They've lost seven out of their last nine Conference games, and Kingstonian manager Geoff Chapple is on quote this weekend saying "we're looking a very average middle of the table side at the moment - if that". But despite that, ahead of this weekend's fourth round ties, Kingstonian are rated as joint favourites to retain the silverware they won at Wembley last May. Predictably, they are joined by Conference title favourites Rushden & Diamonds, with both sides rated as having a 4-1 chance by bookmakers Ladbrokes.

Kettering Town and Yeovil Town, who met this weekend are both rated at 6-1, whilst in-form ex-League side Scarborough are on 8-1.

The odds for all the other Conference sides see Dover Athletic at 10-1, Woking at 12-1, Southport and Doncaster at 14-1, Sutton United and Telford United at 16-1, with last season's finalists Forest Green Rovers unfancied to go one better with wide odds of 25-1.

Hot on the heels of Head Coach Steve Thompson and Yeovil Express Editor and Erection 2000 Chairman Steve Sowden, Tony Pounder is the latest person within the Yeovil camp to hear the patter of tiny feet.

Tony missed Yeovil's 2-1 win at Kettering to be there for the birth, and is now the proud father of a baby girl, born at 1:30pm on Saturday. Congratulations Tony!

Steve Thompson revealed following today's 2-1 win at Kettering that the man he was after for a loan deal with Swindon Town was 26 year old midfielder Steve Howe. But the loan deal fell through with Swindon manager Jimmy Quinn voting the move, with Thommo conceding that Quinn had "got problems with numbers".

But Steve suggested that he may delay further searches for loan signings, saying "If Jason Eaton and Ben Smith continue to play as they have done over the past seven days, that may well solve me a problem. I think that Jason was great on Tuesday, and great today".

Thommo also pointed towards the rising stars from the Youth and Reserve set-up saying "Leeds United have shown what you can do by putting youngsters in. I'm not afraid to put youngsters in. I thought Glen Poole did quite well again today. You've got to look at ability. It's not all about experience otherwise everyone would be my age on the pitch".

"We've got quite a few injuries at the moment, but we're coping quite well with it, and young players have got a very big part to play in that when they come in. I think the only problem would come in if I had to play too many of them in there because of injuries. But you've got to say that they are players with ability, and I think that James Bent, Glen Poole, Anthony Tonkin have all got something, but we've got others as well we're looking at as well, including trialists. You've always got to be on the look out for young players, because in the end they could save you a lot of money".

You can read the rest of Thommo's thoughts on todays game by heading to the foot of the Kettering Match Report

This afternoon the Reserves beat Bridgewater Town 3-2 in an entertaining Screwfix Direct Premier League fixture. The visitors opened the scoring following a fumble from Town keeper Tim Malessa but Yeovil - bolstered by several Youth Team players - equalised following a fine dribble and lob from Adam Manley. Bridgewater hit back deep in first half stoppage time to take a 2-1 lead into the break, but the second half was dominated by the home side. The Glovers equalised for the second time on 70 minutes with the impressive Heywood going on a mazy run before burying the ball in the visitors net. Constant Yeovil pressure was eventually rewarded in the 80th minute when in the goal of the game Leon Hapgood found the back of the net with a 30-yard screamer following a corner.

A reliable source on the Ciderspace Web Forum has reported that BBC Radio Bristol have said that the decision to appoint a Technical Director of Football has been delayed until next week.

The Yeovil board was due to announce the name of the Technical Director yesterday, with former Brentford boss David Webb being the hot favourite for the job. No reason has been given as to why the announcement has been delayed. There has been widespread criticism of Webb on the Ciderspace Web Forum from fans of his former clubs - it is not known if this criticism has in any way caused the weekend's delay.

Yeovil Town travel to 13th place Kettering Town's Rockingham Road ground knowing they will do well to grab all three points against a difficult to beat Kettering side. Head Coach Steve Thompson says "They've still got the nucleus of the squad that finished second last season, but for some reason things just haven't gone for them this season. Having said that, they've only been beaten at home once all season. They've got a very good defensive record".

Steve came through 75 minutes of football at Tiverton in a friendly which Yeovil won 1-0 on Tuesday, and also says he has been training at Plymouth Argyle in an attempt to get back his fitness levels. He says he may play some part in tomorrow's game and says of the rest of the team, "Midfielder Paul Tisdale will hopefully be fit and right back David Piper will hopefully be back from flu, as he called me and told me he was feeling a lot better. But striker Adrian Foster will unfortunately be out through suspension."

