Scunthorpe United 2
Yeovil Town 0
By Andy Sloan at Glanford Park
Yeovil Town manager Russell Slade described Scunthorpe United’s performance in their comprehensive victory as the benchmark his side must aspire to.
Scunthorpe’s attacking verve surpassed even Slade’s pre-match predictions following various scouting missions and, without a win in eight outings, the Yeovil manager is hoping his players took note.
“I think we probably played the best team in the league,” he said. “The tempo at which they played and the ability they’ve got throughout the side was a fantastic yardstick for where we need to travel, where we need to be.”
The Iron unleashed an avalanche of attacking play from kick-off, buoyed by the prospect of topping League One if other results went their way and roared on by a hearty support lapping up the late-summer sunshine at Glanford Park.
Only Asmir Begovic and some sturdy woodwork kept Yeovil in the match as Nigel Adkins’ side showed why they, and not Leeds or Leicester, are making the early running at the top of the table alongside Oldham.
“The gaffer warned us all week, the first 15-20 minutes they will try and win the game and then just coast,” said Town striker Paul Warne. “And, to be fair, they absolutely destroyed us in the first 20 minutes.”
Paul Hayes hit the inside of the post and fired a shot straight at Begovic from point-blank range before some of the crowd had even finished taking their seats.
Then Martyn Woolford tested the Yeovil keeper with a header from Matt Sparrow’s cross and Sparrow himself forced Andy Welsh into a desperate, diving block on the edge of the area as the Iron flexed their muscles.
It was to be the theme of the afternoon. Woolford had the better of Lee Peltier on Scunthorpe’s left wing and Sparrow was simply too good for Nathan Jones to cope with on the right.
Welsh and Danny Schofield switched wings in an effort to work a way past the Scunthorpe full backs but were literally muscled off the ball on too many occasions.
Peltier courageously took on Woolford in the second half in a crunching block tackle but was left lying on the turf after a sickening smack. It took him ten minutes to run off the effects.
Sam Togwell, a former Yeovil transfer target, bossed the centre of the park imperiously despite the best efforts of Gary Roberts and Darren Way.
Jones was in for Nathan Smith, the only change from the encouraging draw with Bristol Rovers last week. Yeovil twice took the lead at Huish Park against Rovers but had no real chance of achieving a similar feat at Glanford Park.
Their sturdy, if at times fortuitous, resistance ran out just before the half-hour mark, and in frustrating fashion.
Scunthorpe captain Izzy Iriekpen drifted free of Yeovil’s own leader, Terry Skiverton, and had time to loop a careful header, from Grant McCann’s corner, back across the face of goal and past Begovic. There may have been something inevitable about the goal but the manner of its happening galled Slade.
“There was some good defending in there,” he said. “We got some good blocks in. But to concede from a set play is a bit of an Achilles heel. You don’t want to concede from set plays.”
Scunthorpe started to ease up towards the end of the half, gifting Warne a couple of chances. And Slade massaged his formation after the break to make the most of Yeovil’s temporary ascendancy.
Aidan Downes had suffered a recurrence of the knee injury which has seen him sidelined recently and was replaced by Andre McCollin as Slade switched from 4-5-1 to 4-4-2 – and saw an immediate result.
“For the first half an hour it was one-way traffic,” said Slade. “They could have put the game to bed in that period, there’s no doubt about that.
“The second period was much better. I felt a little bit disappointed we didn’t get a goal.”
Yeovil centre back Terrell Forbes did get on the score sheet, just at the wrong end. His unfortunate and unavoidable own goal, turning in Woolford’s wayward cross, sank hopes of a comeback after a more settled spell from the visitors.
McCollin’s pace up front alongside Warne pulled Scunthorpe’s defence deeper but the non-league recruit from Fisher Athletic would do well to study the Iron’s front pairing of Hayes and Gary Hooper. Their interplay was worthy of the Championship and their team are tipped by Slade to get back there.
