Yeovil Town have been drawn away to Radstock Town in the first round of the Francis Hillier Somerset Men’s Premier Cup.
Ties are scheduled to take place ‘In September’ – which is not overly helpful for planning purposes.
The final is scheduled to take place on 28th April, 2027 at Bath City’s Twerton Park.
It’s the start of the National League season tomorrow and we have asked you what you think of Yeovil Town’s chances for the new season.
A total of 122 of you gave your thoughts (and thanks to everyone who did) and now the 3 Plebs have shared their thoughts, hopes and dreams for this season – but even more importantly, what did you think?
If you prefer reading these things in graph form, you can find these below, and without further ado, here’s out expectations for the 2026-27 season…….
When have we ever been the club that’s got its business done early? To go into the first day of pre-season with an actual squad without the need for a massive amount of recruitment was a brilliant step change. We feel more ready. Everything’s felt quite strategic and whisper it, I think we might know what we’re doing. We’ve retained the ones I wanted us to, and based on what the ‘experts’ are saying, we’ve recruited really well.
To see a Billy Rowley and Darren Simpson team. Clearly we didn’t see that last year. Our management team inherited a burning building, a squad put together by multiple managers and we muddled our way through to the end of the season securing safety. So, with recruitment done early, a proper pre-season and ideas starting to come through, I’m most excited to see the ideas that Rowley and Simpson have, come through on the pitch.
Luke McCormick. Without his goals last season the picture would have been very different. We missed him when he was injured. He’s our captain, he’s fully fit and he’s going to be absolutely crucial to our success. Don’t fall in love with footballers…
There’s something about Mason Obeng that I like. He’s found some decent areas in matches during pre season and his goal against Merthyr was lovely. It’s a big jump for him from last season but I’ve got faith in the manager’s judgement.
If we can start strong and get points on the board early then we have to believe in a play off push, but its a new squad learning a new way and those ideas will take time to become instinctive so we’ll see some growing pains. I think we might fall just short, but it will be close.
It’s been really refreshing to have all the hard work of recruitment done early.
We have a couple of actual strikers, we have experience at the back and some class in midfield, quite how it all comes together remains to be seen, but it’s so nice to not head into the new season with so many unanswered questions and with at very least an idea of how we’re going to be going about things.
Believing again.
When we dropped to the National League South, a successful season was expected, but for the years either side, we’ve been forced to find hope and belief with the straws being clutched at on many an occasion.
We shouldn’t (!) have four managers again and we can believe, through everything we’ve been told that we’re going to give it a go. I can’t wait to believe.
Who is our key player?
Luke McCormick is too obvious, although we absolutely need him on the pitch.
Goals are the main difference between 17th and 7th and that means there is something to be expected of Walker and Spasov amongst others.
If Ste Walker gets going early, I’m really excited about his chances of scoring goals this season. It feels harsh to put any level of expectancy on his shoulders, but as our main goal scoring acquisition, he is, almost by default, our key player.
Jos Barker. Goalkeeper’s Union in full force here, but I wanted to get a bit of backing in early. Untried at this level, yes. Young, yes. But of all the goalkeepers in the mix this summer the manager could have gone for dozens more ‘obvious’ options, but he clearly backs his ‘keeper and that is all I need to get behind him too.
Wow! Getting our business done early is not something we have become accustomed to at Yeovil Town, but this season we did it. Even before we get started on the new arrivals, we have kept a lot of quality from last season in the shape of Luke McCormick, Brett McGavin and James Daly and that gives us a good base to build on.
The unknown quantity of what this team is what excites me about this season. I know every non-League expert with a social media account is tipping us for a top seven finish because of our transfer business, but the truth is there is a lot we have not seen many of these players. But, there is the potential to a side which can really leave a mark on this division.
We saw last season that dominating possession is at the heart of what a Billy Rowley team is all about, I just hope that we can get it out to the attacking talent that we have in the side. If we see attacking football, played with real purpose and coupled with a passion, I am happy for this season to be building for the future.