According to ITV Teletext The Glovers have been unsuccesful in their bid to sign an un-named loan player from Swindon Town. The Division 1 side pulled out of the deal after a spate of injuries. Reservists James Bent and Anthony Tonkin have been added to the Yeovil squad. Chris Sparks will again play for the Reserves.

For those not travelling to Northamptonshire, the Screwfix Direct League side are home to Bridgwater at 3:00pm at Huish Park. Meanwhile the newly crowd champions of the SWEB South West Counties Youth League play host to Bashley on the Top Pitch at Huish Park, kick-off 11:00am.

The Gazette names David Webb as the 'hot favourite' to be appointed in the new role. If you have not seen the reaction to this news from supporters of Mr Webb's previous club, Brentford, then it's worth reading our Web Forum to guage their view of his possible appointment.

In other news the Gazette reports that the loan player Steve Thompson is hoping to sign before Saturday's game at Kettering played for Swindon reserves last week and that Thommo has approached Swindon manager Jimmy Quinn as to his availability. The paper also reports on the fitness of injured club captain Steve Stott - quoting Steve Thompson as saying that Stotty's knee operation was a success and that the midfielder could be back in action by the beginning of March. The paper also says that Matt Hayfield could be available for selection in time for the FA Trophy match at Bedford in a week's time; and that Paul Tisdale should be back following his stomach muscle injury for this weekend's game at Kettering. Adrian Foster is definitely out of the Poppies game with a one-match suspension.

Both the Gazette and this week's edition of The Clarion feature the superb achievement of the Glovers Youth team in winning the SWEB South West Counties League following the 2-2 draw against nearest rivals Bournemouth last weekend. As usual Fat Harry in the Clarion has one or two intriguing items on his pages - including an item where he wonders if Gazette Sports Editor Richard Briggs 'enjoyed his litte chat with Wazza after Saturday's game with Telford'... What can he mean? There's also a particularly scary photograph of Tony Pounder for those of you with strong stomachs to enjoy.

This is added to his news yesterday that "Graham Roberts has taken over as manager of a Ryman Division 3 side, Hertford Town. The reason why he has gone there is that the owner of that Club was our (Slough's) sponsor last season and has money to invest in the club."

A mixed Yeovil Town team beat Dr Marten's Midlands and West Division side Tiverton Town, at Ladysmead tonight by a 1-0 scoreline.

There were a few surprises in the line-up, with Glen Poole passed fit to play despite his injury against Telford on Saturday. Meanwhile Steve Thompson put in probably his longest appearance of the season so far, lasting 75 minutes.

New recruit Leon Hapgood (see News Item yesterday) impressed in a central midfield role, with good tackling, and the ability to bring the ball forward well. Meanwhile Ellis Wilmot demonstrated his versatile nature, playing in the right back role he was recruited to Huish Park for, then later switching to a sweeper role.

Jason Eaton played the first 45 minutes, teaming up with James Bent, who scored the game's only goal after just nine minutes, running onto a defence splitting ball to fire home. Eaton was replaced by Paul Jennings who had one of the best chances to extend that lead when he robbed the ball from the Tiverton goalkeeper, but couldn't find the room to turn and shoot.

Tiverton could have equalised when referee Guy Beale awarded a penalty after Tim Malessa upended a Tiverton player. From the penalty, Steve Ovens crashed the ball against the crossbar, but when he shot the rebound into the net, Beale correctly ruled out the goal due to it not having touched another player.

Yeovil Town Line-Up : 1. Tim Malessa 2. Ellis Wilmot 3. Glen Poole 4. Paul Steele 5. Anthony Tonkin 6. Tony Pounder 7. Leon Hapgood 8. Steve Thompson 9. Jason Eaton 10. Craig Dann 11. James Bent Subs : 12. Chris Giles 14. Paul Haywood 15. Paul Jennings 16. Andy Lindegaard 17. Jon Hayter 16. (Onyx Shirt) Bradley Peters 17. (Onyx Shirt) Adam Manley.

