Wonder goals, FA Cup upsets and derby victories: Yeovil’s BEST moments of 2017

We’d be lying if we said that 2017 has been a great year for Yeovil Town. In truth, it’s been a testing time for Glovers fans, with inconsistent results on the pitch and further frustration off it.

However, that pain only makes the victories taste sweeter. Here’s a look back at some of the best from the past 12 months:

Performing perfectly against promotion-chasing Plymouth

Few people expected Yeovil’s first win of the calendar year to come against the high-flying Pilgrims, but that’s exactly what happened on a cold and rainy Tuesday night at Huish Park.

9 ridiculous moments from 2017 that made us say ‘typical Yeovil’

We haven’t done the appropriate studies, but we would imagine that the blood pressure of a Yeovil Town supporter would be significantly higher than the average football fan. That’s because, for better or worse, the Glovers always seem to attract drama.

And whether it’s losing 4-3 in injury time despite having been 2-0 up, conceding eight goals on the opening day of the season or throwing away a three-goal lead in the space of five minutes, one word continues to be increasingly popular with the green and white faithful: typical!

Bad luck, mismanagement or just an innate desire to provide content for football meme accounts on Twitter could be to blame, but whatever the reason, here’s a look back at Yeovil’s most ‘Yeovil’ moments of 2017.

1) Conceding a last gasp equaliser at home to Leyton Orient, then doing the same thing three days later at home to Cambridge

It’s always gutting to think you’re about to celebrate a win, only to have it snatched away at the death, but having the same sinking feeling twice in a matter of days is just ridiculous.

No Yeo on the Go? Analysing the Glovers’ Away Attendances

Yeovil fans away at Crawley

A major talking point for Yeovil Town this season has been attendances at Huish Park, which have fallen dramatically.

While the club announced a 21.3% drop in season ticket sales, the record for the Glovers’ lowest home crowd in the Football League was broken twice, most recently when just 2,205 fans turned up to watch the 2 – 2 draw with Morecambe.

Understandably, this has concerned many people, with Ciderspace posting a characteristically thorough blog post that hits the nail on the head, and Somerset Live commendably questioning chairman John Fry on the situation.

The number of fans travelling to watch Yeovil play away also makes for depressing reading, with a large amount clearly feeling as though they don’t want to support the club, or team, or manager anymore.

Here’s a run-down of the green and white’s away followings from this season compared to their previous visits, with a bit of input from us about why they’re significantly lower than they have been in the past and just how worrying it is.

The home of the giant-killers: A look back at Yeovil Town’s old ground

Yeovil Town fans under the age of 30 won’t know what life at the Huish Athletic Ground was like, but older supporters will have many fond memories of the old stadium.

The Glovers played on the famous (or infamous) sloping pitch from 1920 to 1990, before it was demolished and the club moved to Huish Park.

Photographer Eugene Birchall (www.eugenebirchall.co.uk) has very kindly sent us some footage of the ground just before the bulldozers moved in to turn it into a Tesco.

Our Polish keeper: Should Artur Krysiak stay Yeovil’s number one?

“He’s our keeper, our Polish keeper” according to the song, but many Yeovil Town fans have turned on first choice goalie Artur Krysiak.

 

The 28-year-old’s form has been patchy, and he was blamed for Town’s recent 4 – 3 loss to Forest Green Rovers in which he made two poor mistakes.

Signed in 2014 from Exeter City, Artur was brought in as a replacement for the departing Marek Stech, and has since made over 100 appearances for the Glovers.

However, the Pole didn’t fare well in our recent poll, which revealed that just 16% of supporters want him to stay between the sticks.

From 140 votes, 32% of you would prefer to see Jonny Maddison in goal, while a whopping 52% think a new signing is necessary.

Weymouth vs Yeovil Town: Five things to expect

Yeovil Town will start their pre-season with a friendly against old rivals Weymouth at the Bob Lucas Stadium on Tuesday (7:45pm k/o).

Although the two sides haven’t played each other in a competitive fixture since 1999, there is likely to still be some hostility, and Stephane Zubar’s decision to swap the Terras for the Glovers has added fuel to the fire.

Yeovil will travel to the Bob Lucas Stadium on Tuesday

Here are five things we think you should expect from the game:

1) Some players you’ve never seen before

Despite Darren Way already making four new signings this summer, Yeovil’s squad is still a bit light.

Although the gaffer has said he only wants to bring in one more permanent signing, we’re still expecting there to be lots of trialists who are either free agents or looking for a loan move.

#ThrowbackThursday: Our old rivals Weymouth

1921 to 1999: We are the Weymouth haters!

With Yeovil Town beginning their pre-season schedule with a friendly against Weymouth next Tuesday, we decided we’d look back at the historic (albeit currently dormant) rivalry between the two clubs.

Yeovil will visit the Bob Lucas Stadium next Tuesday

The two teams played each other dozens of times throughout the 20th century, and the match became a common Boxing Day clash. The game was played during the Christmas period a grand total of 23 times.

For one of those festive fixtures in 1948, Weymouth set their attendance record at their old Recreation Ground when 12,512 turned up. At least 10,000 were probably Yeovil fans!

#ThrowbackThursday: Town Give Terry a Testimonial

Saturday 4th July 2009: There’s Only One Skivo!

After current assistant manager Terry Skiverton signed a new deal with Yeovil Town earlier this week, we decided to look back at the club legend’s eventful testimonial.

📰NEWS: Assistant manager Terry Skiverton extends his contract at #YTFC.⬇️ https://t.co/omWUyUiv2t

— Yeovil Town FC (@YTFC) June 27, 2017

The testimonial took place during Skivo’s reign as manager and was played between a Yeovil Town 2002-03 XI managed by Gary Johnson and a Terry Skiverton Select XI managed by Colin Lippiatt.

Players included legendary ex-Glovers such as Gavin Williams, Warren Patmore and Skiverton himself, as well as familiar faces from the media such as Geoff Twentyman and Soccer AM’s Tubes.

Weymouth fans aren’t happy with Yeovil Town’s new signing

Yeovil Town made their fourth summer signing earlier today, snapping up former Bournemouth and Plymouth Argyle defender Stephane Zubar.

However, the Guadeloupean has spent the last season outside of the Football League, plying his trade with Weymouth in the Southern League Premier Divison.

📰BREAKING: Stephane Zubar has signed for #YTFC until the end of the 2017/18 season. #ZubarIsAGlover✍️⚽️⬇️ https://t.co/cSebrhLMZm

— Yeovil Town FC (@YTFC) June 28, 2017

The move from the Terras to the Glovers may not seem like a betrayal on the scale of, for example, Sol Campbell swapping Tottenham Hotspur for Arsenal, but that’s how Weymouth fans are treating it.

#ThrowbackThursday: Lee Johnson scores freak goal against Plymouth Argyle

Tuesday 24th August 2004 – A crazy cup game!

As Yeovil Town signed former Plymouth Argyle midfielder Connor Smith yesterday, we decided to look back on a dramatic Carling Cup game against the Pilgrims from the 2004/05 season.

Lee Johnson scored a hat-trick to secure an impressive 3 – 2 win for the Glovers at Huish Park, but it was his first goal that is most memorable.

After the away side kicked the ball out of play so that Graham Coughlan could receive treatment for an injury, Johnson attempted to return the ball to goalkeeper Luke McCormick, instead finding the back of the net!

As the home fans were unsure whether or not to celebrate, both sets of players looked around in confusion.