It’s back to FA Trophy action as Yeovil Town travel to the Midlands to face AFC Telford United in the fifth round of the competition.
FORM…
YEOVIL TOWN
The Glovers haven’t played since the 17th January after their last two fixtures were postponed due to waterlogged pitches. With the extra time off the squad should be feeling fresh and will be looking to put in a better performance than when they lost at Brackley Town.
The 2-1 loss to Brackley was probably one of the worst performances Glovers fans have seen this season. However, credit where it is due, the Saints were good value for money and had Yeovil on the back foot for the majority of the game. However, it was clear to see how much Yeovil missed Morgan Williams at the back, with neither, Jake Wannell, Finn Cousin-Dawson or Kyle Ferguson looking capable at the back.
There was news of the departures of on loan midfielder Max Jolliffe, who returned to his parent club Colchester United, and defender Michee Efete ahead of the match.
TELFORD UNITED
The Bucks are in the division below Yeovil, in the National League North. They currently sit 8th in the league but that doesn’t tell half the story for the Midland side. Over their last five games they have only been beaten once and won the remaining four fixtures. The stand-out result being an 0-8 away win at Curzon Ashton earlier this month.
In their previous game, it was another away three points for the Bucks as they put Merthyr Town to the sword, winning 1-4. That was an impressive victory in itself, with the Welsh side sitting in third. Although Telford do seem concede most games they tend to score a lot more goals than their opponents.
KEY PLAYERS…
YEOVIL TOWN – DAKARAI MAFICO
The young midfielder has shown how good he is since joining on loan from League One side Cardiff City, and was one of the only bright sparks in the defeat to Brackley. The full back does everything you want in a defender, which was shown last time out with:
- 14 recoveries
- Five ground duels won
- Three interceptions
- Two clearances
That is an impressive stat line for anyone let alone a 19-year-old, who is getting his first real taste in senior football. Offensively he is also prolific, with the headline stat from the Brackley game being his 95% pass accuracy. The Glovers will need Mafico on top form again against the Bucks.
AFC TELFORD UNITED – MATTY STENSON
With 55 goals scored this season in the league, The Bucks players are all chipping in, but none more so than their centre-forward, Matty Stenson. The 31-year-old is an experienced player who has travelled around the level all his career but seems to have found his place in Shropshire, he netted 32 goals in the 2024/25 season and already has 13 this campaign.
The big man was also nominated as The National League Player of the Month for December for his five goals in the month. The former Kidderminster man is also Telford’s top scorer of all time (since 2004 reformation) with 60 goals from just over 100 games.
The striker will no doubt cause trouble for the Yeovil defence and they will have to be at their best to stop Stenson. One hope is that he does appear to have a short fuse with eight bookings and a red to his name this season.
THE GAFFER…
Kevin Wilkin is the Bucks boss, and will pit his managerial wit against Danny Rowley on Saturday afternoon. The 58-year-old is a former striker, most notably playing for Northampton Town, Cambridge United and Nuneaton.
As a manager, Wilkin has taken charge of four clubs with considerable time spent at the three of them. In the last two years of Wilkins playing career he also took charge of Nuneaton, with his time as manger there going from 2006-2014. He then took over at Wrexham before the money and quickly left again in 2015.
The next seven years for Wilkin were spent at Brackley Town before he took the job Telford in 2022. The 58-year-old has never faced the Glovers.
LAST TIME WE MET…
The two sides technically have never met, due to the reformation of AFC Telford United in 2004. However, we did have met the “original” Telford United FC on multiple occasions. With the last fixture between the two clubs being played just under 23 years ago in 2003.
That day the Glovers ran 3-0 on their way to league success that season. The game will be remembered by most for the fact we still hadn’t mathematically won the title due to a Chester win, although the players did do a lap of honour at Huish Park.
The squad that day was full of Yeovil legends with the likes of Chris Weale, Terry Skiverton and Kevin Gall in the starting line-up. A brace from Michael McIndoe and a Kirk Jackson header secured the win for the home side.
The last time the two sides met in Telford was earlier in the season in 2002, when the Glovers won 0-5 thanks to goals from Nick Crttenden, Adam Lockwood, Andy Lindegaard, Howard Forinton and Gavin Williams.
DON’T I KNOW YOU…
There will be no former Glovers to look out for this weekend.
THE MAN IN THE MIDDLE…
Aaron Farmer is the man in charge for this fixture. For more information on him and his team for Saturday night check out Ben’s article – here.