Charlie Wakefield

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Former Yeovil Town attacker Charlie Wakefield has secured a permanent switch to National League side Wolking.

The silky winger, was apparently just what Darren Sarll needed this summer.

Wakefield was announced as leaving Huish Park at the end of the 2022/23 season.

The former Chelsea man played 57 games for the Glovers and spent the final stages of last season on loan at the Cards.

Thanks for everything at Huish Park, go well at Woking.

(any excuse to show that goal against Stevenage… Huish Park was rocking!)

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A bad day for the Glovers in green and white… what about those who play in a whole range of different colours?

In the National League, Ben Richards-Everton was an unused sub as Scunthorpe saw their relegation to the National League North confirmed.

Charlie Wakefield wasn’t in the Woking side who confirmed their place in the National League play-offs.

In the NLN, Leamington suffered a 3-0 defeat in something of a six-pointer against Kettering, Ollie Hulbert played the full 90.

Truro lost the battle of the Bolitho against Plymouth Parkway as the two ground sharers went head to head, Ollie Haste was an unused sub for Truro, still no Toby Stephens for Parkway either.

Hungerford drew 1-1 in their game with Havant and Waterlooville in the NLS, Max Evans was in goal for the home side.

Dorchester went down 6-1 against Poole Town, Jake Graziano wasn’t in the squad.

Gillingham Town drew 1-1 with Warminster, Sam Hodges played the full 90 minutes and was awarded MOTM (hat tip to Lee Hodges on twitter for the update), the Gills have been really pleased with Hodges overall, an update sent to the Gloverscast says, “Sam has started our last six matches in centre midfield. Playing will, industrious, hard working and retains possession well.”

Thanks to Gillingham Town for the update!

Tiverton were in action away to Weston Super-Mare, but no sign of Charlie Bateson on the team sheet.

So, yeah, lots of players not playing for their loan clubs… cracking.

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The Glovers picked up a point in the National League, but there were plenty of other Glovers out and about picking up wins, goals… and there was even a late-in-the-season debut for our young Keeper, Max Evans.

Let’s start in the National League, Charlie Wakefield wasn’t in the Woking side that came from behind to beat Dorking – another former Glover, Rohan Ince scoring twice.

Ben Richards-Everton played the full 90 for Scunthorpe who lost away at Gateshead.

Into the divisions below, Ollie Hulbert scored for Leamington, his opener helped lead his side to a big win over Hereford.

Jake Graziano – fresh off the back of being named Toolstation Premier Fan’s Player of the Month for March – was back in action for Dorchester, but they succumbed 2-0 to Chesham Utd.

Ollie Haste was used from the bench as Truro came from behind to beat Harrow Borough 4-1, Sam Hodges was back in the starting line up for Gillingham Town, but they went down 2-1 against Wincanton.

Finally, goalkeeper Max Evans made his debut for Hungerford Town in the National League South, but couldn’t prevent a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Hampton and Richmond, with one of the goals coming from former Yeovil midfielder, Jake Gray.

Both Plymouth Parkway and Tiverton play on Saturday, rather than Friday.

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Whilst the scenes at Huish Park didn’t give Glovers fans much to get excited about, could any of the on loan cohort make things any better, let’s find out.

In the National League, Woking came from behind to beat bottom side Maidstone United with an injury time winner, Charlie Wakefield came on in the 82nd minute.

Scunthorpe were on the wrong end of a 4-0 thrashing from Notts County, defender Ben Richards-Everton credited with an 11th minute own goal.

All in all, two good results for Yeovil.

In to the lower leagues, Oxford City took a point from their clash with Dulwich Hamlet, Will Dawes was introduced as a 74th minute substitute.

Leamington lost 2-0 in front of a bumper crowd as Boston United were in town, Ollie Hulbert started, but was taken off after 70 minutes.

Jake Graziano made his Dorchester debut from the bench but his side went down 2-0 to Merthyr Town (dual-registration watch doesn’t have quite the same ring to it)

Down at Sherborne, the result might have gone against the Zebras, but Yeovil Under-18s striker Benjani Juniot was back on the scoresheet (are you watching, Mark Cooper?).

He got his side’s first in a 4-2 defeat at Millbrook AFC, taking him to three goals from his loan spell. The Sherborne line-up also included Under-18s’ midfielder Mason Hunter too, who appears to have also joined our friends at Sherborne for a short stint – go well, Mason.

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Gillingham Town, were big winners, Rob Hollard has returned to the Glovers following his loan spell, so he wasn’t involved, and I couldn’t any team news to see if Sam Hodges had been involved.

Truro’s (Ollie Haste) game was postponed, as was the game between Toby Stephens‘ Plymouth Parkway and Charlie Bateson’s Tiverton Town. This allowed Bateson to turn out for the Under-18s in their 2-1 defeat at Bridgwater United.