Diamonds maintain the 'favourites' slot, according to Ladbrokes, with odds of 5-4, whilst Harriers are rated in second place at 5-1. Dover and Yeovil, tied on points in the league, are also rated equally at the betting shops at 6-1.

Coming up on the rails are Scarborough. Rated at 40-1 in December, the Seadogs are now 10-1. They are followed by Doncaster at 14-1, whilst Kingstonian, Morecambe and Stevenage are rated at 16-1.

Yeovil's interest in Gadjos dates back to November, but attempts to recruit the keeper have stalled, whilst clearance is sought from the Home Office. Gadjos is working in England as an au pair, and has experience in the Slovakian First Division.

Those wishing to travel with YTISA are being warned to place their bookings early, as places are filling up rapidly, and only eight places, at the time of writing, are currently available on the coach. To reserve your place, or to make further enquiries, contact Chairman Mark Kelly or Secretary Martin Baker, including your name and a contact telephone number. Alternatively mail us at Ciderspace and we will pass the message on.

The Glovers' side is expected to include 20-year-old former Torquay and Plymouth Argyle midfielder Leon Hapgood, who made his Yeovil debut in the reserves' 2-2 draw at Bishop Sutton on Saturday. Hapgood has league experience, having made his debut for Torquay United against Doncaster Rovers on 3rd May 1997 after having signed for The Gulls as a trainee at the start of the 1996/97 season. He went on to make a total of 47 first-team appearances for Torquay, scoring 3 goals in the process. Hapgood signed for Plymouth in November 1999, but failed to make an appearance for the Argyle first team.

Meanwhile, BBC TV Ceefax is reporting that head coach Thompson is "hopeful" of getting a new player in on loan in time for Saturday's Conference game at Kettering. According to Ceefax Thompson is targetting 3 un-named players, all currently with Football League clubs.

Yesterday, the Yeovil Town Youth Team were confirmed as champions of the SWEB South-West Counties Under 18's Youth League, clinching the title in with a 2-2 draw at second placed Bournemouth. The halting of their main rivals in their tracks ensured that the Youth Team could not be caught.

Yeovil went a goal behind after around 25 minutes, but equalised soon afterwards when Chris Giles headed home a cross from Jon Vance, making it 1-1 at half time. Bournemouth re-took the lead midway through the second half, but Yeovil wouldn't lie down and Matt Peters, who had come on as a substitute, put in a cross that was once again met by Chris Giles for his second goal of the game to cement his position as the Youth Team's top scorer.

Manager Stuart Housley has indicated that the Youth Team will probably have to wait until the end of the league season for the presentation of silverware, and said that his players would not have much time to relax - they continue their pursuit of trophies again in the near future as they attempt to add the League Cup to the already won Championship.

The achievement of the Youth Team should not be under-estimated. Six of the sides in their league are part of the youth set-up of Nationwide League clubs, some with Centre of Excellence training camps already in place, and far greater resources available.

Latest League Table
Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Yeovil Town	18	14	3	1	49	17	45
Bournemouth	20	12	3	5	51	24	39
Cardiff City	20	12	1	7	43	35	37
Swansea City	18	10	3	5	52	27	33
Swindon Town	18	9	2	7	34	28	29
Plymouth Argyle	18	7	2	9	35	48	23
Bashley	18	7	2	9	35	48	23
Cirencester	16	6	4	6	26	23	22
Newport County	14	6	3	5	41	13	21
Bath City	19	4	6	9	34	48	18
Bristol Rovers	20	3	5	12	28	60	14
Trowbridge	17	1	1	15	22	111	4

Current sources at Yeovil Town Football Club say they expect an announcement on the Technical Director of Football position sometime around Tuesday or Wednesday. And the reasons for the delay appear to be tied in with club director Norman Hayward's winter break on a Nile cruise, from which he is due to return this weekend.

He is expected to discuss the imminent appointment with club chairman John Fry early this coming week, but according to the Sunday Independent, Fry is refusing to suggest that the appointment of ex-Chelsea defender Dave Webb, now resident in Poole and running a business in Hampshire, is a formality.

Fry says "He is the sort of man who would fit the bill, but there are four names on our list". He also explains the club's reasoning behind the forthcoming appointment, saying "We believe that the professional way forward is to have experts in every area. If you ask at a board meeting 'Who knows about football ?' every hand would go up, but the honest answer is that we don't. We believe that Steve Thompson is a long term appointment, but he needs someone to take the pressure off him in various areas, otherwise he will work himself into the ground and never see his young family".