Stephen Walker is one of those unknown quantities which I mentioned just now – but what potential he has. YouTube scouting is one thing, but we have seen in pre-season that this lad has an eye for goal and with full-time coaching and everything that goes with it, he could be a special talent.
One player who have not seen play a second in green-and-white is Joe Haigh, but there is no doubt that there would have been plenty of clubs at our level and above who would have wanted to sign him this summer. If he can get back to full fitness and showing the type of form which made him such a hotly-rated talent, he could be the one we’re all talking about.
I’m not going to follow the non-League experts and say we fall short of the play-off places in ninth place having flirted with the play-offs for some of the season. For me, this would be progression from where we have finished in the past couple of seasons and set us up nicely for next year.
Football is back….league football, that is. After a pre-season of wondering how much we can read in to a performance, Yeovil Town make the long journey to Scunthorpe United for the opening fixture of the new National League Premier Division season.
For the Glovers, results in these games have probably been a bit lower down the pecking order than in previous years. 15 new players trying to gel and figure each other out was the most pressing matter and after finishing last season with an injury-ravaged squad, boss Billy Rowley wasn’t keen to get through the warm-up games unscathed, which it seems like has been the case.
However, the results have probably frustrated Rowley, none more so than when pushing Newport County close last week. The game finished 1-2 to the football league side, but perhaps could’ve been different had Yeovil kept a hold of their early lead. It wasn’t to be though, with the Glovers succumbing to the quality of the opposition. That felt like the story of the pre-season for the Glovers, which hopefully will be turned around come Saturday.
Scunthorpe manager Andy Butler has made it perfectly clear this pre-season has been about getting minutes in to the legs of his squad. If you wanted proof of this, the Iron’s final friendly – a 1-1 draw with Chesterfield last Friday night – added an extra 30 minutes after the regulation 90, just to get those minutes in to legs.
There were nine friendlies in the Scunthorpe schedule (three more than Yeovil, for context) and the results range from a win over Leeds United’s highly-rated Under-21s to drawing with a strong League One opposition in Chesterfield, to defeat at Buxton and a draw at Spalding United, managed by former boss Jimmy Dean.
There have been plenty of comings and goings at the Attis Arena. The most notable departures are winger Callum Roberts, who delivered 21 goals as the Iron made the play-offs last season, and midfielder Oli Ewing who have gone to League One new boys Notts County and National League rivals Forest Green Rovers respectively.
Incomings include former York City captain Callum Howe, the defender turned down a contract extension at the Football League’s latest member to make the move, and Luke Brennan, a tricky winger brought in from National League North side Buxton, who is being seen as at least part of the answer to replacing Roberts.
The biggest point of intrigue going in to the opening game is between the posts. Last season’s number one, Louis Jones, has been handed the number one jersey, but that was a decision manager Andy Butler only made late in pre-season. His rival for a place between the post, Maison Campbell, signed a new contract in the summer, but was handed the number 25.
Many fans will be looking towards the new players to provide the spark and be a shiny new toy that can propel us to the playoffs. But it is the midfield maestro and new captain Luke McCormick that could be the key to unlocking this teams potential.
The 27-year-old played a huge role last season, as he orchestrated the team on the pitch from midfield, whether it was getting back and doing the dirty work or finding the back of the net at the other end. And it’s those goals that helped us secure safety last season, with our strikers underperforming Yeovil needed someone to step up and it was the former Bristol Rovers man who did so. If it wasn’t for a long term injury who knows how many more he could’ve bagged.
He clearly had an impact off the pitch as well, with manager Billy Rowley naming the midfielder our new captain. It wasn’t just his boss he impressed, as the curtained colonel endeared himself to the Huish Park faithful, which isn’t all that easy to do. McCormick has been here for a season now but it feels like 10, and that’s the biggest compliment I can pay him.
If you wanted to genetically engineer a striker that you’d love to play for you, but hate playing against you, you’d probably end up with the genes of Scunthorpe’s Danny Whitehall in your test tube.