Plenty more of these sides are playing midweek, more Loan Watch updates to come!

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After Charlie Wakefield‘s player registration deadline day loan move to National League promotion chasers Woking, Glovers’ fan Jake Gallagher has poured his feelings in to a blog……

There’s a star-man.
Playing on the right.
His name is Charlie Wakefield.
And he’s fucking dynamite.

It’s a dangerous business falling in love with football players. Especially in the lower leagues when the merry-go-round of loans and short-term contracts mean you will see more footballers through the revolving door at your club than you would at a top division outfit. But that doesn’t stop us.

Foolish though as it is, we just can’t help singing the names of our favourite players. We know it’ll end in heartbreak; we know they’ll be snapped up by a club in the division above on the eve of the season (see Tom Knowles) and we know that ultimately the better players move on to bigger things.

It’s rare these days that a player would have his own chant – they just don’t stick around long enough for fans to conjure up something catchy and come together, in the Thatcher’s Stand, as one orchestrated and organised choir. Few players get the “Super, Gav, Super Gavin Williams” treatment but Wakefield earned it and deserved it.

A silky winger, he’s just what we need….. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

Perhaps it was his willingness to allow fans to peer into his life to see what it’s like to be a footballer. His ‘Man Up’ film on YouTube, a documentary about mental health in football, showed the maturity levels of such a young man who clearly cares about his family, his welfare and his future. His ‘A Day in the Life’ documentary – also on YouTube – allowed us to see a personal side that you don’t often get beyond the post-match interview. As a fan, I can’t get enough of that insight and access.

While the above is true, the real reason we all love Charlie Wakefield is his ability to ignite the crowd. Just give him the ball on the halfway line, he’ll knock it past the opposing left-back and Yeovil Town are on the attack. Not many footballers possess that quality, that get-the-supporters-off-their-seats quality. One of the most satisfying sounds in football – other than the ball hitting the back of the net – is when you can hear stadium seats flip up as people stand in anticipation of a goal. That’s what Wakefield does. Under Darren Sarll, when we were at our most dangerous, it’d be Tom Knowles breaking at pace, laying it on a plate for Charlie. One touch to control, one touch to finish. Rinse and repeat. That winning goal against Stevenage in the FA Cup 2nd Round in 2021. That was vintage Wakefield. A silky winger, just what we need, he’ll win Yeovil the National League. We can’t sing that anymore.

This does sound a bit dramatic, I’m aware of that. After all, he’s only left on loan and has played just a handful of games this season. Since the departure of Sarll it’s been obvious that both new managers have felt their style doesn’t suit a fast-breaking wide player. Chris Hargreaves tried and failed to convert him into a wing-back and Mark Cooper’s system needs more technically astute players in the forward line. Couple all that with his injury record and you can’t say you’re surprised. But that didn’t stop me feeling a twinge of regret seeing him move on, especially to Woking. Bloody Woking.

I’d love to see Charlie Wakefield back at Huish Park next season, running at defenders, scoring goals on the break. I can’t see it personally and that’s fine – it’s time to make my peace with it.

For now, I’m just going to wish him all the best. And if you’re reading this Charlie – thank you.

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Charlie Wakefield is hoping the attack the second half of Yeovil Town’s National League season after a return to fitness.

The 24-year-old started the season playing in an unfamiliar wing-back position under former boss Chris Hargreaves despite having thrived in a more advanced position last season.

Speaking ahead of the weekend’s FA Trophy third round tie with Dorking Wanderers, he said: “At the start of the season, I probably would have wanted to be out high and wide like I did last season, but t’s not all about me.

“Chris Hargreaves wanted to play wing backs and we had a chat at the time and I said, from my perspective, as long as I was playing, getting that experience in a new role then whatever.

“I want to be as high and wide as possible and be more of an attacking player. I want to be an exciting player going forward, so I will keep my head down, keep working hard and hopefully I can get the form back from last season.”

The unfamiliar role has been coupled with a back injury which he recently had a scan on and is now hoping to be back to full fitness.

Having played the full 90 minutes of the 2-1 win over Taunton Town in the Somerset Men’s Premier Cup, he was back playing at wing-back whilst also feeling under the weather for last weekend’s stalemate against Scunthorpe United.

Wakefield admits getting game time – regardless of the competition – has helped his recovery having been missing since the 1-1 draw at Maidstone United at the end of October.

He added: “I am really enjoying it, I am back playing now which is good. Everything is never plain sailing, I wanted to come back and kick on again, but injuries have given me a set back.

“I managed to get a scan on my back and now I just want to kick on. We are halfway through the season and I just want to have the best half a season I can, it’s great to be back to from injury and I’m in the right mindset.”

