Chelmsford City FC V Yeovil Town FC, National League South, Melbourne Community Stadium, Saturday 24th February 2024, 3pm kick-off.
Chelmsford City welcome table-toppers Yeovil Town to Essex this weekend in what promises to be an exciting clash between the teams occupying 3rd and 1st place in the National League South table.
Robbie Simpson’s Clarets side arrive into Saturday’s game in impressive form, having won their last three league matches. City are also enjoying a strong run of home form at the moment, having won four of their last five league games at Melbourne Community Stadium.
Yeovil Town have enjoyed a dominant season at the top of the table, having amassed 75 points from their 33 league matches so far. The Glovers are 13 points ahead of 2nd place Worthing and 15 ahead of the 3rd placed Clarets, and currently look in a strong position to win this season’s National League South league title.
Here’s all that Clarets supporters need to know ahead of the game…
Team & match stats:
· Yeovil are the 3rd strongest away travellers in this season’s National League South, having collected 27 points on the road, 4 less than Worthing and 9 less than Chelmsford City.
· The Glovers also have the 3rd strongest defensive record in the league this season, having conceded 34 goals in total. Only Simpson’s Clarets (31) and Braintree (33) have conceded less.
· City and Yeovil are in identical form going into Saturday’s match, having both collected 9 points from their last four matches (L1, W3).
Opposition:
Yeovil Town are looking to complete their return to the National League at the first time of asking, following a campaign where the Glovers have dominated the top of the National League South table. After being relegated from the fifth-tier last season by a considerable margin of 10 points, Mark Cooper’s side have bounced back impressively this season by collecting 75 points from the possible 99 which have been available to them so far, leaving them in pole position to win the league title.
Robbie Simpson’s Clarets travelled to Huish Park at the beginning of September for the reverse fixture between the sides, with a 1-1 draw that day leaving this weekend’s visitors 9th in the league standings. Cooper’s men then won maximum points from the next 10 league games which followed, putting them in a controlling position at the top of the league table which they have maintained ever since. Like City, Yeovil have enjoyed an imperious 2024 as well, having also only lost once in the league during this calendar year.
The Glovers’ top goal scorer this season is versatile forward Jordan Young, who has netted 13 league goals for his side. Young will be unavailable for his side’s match at Melbourne Community Stadium though as he serves a 2-game suspension, after receiving a 10th booking of the season last weekend against Havant & Waterlooville. Yeovil’s second highest scorer of the season and former Claret Rhys Murphy also looks set to be absent from Saturday’s game along with Jake Hyde, with Mark Cooper saying at the beginning of the month that he expects the duo to be sidelined for a “sustained period of time.”
Cooper may look to experienced attacker Frank Nouble to fill the void which Young will leave. The 32-year-old has scored 11 league goals this season and was introduced as a second half substitute during his side’s 2-1 midweek win over Weston-super-Mare. Glovers boss Cooper admitted in his post-match interview after that game that he benched Nouble in order to get some rest in his frontman’s legs ahead of Saturday’s match.
Nouble was one of only four substitutes named on the Yeovil bench during the Somerset side’s midweek win; but following the game Cooper also revealed his hopes that Alex Whittle and son Charlie will return from recent injuries in time for this weekend’s game, which would provide the Glovers’ manager with a needed selection boost.
Team News:
Jermaine Francis and Charlie Ruff were substituted in the second half of Tuesday’s win over Hemel Hempstead Town, and the fitness of both will be assessed ahead of this weekend’s game.
Luke Jenkins and Cameron James have missed the last two matches through injury, and both will hope to push for a return to action soon.
Ticketing information:
Ticket prices online:
Adult – £14Concession/Senior (65+) – £9Student (17-24 with valid ID) – £4Youth (12-17) – £4Under-12s – Free
Supporters can also buy tickets on the day at Melbourne Community Stadium. Matchday turnstile prices are as follows:
Adult – £17.00Concession/Senior (65+) – £12.00Student (17-24 with valid ID) – £6.50Youth (12-17) – £6.50Under-12s – Free
Students with valid ID will be eligible for a 10% discount at the Clubhouse bar on matchday.
How to follow the game:
Radio Clarets will provide live audio commentary of proceedings at Melbourne Community Stadium.
Clarets fans can find pre-match coverage of Saturday’s match and live updates of proceedings in Essex by following the club’s X (formerly Twitter) page: @OfficialClarets and Instagram page: chelmsfordcityfc.
Post-match reactions will be found on the club’s website, official social media channels and on ClaretsTV.
Words by Jake Dixon.
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