The 30-year-old opened the scoring from the penalty spot when the Iron won 3-0 at Huish Park last March and picked up a booking – standard.
He’s someone who will probably empty Jos Barker’s water bottle at the first opportunity, is guaranteed to be in the referee’s ear when he’s hurled himself to the floor when the Yeovil defence looked at him sideways, but give him a chance in front of goal and there’s a good chance he’ll take it.
Andy Butler is royalty when it comes to Scunthorpe United. The former defender started his playing career at The Iron in 2002 and would go on to make over 130 appearances for them in a six year spell. He’d go onto play for the likes of Huddersfield, Walsall and Doncaster Rovers over the next 10 years (with some loan spells dotted in there) before returning to Glanford Park in 2019. After a season however, he’d leave to return to Doncaster, where he’d make 20 appearances. After flirting with the lower leagues, Butler would find himself back where it all started for him 21 years earlier at Glandford Park where retired a legend.
As a manager the 42-year-old has been in charge of the Iron since 2024, when he replaced Jimmy Dean. However, it was as the Doncaster Belles boss, in woman’s football, where he cut his teeth, before he took over as caretaker boss of the mens side.
Butler has only faced the Glovers twice as a manager, both last season when he would win both games.
It’s back to March, when the two sides last met, with The Iron running out 3-0 winners at Huish Park. It was a tough day that for the Glovers but one they would have learned many a lesson from. It was fairly even affair for the first 45 as both teams wanted to give nothing away. it was in the second half though that Yeovil threw away all their good work.
Five minutes into the second period Scunthorpe were given a penalty after Joy Mukena brought down Danny Whitehall. The aforementioned Whitehall would then convert the spot kick to take a 1-0 lead. Billy Rowley’s men wouldn’t be pushed about easily though and made it tough for the away side, before Leo Farrell doubled The Iron’s lead on the 75th minute. With the game almost complete, Farrell got his brace as he converted a Tyler Denton pass in added time to make it 3-0.
The last time the two sides met in Lincolnshire was last November when Scunthorpe ran out 1-0 winners at Glanford Park. A first half goal from Hull City loanee Tyrell Sellars-Fleming was enough to sink Richard Dryden’s side.
Michael Barlow will take charge of Yeovil’s first game of the season with more detail here from Ben.
Yeovil Town’s manager Billy Rowley and his assistant Darren Simpson have spoken to the Gloverscast about their plans to build a side capable to making a return to the Football League.
The pair joined us on our latest podcast – to listen click here – as they prepare to get the National League Premier Division season underway with a trip to Scunthorpe United on Saturday.
In a wide-ranging conversation they spoke about their summer signings, how they want the team to entertain fans at Huish Park, their hopes for this season and, if promotion proves a step too far this season, build foundations for a team which will be feared in 12 months time.
Rowley said: “This season is going to be about us winning as many games as we can and figuring out which players we want to keep on this journey with us. If we are in this division this time next year, we will be very, very good. We are a bit unknown at the moment, but based on what we see every day in training, we will be a far more exciting team, we will be definitely creating more chances.
“I want to finish as high as possible in the league this year, I want to get as many points as we can possibly get, but with it being a new group I think we are going to learn a lot in the next six months as well. We want to make the play-offs this year and hopefully in a years time we can be talking about travelling to teams in League Two. But whether we do that or not, we want to build a team that is together, united and everyone else is a little bit fearful of. And whether that takes a year or two, I believe in us, the staff and the players, I know that if everyone else is not fearful of us now, they will be in a year’s time.”
The pair have brought in 15 new faces over the summer ranging from talents from the lower leagues including goalkeeper Jos Barker, midfielder Johl Powell and winger Mason Obeng, who all played for them at Walton & Hersham, through to more experienced heads with National League experience including defender Joe Gubbins, midfielder Zain Westbrooke and striker Slavi Spasov.
