Cooper: We are in a rich vein of form

Following Yeovil Town’s 3-1 home win over Maidenhead United at Huish Park, manager Mark Cooper spoke to BBC Somerset reporter Ian Randall.

He was asked about the performance, in particular of two-goal hero striker Aaron Jarvis and impressive Bristol Rovers’ loanee Kofi Shaw, and gave an update on the future of winger Jordan Young, who was not named in the squad for the victory.

Here’s what the boss said…..

IR: Did that feel a comfortable afternoon for you?
MC: I thought we played really well again. We are in a rich vein of form and look accomplished and organised in the way we play and a threat. We competed for every ball as well, so I was really happy with the way we played. For me it never feels comfortable, we missed lots of chances to make it out of sight, but I will take 3-1.

IR: Aaron Jarvis’ confidence is evident at the moment. He made the first goal for himself and never looked likely to miss, and for the second goal he was in the right place for a poacher’s finish.
MC: He could have scored four or five today. The only downside is he got himself booked, he gets beaten up every week and if he gets stuck in he gets booked. I think he is suspended now which is a blow because we are losing players at the minute, but we keep performing really well.

IR: You made four changes today, but the machine still functioned, didn’t it?
MC: The players all know what they are doing, we have a distinct style and a clear way of playing. We are patient with our build-up and we try and get the ball in to the slots for the attacking players to go and attack. Whoever comes in understands their role and they have to effect the team and perform well.

IR: Charlie did not know when his last goal was, is that something you feel he needs to add more to his game?
MC: The way we play with three central defenders and two midfield players, their job is to defend the back half of the pitch, win the ball and pass it safely to the players in front of them. So that means the only time they really get near the goal is in the second phase of an attack or from a set-piece, so I am not too worried about that. It would be nice if he could (score a few more), Brett (McGavin) has four goals and he has always scored goals. Charlie scored a lot of goals as a kid, but he has ended up being more of a defensive midfield player.

IR: What did you think of Kofi Shaw today?
MC: I thought he was tremendous, you would never think he was a 17-year-old from his performance, would you? We do not just go and sign players willy-nilly, we do a lot of work and we have been tracking Kofi since pre-season when we played Bristol Rovers. We had to wait and be patient and we really thank Bristol Rovers for letting us have him.

IR: Was it with a conversation about ‘if you would like to send him out on loan, we would like to have him’?
MC: No, it was about the right time. Bristol Rovers is a big club and they have to win games, like we all do. It is probably not the right time for Kofi to be starting for Bristol Rovers, but they feel it would do him good to drop down a couple of levels and start games. Kofi bought in to that and you can see from his performance today that playing in this environment and the way we play can only do him good.

IR: Jordan Young was not involved today and there has been a rumour circulating about other clubs making offers for him, what is his position at Yeovil?
MC: We have had an offer for Jordan, so we are discussing that and we will take some time over the weekend to see what happens.

IR: Do you think he will still be a Yeovil Town player when you play again in two weeks?
MC: I am not sure.

IR: Obviously he cannot go in to the Football League at this point because of the transfer window not being open, so it is presumably another National League club, is it?
MC: It is a National League club, yes. All I will say is we have to keep evolving, we have to keep trying to make the the squad better. We have to make sure everyone who comes here is desperate to play for us and all I would say is trust in what we are doing.

IR: Would you like another game next Saturday? I know you have not got one because it is FA Cup weekend, but you are six matches unbeaten in the league.
MC: We would still love to be in the FA Cup, we would never disrespect that. But if you get a little break where you do not play for a week, it gives you a chance to freshen everyone up. The players will get two or three days off and they can go and do a bit of early Christmas shopping! We are looking forward to freshening up and going to our next game at Southend United which will be a really difficult game. So we will have to do some work and get ready for that.