Yeovil Town manager Billy Rowley heaped praise on the spirit of his players as they grabbed two goals in second half stoppage time to grab three crucial points against Sutton United on Tuesday night.
It looked like it was going to be another evening of frustration at Huish Park as the Glovers trailed 2-1 going in to added time, before James Daly popped up with his second goal of the night to level the game and then Brett McGavin smashed home a late penalty to win it.
The win puts eight points between Yeovil and the National League Premier Division relegation places going in to this weekend’s FA Trophy quarter-final at Southport.
Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Josh Perkins after the game, Rowley said: “I have only been here two-and-a-half maybe three months and there’s no bad eggs (in our dressing room), they are a great set of lads. You can’t question their heart and desire and I am just really happy for them.
“We have had some misfortune with injuries and suspensions and I think they will own up (to their mistakes), and I will definitely own up (to mine). I have got a few things wrong in the last few weeks and we’ve lost a few games.
“I just looked at the league table for the first time in a while and there is got eight-point gap which is nice. That gives you a bit of breathing room and takes the chains off a little bit. I could go through a few of the lads I think tonight, but every single one of them dug in and left everything out there. I’m just really happy for them.“
The Glovers took the lead with five minutes of the first half remaining when Daly was quickest to react after Luke McCormick’s penalty was saved by visiting keeper Jack Sims. That looked to be enough to get them in ahead at the half-time break, only for Sutton’s Hayden Muller to head an equaliser with seconds of the half to play and then Kai Jennings put the visitors in front in the 66th minute.
That looked to be it with Yeovil seemingly devoid of ideas going forward until Ryan Jones swung a cross in from the left with three minutes of stoppage time played and Daly was there to grab the equaliser and set up a grandstand finish.
On Daly, Rowley said: “What a performance from JD today. He is physically incredible, his running stats are through the roof every week and it’s something that I’ve been really looking into in the past few days. When we perform well, we’re on the front foot and we’re getting in people’s faces, the one player that is always at the top of the group is JD. Sometimes that comes from just natural genetics, but it also comes from a massive heart and a massive set of lungs and he won’t ever let you down with that.“
McGavin was handed the huge pressure of taking the spot kick in the final of the allotted seven minutes after fellow substitute Tahvon Campbell was brought down inside the box. Campbell grabbed the ball before handing it to McGavin and the manager confessed the midfielder was his preference.
He said: “I see Brett every day in training. He’s a great ball-striker and I see him take penalties all the time andhe’s incredible at it. I just felt like that pressure moment it was just a gut feeling and we let Brett step up. Tav was unbelievable when he came on and could easily have scored the goal as well, but Brett has got such quality in his right foot.“
The boss also said he expected midfielder Luke McCormick to be missing after he limped off after an hour with what appears to be a groin injury he has been nursing for a while. The Yeovil top scorer went down after a collision in the scramble to turn in the rebound having seen his first half penalty saved by Sutton keeper Jack Sims.
Rowley said: “He’s been seeing a specialist and it’s improved, but I think he’s just gone to strike the ball with his right foot and it’s probably just opened up. We will have to check on Macca tomorrow or the next few days, but I imagine he will probably be out for a couple of games from what I have seen tonight.“
If the manager’s prediction is correct, the influential midfielder will miss this weekend’s FA Trophy quarter-final trip to Southport – but will make the long trip to Merseyside buoyed by a late victory.
The Glovers’ boss said: “A week is such a long time in football’s such a long time. When you win tonight in such a nice fashion, it brings everyone together and the moment we had with the fans at the end was a good moment. Suddenly things aren’t looking so gloomy anymore, but we’re going to have to earn that.
“When I first came into this job I knew I’d learn a lot very quickly, it’s probably going to take a little bit more time than I thought to really embed how I want to play football, but in the next few weeks if we show that kind of heart and that determination and aggression there won’t be many teams coming here and getting points off us.“
He also confirmed that captain Jake Wannell and striker Aaron Jarvis will both be available for the tie at Southport having served suspensions. The manager said: “It is a big boost for us, they are big characters and good lads. I think they’re both really frustrated with their last couple of games or the last month for Jarv after he got a concussion at Brackley. He hasn’t played much, so he’s really hungry, he is training really well, he’s doing extras. He’s looking like he’s Dolph Lundgren in Rocky at the minute, he’s doing all kinds of extra training.“