Yeovil Town manager Mark Cooper pointed to the absence of a number of energetic midfield players as the reason for his side’s lacklustre performance in today’s 1-0 home defeat to Bromley.
He said that it was unrealistic to expect new signings Callum Harriott, Zanda Siziba and Scott Pollock, who all featured in the loss, to hit the ground running having not played in recent months.
Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Sheridan Robins after the game, the boss said: “We had a lot of the ball today but we had very little to show from it, we have been crying out for that impetus at the top of the pitch and we just haven’t got it.
“If we are expecting the new lads to come in and just be fit enough to cope with it, it’s just not going to happen. Apart from Miguel (Freckleton) the rest are going to play catch up and it is going to take them two or three games to get up to match fitness.
He added: “I can’t question their effort, the boys gave everything that they had and it was not enough. I have to be there for them, put my arm around them and find a way of getting enough points (to keep us in the league).
“If you take Stevens, Young, Worthington out of our team it takes away a lot of impetus. Our team is based on energy and legs, if you take the legs out of the team, you are not going to be the same.”
He confirmed that Harriott, who was replaced by Pollock at half time, suffered a quad injury towards the end of the first half and defender Chiori Johnson also appeared to be struggling with a hamstring injury at the final whistle.
With permanent signings Harriott, Siziba, Pollock all featuring alongside loanees Miguel Freckleton and striker Reo Griffiths, the boss was asked whether the recruitment led by new owners SU Glovers had made a difference.
Speaking the week, owner-in-waiting Matt Uggla had said the new recruits had been selected by group of people involved with the owners rather than “the old school model” of the manager being in sole charge of recruitment.
On this, Cooper said: “We need players that are match fit and they only way we are going to get them match fit is to keep putting them on the pitch, but then we risk them getting injured.
“It is a bit of a puzzle that we have got to find the right answers to. We are always going to differ on targets and players we are going to bring in, that’s just the way it is, Matt has made it clear he is going to recruit the players he is going to recruit and that’s fair enough – it’s his money and it’s his club.”
The manager added that “the last week has really effected” his team, saying: “There was three or four that kept going as they do every week, the new boys have to add to that now and be really effervescent and bubbly, even if it is only for 20 minutes.“
So are we going to have an owner who thinks that he knows better than an experienced Manager.
I’m not a great fan of Cooper, he demoralises me when he is being interviewed and if he is the same with the players then what chance do we have?
I think we’re gone. Hate to say it.
Mr Cooper the right answer is to play 4-4-2 but it seems you are sticking with 3 at the back!! Although today I am not even sure what you played. As we are short on numbers then you pick the system to suite the players and not the players to suite your “system ” cos we don’t have the players capable
Disagree, played 4 at the back and then switched to 3. These players are capable of playing a more attacking style.
Something unsettled the team today, nothing fell right for them.
Will Matt unglazed and co stick around if we go down .