20th April 2017

The Glovers travel to Lincolnshire with EFL safety virtually assured after the convincing 3-0 win over Crewe Alexandra at Huish Park on Easter Monday. 

Town sit seven points above the drop zone with three games remaining as well as boasting the best goal difference in the bottom eight. 

The win over Crewe earlier in the week was one of milestones, as Matty Dolan capped his 100th Yeovil appearance with a fine goal and Jean-Louis Akpa Akpro netted his first goal in Green and White since joining on loan from Barnet. 

Having returned from injury at Portsmouth the week previous, Otis Khan marked his home return from a spell on the sidelines with a goal and two assists, as well as completing 90 minutes. 

Young stopper Jonny Maddison continued in place of Artur Krysiak keeping his first clean sheet against the Railwaymen, with the 22-year-old likely to deputise once again at Blundell Park. 

The Mariners have enjoyed mixed fortunes in the last 10 games, winning on four occasions and losing four times. 

Grimsby have also changed manager in that spell, with former Glovers boss Russell Slade returning to the club for a second tenure, marking his return with a 2-1 win over Cambridge United on Good Friday.

That result was followed up with a 2-1 defeat at Cheltenham Town on Easter Monday, continuing Grimsby’s inconsistent form. 

Defeat leaves the Mariners 14th in the table on 58 points, making a late charge to the play-offs unlikely if not mathematically impossible. 

The stats certainly suggest goals in the encounter between Town and Slade’s side, with Grimsby scoring 14 and conceding 17 in their last 10 outings. 

Having lost top scorer Omar Bogle to Wigan Athletic in January, Sam Jones leads the Mariners scoring charts with six goals. 

Head-to-head

Yeovil’s trip to Lincolnshire will only be the fourth meeting between the two sides in the EFL.

Whoever comes out victorious will take the lead in the head-to-head standings, with both sides sharing a victory each and a draw from the three matches so far.

Strikes from Lee Johnson and Bartosz Tarachulski saw Yeovil win 2-1 at Huish Park back in 2004, before losing by the same scoreline at Blundell Park with Arron Davies on the score sheet.

This season’s reverse fixture ended in stalemate. 

Referee

Eddie Ilderton (Tyne & Wear) will take charge of proceedings at Blundell Park for his 18th game of the season.

The fixture will be the second time this campaign Mr Ilderton has officiated a game involving the Glovers, having overseen the 0-0 draw at Notts County which only saw two players go into the book.

Overall, the referee has issued 51 yellow and three red cards. 

Mr Ilderton will be assisted by Danny Gratton (Staffordshire) and Neil Sharp (Cleveland) with Mark Dwyer (West Yorkshire) acting as fourth official. 

Coverage

On matchday, minute-by-minute updates will be provided on YTFC’s official Twitter account which can be found here, with additional updates available via YTFC’s official Facebook page

If you’re unable to attend the game a full match report will follow on ytfc.net at full-time with post-match reaction from manager Darren Way and a member of the playing staff following soon after. 

Tickets

Fans can purchase tickets from the Huish Park ticket office until 3pm on Friday either in person or by calling 01935 847888. Tickets can also be purchased online, or at Blundell Park on the day of the match with a £2 matchday surcharge applying (excluding junior tickets).