Yeovil fell to a 1-0 defeat against Bromley yesterday in a result that could prove disastrous in the fight for National League survival. Ian was at Huish Park and here are his conclusions.
We were lucky it was 1-0. The scoreline didn’t really tell the story of yesterday. Bromley could have gone home having scored 5 or 6 with the chances they spurned. Grant Smith (as always) made some important saves but the visitors were profligate in front of goal. The Glovers struggled defensively on corners and throw ins and were carved open more than once. The early goal from Toppaloj gave Yeovil plenty of time to claw something back but…
We never looked like we were going to score. Unfortunately it was the usual story going forward. Chances created were few and far between. Alex Fisher had a chance from header which you expect prime Warren Patmore to bury, but not Fisher. The arrival of Griffiths, Pollock and Siziba made little difference. Harriott was bright and looked like he had something about him, but could only last the first half. We’ve added players that our new stewards say are ready to go and our manager says aren’t. On yesterday’s evidence, I’m with the manager on this one.
We missed our ball carriers. When you take out Jordan Stevens, Jordan Young, Matt Worthington and Lawson D’Ath, the squad loses so much. The pairing in midfield of Freckleton and Cooper never looked comfortable and it was only when we switched to a back three (argh wingbacks!) that we got good spells of possession. Anything good was going to come from Charlie Cooper but even he couldn’t work miracles with what was in front of him. All he could do was pass to his wingbacks but with Bromley’s organisation it was near impossible to cut through. We missed the pace of Young and Stevens and without Worthington we weren’t able to play out from the back effectively.
Something felt off yesterday. We’ve had some bad games this season, but that was down there with the Aldershot home game. I think for most of the season, the team have played together and worked for each other but yesterday felt so disjointed. It was a performance devoid of team spirit. Mark Cooper and Chris Todd, usually so animated on the touch line were not their usual selves. Cooper’s admission after the match that the new owners sign who they want to doesn’t tally with the approach talked about in the week. To me, the substitutions looked like Cooper was making a point of ‘here are your players, let’s see what they can do’. Despite all the positivity outside, morale at Huish Park appears lower than ever. There is clearly a growing divide between the boardroom and the dressing room and it couldn’t come at a worse time.
If we don’t fix it, we’re down. Results around us couldn’t have gone worse yesterday. Gateshead’s win and there two games in hand see us staring down the barrel. There’s no recruitment left to happen and this is our lot. Worthington will be back from suspension, but if we can’t get Stevens, Young and D’Ath fit enough for the run in then I’m worried. The new lads need to get up to speed and only can in matches, but we’ve got eight cup finals to retain our National League status. Unity comes from within the club and if the manager is being told who to pick and new players aren’t embedding into the group then we may as well call it now. Cooper is far from perfect, the recent form shows that, but with his experience and pedigree as a manager there’s no one more suited to pull us out of this. If a rash decision is made now, we’re in Marmon territory and we may as well look forward to trips to Bath City and Taunton Town next season.
Couldn’t agree more! Also think the manager has a strategy/tactics that the players don’t get or doesn’t work to their strengths. Right from the off it was Fisher gets isolated, play from our own six yard area, two as wide as they could, JMD dropping deep to get the ball (ignored) and the passes were over/under hit so Fisher just chugged around on scraps or couldn’t link the play. We needed a spark was a comment we kept saying in our group. The players looked leggy and unsure, plus they had to do so much more running than needed – or in the wrong areas. We won’t score until we play a proper 442 with someone close enough to play off Fisher, or just drop him and play 433 with the front three buzzing around eachother. Sarfend will bring it’s own challenge. They need to be up for it with nothing left out there.
Haven’t been as disappointed as I was yesterday……. Formations, tactics new players bla bla bla if you haven’t got 11 players all busting a gut to get a result your gonna be struggling from the 1st whistle, didn’t see a team yesterday let’s hope Cooper can ram the Achieve by Unity down there throats all week coz without that we are doomed.
Great assessment, couldn’t agree more. A team devoid of any attacking prowess, no teeth at all upfront and the new players brought in just don’t appear to be fit. The managers body language was poor yesterday, he didn’t seem to demand anything from his players and they didn’t seem to know how to respond to going down. Way too much sideways and backwards football, quite literally going nowhere. Sad to say it but if Cooper can’t get on board for the greater good then he may as well step aside as we will be doomed otherwise. I would put Staunton as temporary manager and use him to galvanise the team for our last 8 games. You never know, we may just get enough to see us over the line. ?
Totally against the owner bringing in the players HE wants. I feel that is the managers job. The owners should worry about the day to day running of the club. What’s this new director of football gonna do?. I think the manager is being undermined he should be recruiting & coaching players,picking the team& looking after their welfare. Don’t be surprised if Mark Cooper resigns at the end of the season.