Fry also touches on other recent directoral appointments, referring back to the issue of "expertise", saying "We have appointed Brian Willis as an architect and surveyor to use his expertise in the development of the stadium. And when you employ 80 people on match days, you need someone with knowledge of all of the legislation in that area, so we have Peter Hill as director of personnel".

Yeovil Town Reserves grabbed a point with just eight minutes of time left at Bishop Sutton yesterday, in a 2-2 draw that keeps them clinging on to third position in the Screwfix Direct Premier Division.

But the Reserves could have put themselves into a commanding position in the match, when following a second minute own goal by Bishop Sutton's Wilf Williams, Yeovil won a penalty. But James Bent's 15th minute spot kick was saved by home keeper Mark Selway to keep the score at 0-1.

Bishop Sutton recovered into a 2-1 lead by half time with Pete Shepherd's 36th minute close range strike, plus another goal in the 40th minute from Shaun Day.

Yeovil, augmented by first team defender Chris Sparks, who played a full 90 minutes, equalised with time running out when Selway failed to hold on to a cross, and Bradley Peters picked up the keepers spill for an 82nd minute equaliser.

Taunton Town and Chippenham Town were both involved in FA Vase clashes, with both going through into the next round, so with Melksham Town not playing and Mangotsfield drawing at home, there is little change at the top of the table. The latest table, plus a full set of yesterday's league results, can be found on Paul Crankshaw's English Football League Pyramid Web Site.

According to reports in the Sunday Independent, Yeovil Town have arranged a friendly against Dr Martens Midlands and West Division side Tiverton Town. The match will take place at Ladysmead in Tiverton, this Tuesday at 7:30pm. This news is confirmed by the Official Tiverton Web Site.

Tivvy boss Martyn Rogers said "Steve Thompson asked if we fancied a game because there are a few players he wants to have a look at. I was only too happy to agree. It will be better than training for the players and we haven't got a home game for two weeks".

For details of how to get to Ladysmead, head for this page on the Official Tiverton Web Site.

According to reports in the Western Daily Press, two men will be charged with the murder of former Yeovil Town player Paul Muir, at Croydon magistrates on Tuesday 25th January.

Martin Sweeney, aged 21, of Heathfield Gardens, Croydon, and an unnamed 17 year old youth will be charged with murdering Paul Muir, who played for Yeovil Town in the mid-1980's, following an attack that they are alleged to have been involved in last August in London Road, West Croydon. The pair apppeared at a preliminary hearing this week and have both been remanded in custody. Muir spent five months in hospital with severe head injuries, but never recovered and died on January 3rd 2000.

In addition to the murder charge, Sweeney has also been charged with robbing a minicab driver about an hour after the alleged attack on Muir, whilst the pair have also been charged with another minicab robbery during the early hours of the previous morning.

Yeovil Town Chairman John Fry spoke to Ciderspace this morning clarifying a few details behind the club's big announcement relating to forthcoming stadium development plans that was first detailed on this site on Thursday.

Firstly, and probably most importantly, in the eyes of Yeovil Town supporters, the mention of a Millennium Stand (which he says is only a notional name at present) in the article refers to "Covered Terraced Accommodation", certainly for the foreseeable future. He said he couldn't rule out future regulations being imposed by a footballing body, but that seating was not part of their current plans. He added that the costs of adding seating were "significantly higher".

Current plans are for the roof to be fixed at the current Home End. This means that moves to ultimately house home terrace fans at the opposite end of the ground would be put on hold.

Ultimately Mr Fry says the club plans a "Phase Two and a Phase Three" to add to the work already planned for May 2000. These subsequent plans would involve a far more complex development at the current away end, with the possibility of adding new social facilities and club offices at that end of the ground. These are not part of the work planned for the summer of 2000.

He regards the Phase Two and Phase Three projects as "medium term developments" and it is around this time that home supporters would be moved around to the opposite end. The situation relating to this could change, but only if the club found a major sponsor willing to inject the additional cash necessary to handle the more complex structure.

