12th November 2019

Yeovil Town’s FA Cup run is over following a 4-1 home defeat to Hartlepool United.

Lawson D’Ath gave Yeovil an early lead, but Luke James and Gavan Holohan put Pools 2-1 ahead by half-time. Nickie Kabamba and Gime Toure scored after the break, while Luke Wilkinson was sent off for Town

This was, of course, a rearranged fixture after the original scheduled meeting between the two sides was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch at Huish Park.

So for the second time in four days Hartlepool made the 325-mile journey down to South Somerset and left with a second round tie against either Cambridge United or Exeter City.

Darren Sarll made one change to the side that drew 1-1 with Boreham Wood in the National League last time out, with Matt Worthington coming in for Albi Skendi.

And his team came flying out of the traps and could have scored even earlier than the third minute. A quick free-kick from Myles Hippolyte caught the visitors napping, but although Chris Dagnall was on the same wavelength the striker was marginally offside.

Yet Town didn’t have to wait long for that first goal as a Remeao Hutton cross was cleared only as far as D’Ath, who shifted the ball onto his right foot and fired it into the bottom corner.

That lead lasted only three-and-a-half minutes when a Hippolyte clearance rebounded into the path of James and he struck it past Stuart Nelson via the inside of the post.

Back came Yeovil, who twice went close through Rhys Murphy and Jimmy Smith. The first came when D’Ath spotted a run in behind by Smith and his quick cross was side-footed just wide by Murphy. Then the attacking midfielder almost scored himself when he headed a Hippolyte cross goalwards, only for Ben Killip to deny him at full stretch.

The visitors went ahead for the first time in the game when a ball over the top picked out James, who turned provider as he teed up Holohan to score their second.

Killip still had more work to do to deny the Glovers before the first half was done, this time when D’Ath stole the ball just outside the Pools area and played in Murphy and his fiercely struck shot needed two strong hands to stop it going in.

Yeovil looked to have as much of an impact at the beginning of the second half as they did in the first and Murphy went close with a well executed volley just over the bar.

But Hartlepool scored their third in the 59th minute when a Peter Kioso cross found Kabamba unmarked in the six-yard box and after wasting two good chances earlier, made no mistake with his header this time.

Town’s night got even worse when Wilkinson was shown a second yellow card for a foul on James.

With ten men the Glovers rallied and went extremely close to pegging a goal back when Murphy drilled the ball into the six-yard box, but substitute Courtney Duffus lifted it over the bar.

Pools killed the game off late on when shortly after coming off the bench, Toure was brought down in the area by Nelson and picked himself up to score the penalty.

 

Yeovil Town: Nelson; Hutton, Wilkinson, Collins, Hippolyte; Lee, Worthington (Tilley), D’Ath, Smith (Omotayo); Dagnall (Duffus), Murphy.

Subs not used: Skendi, Bradbury, McCoy, Rogers.

 

Hartlepool United: Killip; Kioso, Raynes, Kerr, Kitching (Richardson); Featherstone, Mafuta, Holohan (Williams); James, Kabama (Toure), Donaldson.

Subs not used: Muir, Hakes, Kennedy, Cunningham.