Yeovil Town got back to winning ways in midweek and they head to Halifax this weekend looking to break their awful run of form in West Yorkshire.
FORM…
YEOVIL TOWN
Billy Rowley’s men gave the perfect response to last weekend’s disappointing home defeat to Altrincham when they became only the second side to win at newly-promoted Hornchurch on Tuesday night.
The Glovers raced in to a 2-0 lead and doubled the amount of goals their opponents had conceded in their previous six home matches in just six second half minutes and that means they have now won four of their seven National League Premier Division matches of the campaign.
Whilst not the finished article, as the manager admitted in his pre-match comments ahead of the trip to Halifax, the side’s start to the new campaign has gone better than many could have imagined.
They will be without defender Jordan Norville-Williams who limped off with a hamstring injury at Hornchurch. He will undergo a scan to assess the extent of the damage.
FC HALIFAX TOWN
Halifax boss John McGrath admitted that he had not felt as bad after a defeat during his brief time at the club as he did on Tuesday night.
The Shaymen looked comfortable when winger Ben Tollitt added his second of the night against Barrow just after the hour mark, but they capitulated to a 3-2 defeat, only their second on home soil this season.
They were without first choice right-back Max Bardell who is expected to be out for at least four months after tearing a hamstring in the 2-2 draw at Southend United last weekend, and then lost left-back Raheem Conte who was sent off for a second bookable offence with a minute of normal time remaining against Barrow.
Both players will be missing for that match and they will be a blow for a side which has one of the youngest squads in the division with Tollitt, aged 31, the only player over the age of 30 in their starting XI on Tuesday night.
Speaking afterwards, McGrath told the Halifax Courier: “You can’t have the excuse of ‘they’re a young group’ because it doesn’t matter how old you are, 18 or 38, you’ve still got to go and win your duels, still got to win your headers. As they get older, they will learn how to see games out, they will learn how to do the right things at the right times.”
KEY PLAYERS…
YEOVIL TOWN – JAMES DALY
The winger proved the new terrace chant that Yeovil can’t play without him again when he made a stunning impact coming off the bench at Hornchurch on Tuesday night.
Within 90 seconds of his arrival in Essex, the 26-year-old burst down the left wing and drilled home an unstoppable shot which proved to be the winner in a 2-1 victory. It was a goal which perfectly illustrated what he brings to the Glovers, boundless energy, the ability to beat a play and finishing which has now seen him score three in his last four appearances.
Daly missed a large chunk of last season after picking up an injury early in the campaign, but still managed to chip in with seven goals in a season when Yeovil struggled.
Manager Billy Rowley appears to be mindful of the fitness of one of his key players, but after his impact in midweek and the promise of a vast expanse of the pitch at The Shay, he may be tempted to release one of his key men again this weekend.
FC HALIFAX TOWN – BEN TOLLITT
Summer signing Ben Tollitt is playing some of the best football of his career having crossed the Pennines to join Halifax from Morecambe in the summer.
At 31 years old, he is one of the more experienced heads in the Shaymen’s otherwise youthful squad and has stepped up to the responsibility with six goals in his first 15 appearances, including a brace in the 3-2 home defeat to Barrow on Tuesday night.
The Liverpool-born player has been something of a journeyman throughout his career when he has bounced between the lower reaches of the EFL with the likes of Tranmere Rovers and Blackpool and the non-League having seen service with Oldham Athletic and AFC Fylde.
THE GAFFER…
John McGrath had a difficult introduction to life at The Shay having left National League North side Buxton to fill the manager’s seat surprisingly vacated by Adam Lakeland who dropped down a division to join relegated Morecambe at the end of last season.
He has some form with Buxton having guided them to two consecutive play-off finishes including a fifth-placed finish last season, the highest in the club’s history. But he had to deal with a number of high profile departures from the Halifax side which finished eighth in the National League Premier Division last season with the exits of top scorer Will Harris and midfielder Jay Turner-Cooke.
As a player, McGrath has faced the Glovers before, he was part of the Dagenham & Redbridge side hammered 4-0 by Gary Johnson’s side in 2003 and faced them again two seasons later with Shrewsbury Town and Kidderminster Harriers. He was also part of the W*ymouth side which won the Conference South in 2006 and he was also promoted in to the Football League with Burton Albion three years ago.
WE’VE MET BEFORE
Yeovil Town have an pretty horrendous record at The Shay in recent seasons.
The most recent appearance in August last season a brace from Halifax midfielder Owen Bray saw the Glovers go down to a 3-2 defeat in the first match after the sacking of Mark Cooper. Having fallen behind to Bray’s opener, a penalty from Junior Morias and Harvey Greenslade strike put the visitors in front before Bray got his second and then Will Harris grabbed the winner.
The last time the two sides met at Huish Park, the game finished in a fairly forgettable goalless draw in April which ended the Shaymen’s hopes of promotion.
You have to go back to 2019 to find the last time when Yeovil won at The Shay. A brace from striker Gold Omotayo earned Darren Sarll’s side a 2-0 win.
DON’T I KNOW YOU?
There are no former Yeovil Town players in the FC Halifax Town squad this season.
THE MAN IN THE MIDDLE…
Ben Toner is taking charge of his first National League match of the season. He’s been busy in the EFL in the season to date.
Read our Ben’s write-up – here.