Mr Fry said that the club's decision to move forward with Phase One of the project was heightened by the Year 2000 as being seen by many as a landmark year, and also with the tenth anniversary of the opening of Huish Park coming up this summer. He said that the club's target was to prepare so that work could start on the stadium immediately after the May 1st game with Woking. If the construction plans were favourable, he said that it was his wish to see a big club brought to Huish Park for a pre-season friendly to formally open up the new stand. He ended by saying "if we can double it up with Promotion to the Football League, then even better!".

Congratulations are due to Stuart Housley and his Yeovil Town Youth Team, who clinched the SWEB South West Counties Youth League title today. They could have won the title last weekend, but their away match with Trowbridge was called off.

The team were paraded to the crowd at half time, and will be presented with silverware at next week's SWEB league game. We hope to get full details from Youth team manager Stuart Housley on his side's great achievement on these pages shortly. In the meantime, if any members of the Youth Team would like to contribute any details of what it's like to win a league title in January (!) then get in touch with us.

Meanwhile, the Screwfix Direct League Reserve side drew 2-2 at Bishop Sutton today. Further details will hopefully follow soon.

Yeovil Town Chairman John Fry has said today that the club's development plans in the first year of the new Millennium to turn the club into a Nationwide League club are "now fully up and running". He went on to say "I am pleased to announce that our Board has agreed to the building of a new 'Millennium Stand' at the 'Home End' of the ground".

"Plans for this project will be submitted to the council at the end of the month, and with the £10,000 raised by the 'Erection 2000' campaign, plus monies from the Football Trust and from the club itself, work should hopefully begin in May".

"The new stand will be a fitting tribute to 100 years of non-league football at Yeovil Town Football Club, and we are all obviously extremely excited. As I have said before, this is another part of our plan to become a Nationwide League club in every sense of the word. Our Centre of Excellence, which we are waiting the final approval for, plus the appointment soon to be made of a high profile Football Advisor, will, in my view, put us on the right road to attaining Football League status".

Steve says its "another really crucial game for us, but every match is these days. A victory for us over Telford could possibly put us just one point behind leaders Kidderminster Harriers. The league is obviously important because we know that if we are to win the league, we have to stop losing games".

"Mind you, Telford won't be easy meat. They have hit form, and their striker Jake Edwards, signed from Wrexham, is in tremendous goalscoring form. We will have to play well to win".

Murray Fishlock, Matt Hayfield, Phil Simpson and Steve Stott are still sidelined with long-term injuries. But Steve has found that list will almost certainly be added to this weekend, saying "Midfielder Paul Tisdale has a stomach injury and is really doubtful for the Telford clash".

He added "he has had this injury for a few weeks now, but has had to play recently because of injuries to other key players. We've been advised by doctors to rest him, hopefully for one game only, to avoid him being out for longer".

Steve did have some positive news to report though, saying, "However, we do have midfielder Jamie Pitman and defender Chris Sparks to come back from suspension".

Although Steve could not confirm if Ellis Wilmot would be in his final sixteen for Telford, he did say "Ellis is a young lad who has been released by Bristol City. He asked to come down and train with us which he's been doing for the last three or four weeks. He's done well in training, and he's got a great attitude". Steve added that he wanted to see more of Ellis at first team level to see how well he would perform at that level on a long term basis. However, he pointed out that he would find it difficult and would need to work hard to break into the first team.

Thommo is continuing his search for new players, despite his obvious frustration at failing to sign Michael Danzey and Gary Patterson, but said that he was not going to be hurried, saying "any players that come to the club have to be better or at least as good as the players that we've already got. I would put those players into that category".

He also seemed optimistic about the forthcoming Director of Football position, saying "Anything that helps Yeovil Town to attract the players that I want to the area and to the club can only be good", and said that John Fry had told him that the move was all about the club's ambitions to get into Nationwide League Division Three.

In other news the Express confirms that Adrian Foster's forthcoming suspension will be for one game only, thus enabling him to play in the 4th Round FA Trophy game at Bedford on February 5th. As far as team news for this Saturday's Conference home match with Telford is concerned, the Express reports that although Jamie Pitman and Chris Sparks will be available for selection again following their one-match bans, influential midielder Paul Tisdale has joined the already lengthy injury list with a stomach strain. He has been told by doctors to rest and expects to be out for 2 weeks.

