YEOVIL 0 CITY 2
Arriving at Yeovil’s ground was quite an experience. Approaching through a retail park, the stadium was a bit like Colchester’s- only smaller! No wonder that the City fans chant was “my shed is bigger than this…” We were thankful that the rain kept off but it was soooo cold.
Yeovil look after the away fans well! There was a sort of a stand which was half finished and looked like the money had run out. There was no roof and no catering inside. The speakers for the sound system looked like they had been borrowed from someone’s front room. The SKY TV box and cameras were above us and we looked forward to see how City would respond after the Palace match disappointment. Morrison came in for the injured Tunchev, otherwise it was our “A” team. Cleverly was on the bench.
City started very brightly with Dyer getting a lot of the ball. Good chances were created and missed by Fryatt, Oakley and Howard, who hit the bar. Yeovil’s goalkeeper was busy throughout. At first Yeovil seemed to be overwhelmed as City passed through them. However, the pitch started to cut up badly and City’s distribution then started to deteriorate. Oakley, in particular, had a game he will want to forget quickly, as many of his passes went astray. Davies looked good in fits and starts and, in one amazing run, took the ball through Yeovil’s side from the halfway line only for the goalie to save low down.
Yeovil started to get into their stride and started to create opportunities down the wings. Hobbs and Morrison however kept it tight in the centre. Martin looked confident and took the ball well all night from crosses. City’s play was not pretty to watch at times and passing was not what we have become used to under Nigel Pearson’s reign…..
The first half finished goalless but with City having the majority of possession. We remained confident that with patience we would get the breakthrough and a deserved reward for the fans who had made the journey. The City fans were superb and made a great noise within the miniscule crowd of about 4,500.
City continued to have the majority of play and at last made the breakthrough. Davies tricked the defender on the left with a superb piece of skill and passed inside to Howard who shot towards goal. It looked as if it would have gone just wide until it went in off a Yeovil defender, who had Fryatt right behind him. Howard claimed the goal and good luck to him. He took a battering all night and deserved it. Soon afterwards, from a superb Gilbert cross Fryatt just missed with a downward header when he should have scored. A bit worrying that he has not scored since signing his new contract!
Mattock came on for Dyer and Cleverley for Fryatt late on. The two substitutes immediately made an impact. Cleverley showed immediately a confident touch and urgency. 5 minutes from the end Cleverley took a pass in the centre and passed it across the box to Maddock who, with great aplomb, beat his defender and shot crisply into the far corner. It was a goal worthy of any striker and sent the City fans happy on their long way home.
We are now entering a group of games with little space between for players to recover form or fitness. Quite a few players played below par against Yeovil, who fortunately were not good enough to take advantage. We gritted our teeth and ground out a good away win.
Looking ahead we now seem to have good back up in our squad for each position but options up front could be our main concern. If Howard is injured or suspended do we have a “Plan B”? It was interesting to see Chambers on the bench as Dickov has been a disappointment and looks short of pace. Chambers could replace Fryatt if needed but who replaces Howard?
I’m confident Nigel Pearson in his calm way knows what he is doing and if needed Milan will back his judgement before the end of the transfer window. Let’s keep the faith…..
Yeovil: Wagenaar, Alcock, Forbes, Brown, Smith, Downes (Jones 87), Schofield, Roberts (Murtagh 11), Welsh, Warne (McCollin 75), Rodgers. Subs not used: Tomlin, Street.
Leicester: Martin, Gilbert, Hobbs, Morrison, Berner, Oakley, Davies, Andy King, Dyer (Mattock 66), Howard, Fryatt (Cleverley 85). Subs not used: Pentney, Chambers, Dickov.
Goals: Howard 57, Mattock 88. Att: 4,569 Ref: Iain Williamson (Berkshire)
The views expressed in this report are the opinions of the Trust member nominated to file the report only and do not represent the views of the Foxes Trust organisation