Rowley said: “If you look at the players we have signed, we have signed mostly from a league or two below us with a handful of proven players at this level. We tried to find a balance of hungry players that want to kick on and train their hardest every day and the boys we have from this level are top characters that act like captains on and off the pitch. We feel it is a good mix.”
He added: “The style of football we want to play, we want to dominate the ball more, we want intelligent, creative footballers that can run and boys that turn up that want to play for this club but also want to push on. I think it is important that they want to be the best. Experience is important but so is the experiences you have had, we could get a 32-year-old that has played in the League, but he has not got much interest in playing for us and is just looking for a retirement home and I don’t really want those players around us. A lot of the boys we have brought in are hungry to do well for this club and for themselves and that is really important.”
The 15th new arrival was Barnsley winger Charlie Lennon who joined on loan until January during the week and Rowley said he thinks the latest arrival will be a player who will excite crowds at Huish Park.
He said: “It only came about in the past few days, so that is the answer to why we didn’t do it earlier. Charlie is someone we watched back in November or December, he is a very exciting winger. I love top level comparisons in football and I think Charlie is a bit of an Anthony Gordon. He is a left-sided winger who loves the touchline, he can glide with the ball, go left and right, he can score, he’s quick and exciting. We have known about him for a while and he can play anywhere across four positions in the frontline. He comes in to add a bit more quality in wide positions, I love players that get you off your seat and Charlie is one of those, he will take risks and if you give him the ball he will do something with it.”
On the eve of our opening away day against Scunthorpe United, we are thrilled to welcome the Manager Billy Rowley and Assistant Manager Darren Simpson to the Gloverscast for the first time.
As we gear up for a highly anticipated National League campaign, Billy and Darren sit down with us to discuss everything from their tactical philosophy and summer recruitment to the importance of building a unified, ambitious dressing room.
Here is what you can expect in this week’s episode:
The Managerial Dynamic: Billy and Darren pull back the curtain on their day-to-day partnership, detailing how they divide training sessions, handle tough player conversations and if they ever disagree with one another…
Tactical Philosophy & Identity: A deep dive into the style of football the duo wants to bring to Huish Park. Expect insights on possession-based control, aggressive attacking, and the non-negotiable trait of being incredibly hard to beat.
Summer Recruitment Strategy: With 15 new faces in the squad, the management team discusses the deliberate strategy behind the overhaul.
Pre-Season Reflections: An honest assessment of the pre-season campaign. Billy and Darren discuss the physical demands, the challenge of embedding new tactical ideas, and the process of building team chemistry.
Building Character: Why assembling a squad of players with high ambition, character, and a genuine desire to climb the leagues is just as important as technical ability on the pitch.
New Yeovil Town captain Luke McCormick has said he is feeling stronger than he did when he picked up the injury which ruled him out of the final two months of last season.
The midfielder required surgery on a groin injury which he sustained in March and was a notable absentee as the Glovers fought against getting sucked in to a relegation in the National League Premier Division last season.
Having returned with three goals in pre-season when he wore the captain’s armband in every match he started, the 27-year-old was confirmed as the skipper for the upcoming season earlier this week.
Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Jack Killah on Thursday, McCormick said: “I feel fit, I feel like my body is in a really good place, probably better than it was before the injury. I have had a lot of time in the gym and a lot of time rehabbing, so I feel 100% if not 101%. I feel strong and the boys are fit and ready to go, it has been a really positive pre-season.
“I had an issue for seven or eight weeks which turned out to be a hernia which I was playing with, so I was very restricted. When your team is struggling and we were trying to pick up points, I was always going to want to play whether that was at 50% or 100%. I didn’t think I was going to (get the injury) I did, but that is football. I am looking forward to starting the season strongly and hopefully continuing that throughout the season.”
He admitted that he was proud to have been named captain with defender Joe Gubbins appointed as vice-captain, but said that he believes there are plenty of other strong characters in the squad this season.
