21st August 2012

Yeovil Town recorded their first win of the new npower League One season when they beat Brentford by three goals to one at Griffin Park tonight.


Striker James Hayter scored twice, one either side of a Clayton Donaldson equaliser, but the Glovers were indebted to giant Czech keeper Marek Stech who saved a Paul Hayes penalty when the score was one apiece. Within fifteen minutes of the save, Town had scored twice more to win the game.

Yeovil boss Gary Johnson made one change to the side that had contested both previous matches in League One and the Capital One Cup. Reading loanee Gozie Ugwu, who limped off on Saturday against Coventry City was replaced by Keanu Marsh-Brown for his first Glovers start.

Yeovil started really brightly and could have gone a couple of goals ahead early on. Reuben Reid flashed a shot just wide after Richard Hinds had played him in with a long through ball; James Hayter also missed the target and Keanu Marsh-Brown saw his shot blocked by a defender, all in the first twelve minutes.

Marek Stech produced the first of several great saves on fourteen minutes when he produced a full length dive to deny Adam Forshaw’s long range shot before saving from Bees’ striker Farid El Alagui’s header. The Moroccan then headed wide from the subsequent corner.

The Glovers took the lead halfway through the half but it was down to some poor defending from the home defence. Tony Craig, who didn’t have the best of games full stop, played a sloppy pass across his defensive line which Sam Foley intercepted. The attacker then crossed left footed to the back post where James Hayter slid in to score his first goal in Yeovil colours.

Brentford fought back forcing two quick corners and Clayton Donaldson curled a shot just wide of the far post before Forshaw then shot straight at Stech’s midriff. Yeovil then had three corners of their own that produced nothing but Keanu Marsh-Brown and Dominic Blizzard created a chance for Reid but he headed over. Right at the end of time added on, Donaldson shot just wide of Stech’s goal.

The first twenty minutes of the second half saw the Bees stung into action by the half time blasting from manager Uwe Rosler. They looked ready, up for it and attacked with verve and when they levelled ten minutes into the second period, it was no surprise. El Alagui and Legge both saw efforts blocked but Donaldson finally found the target when he curled a right foot shot in off the post.

Sam Saunders shot wide for the Bees while Ed Upson, Marsh-Brown and Foley had opportunities for the recovering Glovers but after Forshaw and Legge had also missed chances for Rosler’s side, the turning period in the match arrived at the halfway mark.

Both sides made a double change on 67 minutes. Rosler swapped Saunders and Toumani Diagouraga for new debutant signing Paul Hayes and Harry Forrester. The Glovers made two attacking changes of their won with Lewis Young and Nathan Ralph replacing Marsh-Brown and Foley but the Bees looked to have received the ideal opportunity to grab a 2-1 lead when Byron Webster handled on the edge of the area. But Hayes, with his first touch for his new club, hit a poor penalty which Stech still did fantastically well to save and keep the scores level.

The let off inspired Yeovil and the rest of the game saw them in the ascendancy. Upson’s shot was parried by keeper Moore and after Gozie Ugwu had replaced Reid, Yeovil made it 2-1 soon after. Ugwu made a nuisance of himself in the Brentford penalty box and amid the indecision, striker Hayter lashed home a brilliant second of the game, leaving him just two short of 150 career goals.

If that was enough to send the 218 travelling Yeovil fans home happy, what happened next was exceptional. The two young subs, Young and Ralph, combined well; the latter swinging a beautiful cross field ball to the former who then squared the ball into the danger zone. Craig, already at fault with the first goal, slid in but could only deflect the ball into his own net to make it 3-1.

The game’s final chance fell to the Moroccan striker El Alagui but he headed over when he should really have done better as the game entered five minutes of stoppage time. The result lifts Yeovil into the playoff places at this embryonic stage of the season, Glovers fans will wish the season would end now!