Match Report: Leatherhead 3 Yeovil Town 3

Yeovil Town came within a whisker of being on the end of an FA Cup giant-killing after a late Johl Powell equaliser saw them forced to a fourth qualifying round replay at Huish Park on Tuesday night.

The Glovers looked to be home and dry after Archie Davies and Brett McGavin put them 2-0 up with goals either side of a missed penalty from McGavin in the second half, but when Leatherhead captain Mark Waters pulled a goal back with 77 minutes on the clock, the home crowd sensed an FA Cup shock.

The atmosphere inside Fetcham Grove seemed to spur the home side and exploded when Waters pulled them level and then fired them ahead. A giant-killing looked to be on the cards before Powell steered home an equaliser with a minute of normal time remaining.

First half

Yeovil Town named another unchanged starting XI for the third consecutive game with the only change coming on the substitutes’ bench where Owen Dean dropped out having played for Farnham Town in the competition’s earlier rounds.

The possession statistics must have been almost perfect for the visitors in the opening 20 minutes with the Glovers passing the ball around beautifully with Leatherhead playing like the away side looking to hit on the break.

On eight minutes, James Daly smashed an effort in to the side netting and then with 22 minutes gone, then a powerful run by Daly down left played in Johl Powell who did well to turn inside a crowded area and get in a shot which hosts’ keeper Sonny Wheeler got a glove to before defender Niran Butler hacked it clear.

For the Tanners, winger Anas Igozouln was a threat down the right and came in for some rough treatment notably from Yeovil captain Brett McGavin who was perhaps fortunate to get away with a yellow card for his challenge on 25 minutes.

There were nervous moments when striker Tom Dryer broke through the Yeovil defence with eight minutes of the first half remaining. But a combination of goalkeeper Jos Barker and Jordan Norville-Williams saw the danger away, but only far enough for the hosts to flash a cross in front of the visitors’ goal.

There was some good last ditch defending from the home side, but aside from the Powell effort there was not a meaningful chance on the Leatherhead goal.

There was a deep and meaningful conversation between Billy Rowley and his assistant Darren Simpson before they went back in to the dressing room at the interval. They knew that the dominance we had in the opening 45 minutes could not go unpunished if this was not going to be a difficult afternoon for us.

Half-time: Leatherhead 0 Yeovil Town 0

Second half

Any fans who stayed a minute later in the bar at half-time would have been disappointed as Yeovil took the lead in the opening minute of the second half. Jack Kingdon picked the ball up just inside the Leatherhead area, fed it through to Archie DAVIES who smashed in an angled shot.

Then three minutes later there was a golden opportunity for the visitors to double the advantage when Daly went over a raised boot inside the box and referee James Durkin pointed to the spot. Brett McGavin stepped up and smashed his penalty against the underside of the crossbar and away.

The captain then suffered at the expense of the woodwork again soon after when he was found by Powell on the edge of the box, but his curling effort came back off the post. Yeovil continued to press for a second and first Jordan Norville-Williams and then Powell lifted efforts over the bar.

But captain McGavin found the breakthrough just before the hour mark. Ryan Jones weaved in from the right wing and looked set to shoot before laying it back to Brett McGAVIN who hammered home from the edge of the box.

With the score line looking more comfortable, Rowley rang the changes with four changes as Joe Gubbins, Charlie Lennon, Mason Obeng and Ste Walker coming off the bench in place of Jones, Daly, Ben Radcliffe and Slavi Spasov.

There were opportunities for both Davies and Obeng to put the game out of reach of the hosts and they were chances which would come back to haunt the visitors when Leatherhead pulled a goal back with 11 minutes of normal time remaining. A free-kick swng in from the right side saw Jos Barker come for it and miss, the ball was headed back across goal where Louis PAGET was there to head one back.

Full time: Leatherhead 3 Yeovil Town 3

Substitutes: James Daly (for Mason Obeng, 62), Ryan Jones (for Charlie Lennon, 62), Slavi Spasov (for Ste Walker, 62), Ben Radcliffe (for Joe Gubbins, 62), Loick Ayina (for Brett McGavin, 75), Matt Gould (not used).

Leatherhead: Sonny Wheeler, Charlie Kennett, Cameron Black, Niran Butler, Louis Paget, James Dickson (for Nathan Hogan, 74), Mark Waters, Harry Murphy (for Marcel Barrington, 55), Kofi Anokye-Boadi (for Connor Harris, 74), Tom Dryer (for Matt Everitt, 63), Anas Igozolun (for Deondre Date, 65).

Substitutes (not used): Kemall Wilson, Maksym Zabashta.