He said: “It is a very proud moment in any players’ career, we have a lot of leaders and a really good group of players, so it is not just me, I just wear the armband which is a huge honour. It is something that I have wanted to do and I am getting to an age now where I am one of the older boys in the group with a lot of experience, so if I can help, I want to help. I think I always lead by example, I am not always a big shouter and screamer unless I get a little bit emotional. I want to lead on and off the pitch and I just want to help wherever I can.
“We have kept a strong core of players that were here last year and pre-season has been positive with getting to know all the new boys and that can only get better. I think it is a really exciting time to be a Yeovil Town player, but also to be a Yeovil Town fan. When there is a big overhaul like this there is always a lot of excitement and, from what I have seen, the fans can be excited and I certainly am. There has not been one stand-out player, but when the real stuff starts people will see there are a lot of good players in this squad.”
The season gets started with a long trip to Scunthorpe United on Saturday. The Iron finished fifth in the division last season and made it to the play-off semi-finals when they lost to eventual winners, Rochdale, and McCormick said this is something Yeovil are aspiring to achieve this season.
He said: “That is where we want to be, we want to be in and around those play-off places come the end of the season. We can take a lot of confidence from the pre-season we have had, obviously respect Scunthorpe for what they have done, but we are going there to impose ourselves and get three points.”
Yeovil Town manager Billy Rowley has said he sees the development of his squad as “a two-year project“, but insists he wants to go and attack the National League Premier Division this season.
The Glovers kick off their campaign with a long trip to face a Scunthorpe United side which made the division’s play-offs last season with 15 new recruits in the squad.
Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Jack Killah on Thursday ahead of the game, Rowley spoke about the importance of tying many of the new faces down on to two or three year contracts as he looks to build a side capable of challenging at the top of the division.
He said: “I think it is important that the players feel that stability as well and they feel the buy-in from us as a management team and ownership. There is nothing worse than trying to play a certain style and coach a group of players that changes every six months or every year, because it is really difficult. We saw it with Rochdale last year, it took them maybe 18 months or two years to really click and they managed to keep most of their squad and we saw what that did for them last season. There is a lot of excitement around the team and the club at the moment, I am sitting here and thinking this is a two-year project, of course, we want to finish as high as we can this year and win every game, but it might be six months or nine months until you really see this team hit top gear. If that happens, it happens, if it happens sooner, that is great.”
The boss added: “I did a podcast last night with the Gloverscast guys and we spoke about this at length.” That might be worth a listen…..
Winger Charlie Lennon, whose arrival on loan from Barnsley until January was announced on Wednesday, became the latest new recruit with the Glovers expected to hand out a number of club league debuts at Scunthorpe on Saturday.
The incomings followed the exit of a number of first team regulars from last season, including defenders Kyle Ferguson, Alex Whittle and Finn Cousin-Dawson, midfielder Josh Sims and striker Aaron Jarvis, departing back in May. Since then, club captain Jake Wannell has also been allowed to join National League South side Torquay United.
But Rowley said he felt it was a change that was required, he said: “I felt like it was needed. I have got a lot of time for the boys that played here last season and gave their all, it is very difficult to play for four managers in one season with a lot of mixed messages and probably a bit of disillusionment in the group and I felt there needed to be a bit of surgery on the team. From above (in the Huish Park boardroom) that was echoed and I feel we have done a really good job over the summer, I think there is still a lot of us to do in terms of becoming a cohesive unit and learning about each other, but that is part of the process. We think we have been doing some good work (during the pre-season) in recent weeks.
“Every management or recruitment team will build a team for a certain style or shape, so we want to play a more ball dominant game, we want more energy on the pitch and to be able to get after the ball a bit more and probably lower the average age a bit. We have worked really hard to select the profile of characters who fit that style and we feel like we have done that with the lads we have got in over the summer. We missed out on a couple of targets, but most of the boys we spoke to about what we are trying to do here, they fully bought in and it was nice that most of the targets wanted to come and play here.”
The fixture computer has handed Yeovil a tough start with the opening day trip to Scunthorpe, who finished fifth last season, followed by the visit of a Carlisle United side which finished third to Huish Park seven days later.
