Venue: Huish Park
Saturday, November 27th, 3pm kick-off

Conditions: Very windy and bitterly cold
Pitch: Still looking good

Attendance: 2,062 (21 away supporters)

Scorers: Bramble 2 (0-1), Yussuf 77 (1-1)

Referee: Robert Massey-Ellis

Bookings:
Yeovil Town: Yussuf 36
Dover Athletic: Bramble 44, Hanson 59, Collinge 90 + 2, Bexon


Yeovil Town : (4-3-3)

Grant Smith
Dan Moss, Max Hunt, Luke Wilkinson, Jordan Barnett
Matt Worthington, Josh Staunton, Dale Gorman
Tom Knowles, Adi Yussuf, Charlie Wakefield

Substitutes: Morgan Williams (for Hunt,58), Sonny Blu Lo-Everton (for Worthington, 58), Alex Bradley (for 75), Ollie Haste, Max Evans.

Dover Athletic: Bexon, Tiensia, Collinge, Hanson, Goodman, Ransom, Wood, Bramble, Woods, Cosgrave (for Caton, 90+4), Pavey (for Carney, 83).

Substitutes (not used):  Arthur, Andre.

Match Report

If you’re a Positive Polly you can look at this as Yeovil Town stretching their unbeaten run to eight games (SPC included). If you’re a Negative Nelly, this was two points dropped against the bottom side in the division who had only picked up three points all season.

But, as the final whistle blew at a freezing and windy Huish Park, it was hard to feel too much positive from this result.

A mistake by goalkeeper Grant Smith, who has been pretty faultless in recent matches, gifted Dover an opener after just two minutes, and it took until 77 minutes for Adi Yussuf to touch home an equaliser.

First half

Storm Arwen was not named on either team-sheet but from the opening whistle it became clear the weather system was going to have a say in proceedings.

The first half saw the home side playing against the wind shooting towards the away end, and it took just a couple of minutes for her to show her teeth – or am I being a bit kind to Grant Smith there?

A cross from midfielder TJ BRAMBLE was palmed in to his own net by the goalkeeper and Huish Park was stunned.

 

Having beaten promotion-chasing Dagenham & Redbridge and Bromley in the past two games away from home, it seems like the comforts of Huish Park had us feeling a bit too comfortable.

Inexplicably despite the conditions there was a lot of long ball football being played against the wind, despite (according to the commentary of Lawson D’Ath, at least) manager Darren Sarll urging his side to get the ball to Tom Knowles and Charlie Wakefield in wide positions.

On ten minutes, Knowles received a short free-kick and had a go but his effort was easily held by Josh Bexon in the visitors’ goal.

If that was a half-chance then a clear cut one fell the way of Wakefield eight minutes later after good play by Adi Yussuf found him at the back post but he could not turn it home.

Despite having the elements against him, Dale Gorman was still willing to have a shot (surprise, surprise, eh?) but his free-kick from range was deflected wide.

There was no real threat from Dover, albeit Dan Moss did make a superb intervention to deny fellow Millwall youngster Junior Tiensia late in the half, but equally Yeovil seemed riddled with bad decisions and a lack of pressure on their opponents.

The half-time whistle sounded with some jeers from the Huish Park crowd. Things can only get better, eh?!

Half time: Yeovil Town 0 Dover Athletic 1

Second half

The Yeovil Town players returned for the second half ahead of their visitors suggesting manager Darren Sarll had left them in no doubt as to his opinion.

The manager made a change to a diamond formation with Josh Staunton at the base, Knowles at the tip behind Wakefield and Yussuf , allowing Jordan Barnett and Moss the opportunity to get forward.

Attacking the Thatchers’ Stand, an early free-kick from Gorman was turned aside by Bexon. From the following corner, Luke Wilkinson got a head on a Gorman corner but the ball was cleared off the line by Dover.

On 57 minutes, the Yeovil defence got caught out by a long ball forward and Aaron Cosgrave found himself one-on-one with Smith who did well to deny him before Bramble shot in to the keeper’s hands.

Sarll responded a minute later by bringing Morgan Williams on for Max Hunt as part of a double substitute which also saw Sonny Blu Lo-Everton replace Matt Worthington.

After 66 minutes, Knowles and Wakefield combined to force a corner and from Barnett’s ball, Lo-Everton forced Bexon in to a save.

Staunton poked one wide soon after and Yussuf did have the ball in the back of the net on 75 minutes but was adjudged to be offside.

That led to another change of personnel and shape on with 15 minutes of the half remaining. Alex Bradley replaced Moss as the Glovers reverted to a back three of Wilkinson, Williams and Staunton giving Bradley and Barnett an invitation to push forward.

A minute later the home side were level. Barnett’s free-kick in got a slight touch from YUSSUF – or was it Wilkinson? Or perhaps Barnett’s free-kick went straight in.

Barnett was at the heart of it again with a fine delivery from a corner which flashed wide before neat play between Wakefield and Lo-Everton was turned wide.

As the game ticked over in to injury time, a clash between Knowles and a Dover player led to the winger going off and not returning.

The ten men could not find a winner in the dying seconds and the game finished a point apiece.

Full time: Yeovil Town 1 Dover Athletic 1

 

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