ludwig Francillette earning the points.

Their last defeat came at the hands of Braintree Town back on November 9th with the Iron coming from behind to pick up all three points.

The Glovers have been on a win-one-lose-one pattern of games stretching back to the defeat to Barnet in late November.

Should that plan keep going, Yeovil Town should be down to win this after falling at the feet of Hartlepool United on Saturday.

When last seen at Huish Park, Yeovil ran out 3-1 winners against Braintree.

Yeo-Ho-Ho!!! (Picture courtesy of Gary Brown)

Key Players…

Yeovil – Kofi Shaw

Is it too much to be calling a barely 18-year-old a key player? But after scoring his first goal in green and white at Hartlepool, Kofi Shaw has put together a couple of eye catching performances in a row now for the Glovers.

The Bristol Rovers loanee is edging towards the end of his (initial) loan spell and will hoping for a couple more influential games before returning to the Gas (or staying for longer?).

His direct style might give the Eastleigh defence some hassle and his ability to find the space between midfield and frontline might give Aaron Jarvis more support as he leads the line.

Kofi Shaw. Picture courtesy of Gary Brown.

Eastleigh – Paul McCallum

Paul McCallum has a record of four goals in 11 games against the Glovers including one for Chesterfield when he last came up against the green-and-whites, and vital one for Barnet in Yeovil’s only play-off campaign in the National League Premier in 2019/20.

He has already found the net eight times in 19 league games this season… albeit not since the 22nd of October.

He returned to the Spitfires’ squad after serving a one-match ban on Saturday and will be desperate to get his goal tally up and running again soon.

Paul McCallum scores from the spot

Thats what he said…

Eastleigh gaffer Kelvin Davies had few words to say about the game after their fixture on Saturday telling club media: “I think Boxing Day games are one of the best games of the season, you always look out for that, we’re happy to go down there and if we perform to levels we’ve been performing of late it’ll be a tough challenge for Yeovil.”

Glovers’ boss Mark Cooper agreed telling BBC Somerset reporter Chris Sykes after the defeat at Hartlepool: “They’re all tough, mate.”

Gunna be a toughie, then.

We’ve met before…

The last meeting between these sides went the way of Yeovil, a single Matt Worthington goal was all that was needed to separate the two teams in a game which saw Ousseynou Cisse shown two yellows and a subsequent red late on. We’ve watched it back and it still is absolutely not a foul… at all, not a chance.

Yeovil have won four of the last eight head to heads with two draws and two wins for the boys in blue. Three of those wins have come at Huish Park.

A great leap (definitely not a push, ref!) by Matt Worthington for the opener.

Don’t I know you?…

You’d think given the relative locality of the two sides there might be some more cross over, but as far as I can tell, only Wes McDonald currently lines up as a former Glover.

McDonald signed a short-term deal in the summer of 2018 and despite attempts to elongate his stay he departed in January… clearly saw the ship was sinking ahead of time and wanted to get off, sharpish. 

He played 12 times, scoring a grand total of zero goals, (I’ll be honest, I had to check he actually did play for us!)

Sub goalkeeper Tommy Scott did have a spell in the Glovers Under 18s, but that was also a fair while ago.

Who’s been naughty then?…

There is no players suspended for the Glovers, but we are yet to hear the outcome of Mark Cooper’s sending off against Braintree.

 

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Winger Sean McGurk has joined Yeovil Town from League Two side Swindon Town on a one-month loan deal.

The 21-year-old has appeared 12 times for the League Two side, most recently in their Vertu Trophy win over Wycombe Wanderers earlier this month.

He joined the Robins in February this year having left Leeds United, where he had been a regular feature in the youth team set-up, and made nine appearances at the County Ground last season. This season a combination of injuries and falling out of favour with former manager Mark Kennedy has seen him having limited chances.

Speaking about the Liverpool academy graduate, current Swindon boss Ian Holloway recently told the Swindon Advertiser: “I asked him why he wasn’t playing and he blamed someone else, so I grabbed him by the ears and said ‘No, you can’t be working hard enough. It is your fault, nobody else’s.’

“He has been out in the cold but I might need his skill here and there and he can do all sorts of things.

“We almost got one of the best goals I have ever seen down in the bottom corner with his feet – they don’t realise how good they are.”

The signing follows the recent departures of winger Dylan Morgan, who joined National League South leaders Torquay United last week, and defender Ed James, who has returned to his parent club Exeter City with a hamstring injury.

On Christmas Eve, both clubs confirmed the signing on a one-month deal, subject to ratification by the EFL, and McGurk will be available for the home match with Eastleigh at Huish Park on Boxing Day.

Yep, we thought this shirt said McGuckin in the club’s announcement video for a second as well….

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Boxing Day means football and that means getting the whole family to Huish Park for the festive clash against Eastleigh.

We hope the family of Mr Ross Martin will be along to watch his performance too, he’s our match official for the day.

We’ve already seen Ross Martin at Huish Park this season, he was in charge for the Glovers’ 1-0 win over Dagenham and Redbridge.

He only booked Ciaran McGuckin for the Glovers on the pitch, but Mark Cooper also saw yellow on the sidelines.

Overall, he’s been a fairly busy Man in the Middle with 18 games across, EFL, Premier League 2 and National League competition this season and credit where it’s due – he’s only sent off one player.

In total, we’ve had him four times and we’ve won the lot including a game on Boxing Day, last season… the thrashing of Taunton Town!

He is also the subject of one of our favourite photos of the season so far… 

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

Yeovil Town FC (First Team) v Eastleigh FC (First Team)
National League – Premier    
Referee: Martin, Ross
Assistant Referee: Hooper, James
Assistant Referee: Wright, Joe
Fourth Official: Morris, Kevin

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Defender Ed James has returned to his parent club Exeter City after picking up a hamstring injury.

The 19-year-old joined the Glovers as something of an emergency defender with suspensions to Jake Wannell, Finn Cousin-Dawson and Dom Bernard all overlapping.

In a statement on Monday, Exeter manager  Gary Caldwell said: “Ed picked up a hamstring injury so we have called him back. We do not think it will be a long injury but he could not feature for Yeovil (in the 2-1 defeat at Hartlepool) on Saturday so he is coming back for Michael in the medical team to assess him.

“Hopefully we will get him back quickly and available as we are struggling in that area as well.

“Ed has been brilliant so far and is someone we have high hopes for in the future. I’ve seen him progress steadily since I’ve been here and he has made good steps forward this summer.”

He scored one goal in green-and-white, a close range header against Braintree Town, but missed last weekend’s trip to Hartlepool United after picking up an injury representing Exeter Under-21s last week.

Speaking after the 2-1 defeat in the North East last weekend, Glovers’ manager Mark Cooper said he was hoping to have new additions for they face Eastleigh at Huish Park on Boxing.

His targets may have been focused more at the top end of the pitch, however, having been without left-back Alex Whittle as well as James at the weekend, he may be considering whether strengthening in defence has taken on added importance.

Thanks for your efforts, Ed!

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The Gloverscast would like to say thank you Frank Reid for his kind permission to use these photos from Saturday’s game with Hartlepool.

No photos are to be reproduced without his prior permission.