Unsurprisingly, Rowley is expecting a tough opening day. He said: “Andy (Butler, the Scunthorpe manager) has done a great job with them last year and I know exactly what they are about, they are a really difficult team to play against. They will be aggressive, great at winning second balls, getting first contact, so we are going to have to go there and roll our sleeves up and run hard first. From what I can see, their pitch is looking decent, it will be a decent game of football on the opening day of the season. We are going there to try and put our imprint on the game and try and get three points. I have had enough of pre-season now, it has served its purpose in getting the boys fit but we want to go and play for points now.”
The Glovers are being tipped for a play-off push by many of the non-League experts (insert speech marks, if you think they are required) on social media, but whilst the manager understands the excitement, he confesses his own prediction is somewhat less interesting.
He said: “It is just about the day-to-day processes of how we get there, what that looks like for us starts here on a Monday morning, eating properly, sleeping properly, training properly, putting together a good game plan on a Thursday and Friday and then delivering on a Saturday. If you do that enough times and the processes are good, you are probably going to be alright come the end of the season. Do I think we are going to be up there? I don’t know. Have we got some good players this year? Yes. We will take it game by game and see how we do.”
Yeovil Town have confirmed that Keith Emmerson has been appointed the club’s new Performance Centre Manager.
The former Dorchester Town and Taunton Town defender will lead the development of players from Under 7s to Under 16s working alongside former Glovers’ player Roy O’Brien, who is in charge of age groups aged 16 years following the establishment of an “elite football and education pathway” between the club and Yeovil College in June.
Emmerson was previously Head of Performance at Huish Park having previously held a coaching role at the club and the appointment was described as a “promotion” in a statement announcing his appointment on Friday.
In the same statement, club chairman Prabhu Srinivasan said: “Keith’s appointment is another significant step in our commitment to developing a sustainable football pathway at Yeovil Town.
“His experience, professionalism and passion for developing young people make him the ideal person to lead our Performance Centre. He understands what we are trying to build as a football club and shares our vision of creating an environment where players can develop, enjoy the game and reach their potential.
“Developing our own talent is central to the future of Yeovil Town. By investing in outstanding people like Keith and creating clear opportunities for progression, we are building foundations that will benefit the club for many years to come.”
Emmerson added: “The club has strong foundations, a fantastic culture and a proud history, and I’m excited by the opportunity to help shape the next generation of players.
“Our ambition is to create an environment where young people can develop not only as footballers but also as individuals. Working alongside our excellent coaching staff and with a clear pathway into post-16 football and education, we want every player to feel they have an opportunity to progress.“
Let’s get this season, up and running then, shall we?
Yeovil Town’s first game of the 2026/27 campaign is with a nice little trip up to Scunthorpe United and we’re going to need a referee for it.
Stop reading at this point if you are a believer of Referee omens.
We’ve had Mr Michael Barlow three times in his career, we have gained a grand total of 0 points and scored a grand total of 0 goals.
Most recently, he took charge of the Glovers’ 3-0 defeat to Carlisle United at Brunton Park last season, he was also there when Yeovil’s relegation to the National League South was confirmed at Wrexham.
Roll back a further year and he was also in the middle at Halifax where the Glovers lost 1-0.
Scunthorpe haven’t seen him at Glanford Park in a couple of years, but he did take charge of a 4-1 win over Wealdstone back in 2023.
His total numbers for the 2025/26 season read 24 games, across eight different competitions, 79 yellow cards, two red cards and just two penalties awarded… one of those being for Carlisle, against us!
There’s a northern feel to Mr Barlow’s assistant team with Alan Hull and Wayne Gray (not that one) on flag duty, whilst Josh Bramall is looking after the dug outs.
Scunthorpe United FC (First Team) v Yeovil Town FC (First Team)
National League – Premier
Referee: Barlow, Michael
Assistant Referee: Hull, Alan
Assistant Referee: Gray, Wayne
Fourth Official: Bramall, Joshua