“I think we probably played the best team in the league,” he said. “The tempo at which they played and the ability they’ve got throughout the side was a fantastic yardstick for where we need to travel, where we need to be.”
The Iron unleashed an avalanche of attacking play from kick-off, buoyed by the prospect of topping League One if other results went their way and roared on by a hearty support lapping up the late-summer sunshine at Glanford Park.
Only Asmir Begovic and some sturdy woodwork kept Yeovil in the match as Nigel Adkins’ side showed why they, and not Leeds or Leicester, are making the early running at the top of the table alongside Oldham.
“The gaffer warned us all week, the first 15-20 minutes they will try and win the game and then just coast,” said Town striker Paul Warne. “And, to be fair, they absolutely destroyed us in the first 20 minutes.”
Paul Hayes hit the inside of the post and fired a shot straight at Begovic from point-blank range before some of the crowd had even finished taking their seats.
Then Martyn Woolford tested the Yeovil keeper with a header from Matt Sparrow’s cross and Sparrow himself forced Andy Welsh into a desperate, diving block on the edge of the area as the Iron flexed their muscles.
It was to be the theme of the afternoon. Woolford had the better of Lee Peltier on Scunthorpe’s left wing and Sparrow was simply too good for Nathan Jones to cope with on the right.
Welsh and Danny Schofield switched wings in an effort to work a way past the Scunthorpe full backs but were literally muscled off the ball on too many occasions.
Peltier courageously took on Woolford in the second half in a crunching block tackle but was left lying on the turf after a sickening smack. It took him ten minutes to run off the effects.
Sam Togwell, a former Yeovil transfer target, bossed the centre of the park imperiously despite the best efforts of Gary Roberts and Darren Way.
Jones was in for Nathan Smith, the only change from the encouraging draw with Bristol Rovers last week. Yeovil twice took the lead at Huish Park against Rovers but had no real chance of achieving a similar feat at Glanford Park.
Their sturdy, if at times fortuitous, resistance ran out just before the half-hour mark, and in frustrating fashion.
Scunthorpe captain Izzy Iriekpen drifted free of Yeovil’s own leader, Terry Skiverton, and had time to loop a careful header, from Grant McCann’s corner, back across the face of goal and past Begovic. There may have been something inevitable about the goal but the manner of its happening galled Slade.
“There was some good defending in there,” he said. “We got some good blocks in. But to concede from a set play is a bit of an Achilles heel. You don’t want to concede from set plays.”
Scunthorpe started to ease up towards the end of the half, gifting Warne a couple of chances. And Slade massaged his formation after the break to make the most of Yeovil’s temporary ascendancy.
Aidan Downes had suffered a recurrence of the knee injury which has seen him sidelined recently and was replaced by Andre McCollin as Slade switched from 4-5-1 to 4-4-2 – and saw an immediate result.
“For the first half an hour it was one-way traffic,” said Slade. “They could have put the game to bed in that period, there’s no doubt about that.
“The second period was much better. I felt a little bit disappointed we didn’t get a goal.”
Yeovil centre back Terrell Forbes did get on the score sheet, just at the wrong end. His unfortunate and unavoidable own goal, turning in Woolford’s wayward cross, sank hopes of a comeback after a more settled spell from the visitors.
McCollin’s pace up front alongside Warne pulled Scunthorpe’s defence deeper but the non-league recruit from Fisher Athletic would do well to study the Iron’s front pairing of Hayes and Gary Hooper. Their interplay was worthy of the Championship and their team are tipped by Slade to get back there.
Scunthorpe United: (4-4-2) Murphy; Byrne, Iriekpen, Pearce, Williams; Sparrow, Togwell, McCann, Woolford; Hooper, Hayes (May 68). Subs not used: Lillis, Mirfin, Hurst, Morris.
Yeovil Town: (4-5-1) Begovic; Peltier, Skiverton, Forbes, Jones; Downes (McCollin 46), Way, Roberts, Schofield, Welsh (Tomlin 69); Warne. Subs not used: Bircham, Alcock, Murtagh.