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Charlie Wakefield holds off his marker

Charlie Wakefield has returned to training this week having sat out the previous five matches through injury.

The winger, who has not featured since his substitute appearance in the draw at Maidstone United at the end of October, is “slowly but surely getting there” according to manager Mark Cooper.

The return of the 24-year-old seems likely to come too soon to feature against his old team Bromley in tomorrow’s 12.30pm kick-off, although the boss says players who have not been featuring in his starting XI have staked a claim in training this week.

He is without the suspended Matt Worthington who is missing after being sent off in last weekend’s 1-0 home win over FC Halifax.

Cooper said: “It’s an opportunity for a number of players to join this week’s training to stake a claim, we have had a really good week’s training and I’m looking for players to show me during training that they should be in the team on Saturday.

“One or two have put themselves forward and hopefully I get that decision right tomorrow.”

Mark Cooper speaking to the media ahead of the weekend’s trip to Bromley.

Playmaker Lawson D’Ath, who is yet to appear under Cooper due to injury, is a central midfield replacement option for Worthington, unless he looks to change the formation and select a more attacking option such as winger Anthony Georgiou at the weekend.

The Glovers remain the league’s joint lowest scorers, tied on 17 goals with FC Halifax and Oldham Athletic.

Of his attacking options, Cooper said: “You have Louis (Britton), Malachi (Linton), Fish (Alex Fisher) and Andrew Oluwabori, so there’s four boys who can play up front, so it’s about picking the right formula and formation and hopefully getting it right.”

Interestingly he did not mention the out of favour Jake Scrimshaw who has not featured since come on for the final ten minutes of the 2-0 defeat at Oldham Athletic under former boss Chris Hargreaves, a game which Cooper watched from the stands.

One player certain to start against Bromley is on loan West Brom midfielder Jamie Andrews who extended his stay at Huish Park until January this week.

The 20-year-old has impressed in midfield alongside captain Josh Staunton and Cooper was pleased to see him sign up for a further month.

He said: “It is important it was Jamie’s second loan because sometimes boys are not quite ready in their first loan.

“You can tell he’s already had a loan in men’s football, and I watch a lot of Under-23s and Under-21s football and it is very difficult to pick a player because there is never a lot of tackling and competitiveness.

“Jamie is a bit different, he likes to get stuck in, he likes to run and he can play a bit as well, so for the time he spends with us he will go back to West Brom a far better player.”

The tall midfielder had a spell at National League North side Leamington last season.

You have to go back to September 1987 to find the last time a Yeovil Town team lost at Bromley with the Glovers having won six and drawn one of their last seven visits to Kent.

But, they make the trip looking for their first three points on the road this season, against a Ravens’ side who made an impressive start to the season before having saw in the past couple of months. They did win last time beating Dorking Wanderers 3-2 with ten men last weekend with former Glover Omar Sowunmi on target in that match, his fifth goal this season.

Cooper said: “I’m not bothered whether it’s home or away, it’s about continuing to pick points up and trying to pull away from the bottom of the league.

“They are very good, strong, powerful and functional, they will put the ball forward and try and test us. It will be a similar game that you get 80 or 90% in the National League and it will be about whoever makes the least mistakes as it normally is.”

The manager was not impressed with the National League’s decision to pull kick-off times forward to 12.30pm on Saturday [if only we knew a league board member – Ed] to accommodate the potential of either England or Wales playing the last 16 of the World Cup. Obviously as it turns out, England do not play until Sunday night and as for Wales, well……

Cooper added: “For me they could have changed it back once they knew England weren’t playing on Saturday, but we can’t do anything about it. It just means we have to travel (on Friday night) and we just put our schedule back a little bit to make breakfast lunch and we will be ready to go.”

The manager was asked (again) whether he is looking to strengthen his squad with any new arrivals with seven games in the next four weeks – including the Somerset Men’s Premier Cup tie with Taunton Town next Tuesday and the FA Trophy opener against Dorking.

Once again, he reiterated his desire (and budget-driven necessity) to work with the players he already has at his disposal with the likes of Scrimshaw and Will Dawes, signed from non-League Stratford Town for an undisclosed five-figure fee, yet to feature.

Cooper said: “Sometimes the answers are under your nose. It’s not all about going and signing every Tom, Dick and Harry and in with the new and out with the old, we have to try and improve (the players we have).

“But also you have to keep in mind is ‘are we going to get significantly better than what we have for an extra so many pounds a week?’ We probably aren’t, so until we find the right one or we get the right amount of money where we can really go and get one that is really going to make a difference, I am enjoying working with the group we have.”

The boss did reveal he does have players in mind who he believes could strengthen his options and is keeping a close eye on them using a range of statistical databases of players.

He said: “I have a database of players that I think could help us and I am constantly watching new players to see what is available.

“But it’s whether the clubs will let them go, will they come to Yeovil and can you afford them? So there’s a lot of things that have to come together to get them.

“I have worked on database recruitment in terms on specific positions, for example if we were using for a left-back, I would use a lot of data to narrow that search down.

“But in the end I want to see the player in the flesh and certainly the majority of the work is done through database, but I want to see what people are like in warm-ups, does he carry himself well? All of those kind of things.”

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Charlie Wakefield will still be an attacking threat for Yeovil Town this season whatever position he is playing in, according to manager Chris Hargreaves.

The winger, who played down the flanks and as a centre forward at times last season, has been used predominantly as a wing back in pre-season.

Charlie Wakefield. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

But, speaking ahead of the opening National League match against Scunthorpe United, Hargreaves said the former Chelsea youngster had displayed an ability to perform in a number of positions.

He said: “He is still going to play in those further forwards and we have reverted to some systems in pre-season, the behind-closed-doors game (against Sherborne Town), in training games and we have worked on different systems.

“We are trying to get a group of players on the pitch that are adaptable. Charlie sees himself as an attacking player and he will be whether it is at wing-back, right wing or centre forward, he can play all three of them.

“What I have been pleased and impressed with is that he wants to play in all those positions and do well in them which will only benefit him, if he wants to play at a higher level, if he nails those positions you are a much more attractive position for any of those clubs.”

There was no confirmation from the manager that Bristol City goalkeeper Will Buse would be joining on loan despite rumours coming out of Ashton Gate.

The 20-year-old, who lives in Yeovil, was strongly linked with a move to Huish Park after he was recalled from a spell at Taunton Town and despite first-choice Grant Smith and back-up keeper Max Evans already being on the books.

Asked about a move for a keeper by BBC Somerset’s Sheridan Robins, the manager said: “There are lots of rumours, I can’t comment on them but it’s a fast-moving sport and there might be a couple of other conversations being had before the weekend.

“We need to focus on getting better, creating that bond between the group, I think there’s a long way to go and a lot of work to do.

“We are not naïve to think we have it right so far, we need to keep recruiting well in a competitive market.”

Youngsters Toby Stephens and Ollie Haste are both on loan at Southern League Premier Division South side Truro City.

Toby Stephens

Stephens was spotted turning out for the Cornish side, who are managed by ex-Glovers’ midfielder Paul Wotton, in a pre-season friendly against Torquay United last weekend.

Hargreaves said he hoped the pair would benefit from playing “at least a month of competitive football” for the White Tigers.

He said: “I have worked in under-23 set ups at different clubs and you can be a ‘lost group’ where you get to 23 or 24 years old and you have not made any league appearances at any level.

“We want them to play men’s football where it means a lot on a Saturday afternoon.

“They were very close to staying around it with us but I feel for them that they need that month at least of competitive football.

“I have spoken to Paul Wotton who has been delighted with them in training sessions, so it’s about them making an impression and that is what they are determined to do.”

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Charlie Wakefield has said he is “really excited” to be working under new Yeovil Town boss Chris Hargreaves after committing himself to the club for next season.

The 24-year-old, who was one of the stand-out players making 46 appearances, scoring eight times in all competitions, confirmed he was staying at Huish Park on Friday.

Charlie Wakefield fires in a shot. Picture courtesy of Mike Kunz.

In a statement, the former Chelsea youngster said: “I’m really excited to be staying at Yeovil. I’m looking forward to getting back with the boys and working under the new gaffer.

“See you back at Huish Park, Glovers fans!”

Boss Hargreaves, who told the Gloverscast last week that he was keen to keep Wakefield, said he was delighted to add him to “the already strong core of existing players.”

He said: “He’s a player we were very eager to keep hold of, he proved himself at the level last season and he can kick-on again next season.

“Charlie is the sort of player that gets fans excited in the stands, I’m looking forward to working with him.”

It follows a poll run by the Gloverscast which shows 88% of the 300-plus fans who voted wanted the former Chelsea youngster to remain in Somerset – not saying it’s down to everyone showing him some love, but…..

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It’s time for the weekly YeoGov poll. As one man is left to accept a contract, this week we want to know (and let Charlie know): Do you want Charlie Wakefield to stay?

Sorry, there are no polls available at the moment.

Last week we asked you Do you think the Supporters Alliance Group serves its purpose?

86% of 104 voters (89) don’t think the Alliance serves it’s purpose, while 14% do. There’s a huge opportunity for the club to make the most of this platform. In this humble writers opinion, it needs a refresh and a review of what it’s meant to do and how it represents supporters as a whole.