In other news the Gazette reports the club are intending to submit a planning application to the council in a few days time in regard to the long-awaited terrace roof. According to the paper it is hoped that work on the project will begin in May. The paper also reports that defender Anthony Tonkin has been picked for the British Universities squad for their match v an FA XI at Taunton Town on Monday 31st January, kick-off 7.30pm; and echoes the Western Daily Press claim that Adrian Foster will now only be suspended for one game following his tenth booking of the season last weekend, thus enabling him to be available for the FA Trophy clash at Bedford Town on February 5th. He will however almost certainly miss the Conference match at Kettering on January 29th.

It's a fun-packed Clarion that greets us this week. Whilst reporting on the news reported first on this site last Saturday, that the club plan to appoint their first Technical Director of Football, Fat Harry reveals that he has been leaning on a bar with our Prime Suspect Dave Webb.

Of course those that know Fat Harry will appreciate that he will lean on a bar with anyone, so this is not news to us, but it's more what he managed to pry out of Mr Webb over Two Pints of Cider and a Packet of Crisps. The ex-Chelsea FA Cup winner admitted he had been approached by Director Norman Hayward, and Fat Harry tells us Mr Webb is going to be looking at things from the ground floor upwards. We tell Mr Webb he probably will be doing just that if he keeps on letting Fat Harry buy him drinks.

Webb is quoted as saying "You need the likes of Manchester United, Newcastle and Tottenham sending scouts down to Yeovil every week to check out your players. The only way you'll do that is by having a good youth set up". It turns out that Webb lives in Poole and has a son on the books of Southampton, and so would probably not say no to a job in Zummerzett.

Fat Harry ends this bar talk by informing us that "you heard it first in Clarion 2000". Oi! Harry! Don't tell me you didn't see the Ciderspace News Page for Saturday ?!

Elsewhere, the big man managed to get away from the bar for long enough to present an award for his Player of the Millennium - awarded to Warren Patmore - with a piccy of the presentation hopefully on Ciderspace soon. Mark Shail and Dick Plumb were two of Wazza's nearest rivals, yet none of these three players got within a sniff of last weeks Western Gazette team, which just goes to show what an impossible task trying to compare different players from different eras really is.

Finally, apart from giving Dean Chandler the man of the match for his performance against Stevenage, Fat Harry reports on the problems that defender Murray Fishlock faces in trying to get back on the road to recovery. One back specialist has told him a couple of weeks, another has told him a couple of months. That kind of lack of direction can drive a man to drink. Mine's a pint Fat Harry!

Yeovil Town have said today that there will be no further bids for Woking defender Michael Danzey in the immediate future, according to today's Western Daily Press. The paper also reveals that the final £30,000 bid was the third bid by The Glovers for the England Semi-Pro International.

However, Head Coach Steve Thompson has said that he is not withdrawing from the transfer market yet saying that he hoped to sign a player "if not in time for this Saturday, certainly for next week". On a similar note, The Clarion has reported that Thommo was on his way this week to a First Division club's Reserve Team game in order to spy on a player. Steve told us that if moves to sign players on a permanent basis failed, then he would look to make a loan signing.

Bedford Town, of the Isthmian League Division One, beat Newport County 1-0 away from home in a shock result in the FA Trophy tonight.

The result means that Yeovil travel to Bedford in the Fourth Round tie, scheduled for Saturday 5th February.

There is a Bedford Town Web Site at http://www.eagles.co.uk

See our news article from Monday for more details of Bedford's current season.

Today's Western Daily Press claims that Adrian Foster will be eligible to play in the next round of the FA Trophy, where The Glovers will face the winners of tonight's Third Round Replay between Newport County and Bedford Town.

The paper references fears that Foster would receive a two match ban for his tenth booking of the season, but claims that this has been reduced to just one match, meaning that Foster will miss the trip to Kettering in ten days time. No reason is given for the reduced suspension. We will attempt to officially confirm this welcome news with the club.

Today, the club have confirmed that Yeovil will not travel to Hayes next Tuesday, contrary to that stated in the Conference Weekly News Bulletin. Hayes are unable to fulfil the fixture as they are involved in a Conference fixture during that week that has taken precedence. Hayes beat Kettering 1-0 at Rockingham Road last night to secure their place in the next round.

The most likely date for this Nationwide Macmillan Trophy fixture, to be played at Church Road, Hayes is now Tuesday 8th February, although this has yet to be officially confirmed. Hayes were unable to schedule the fixture for Tuesday 1st February due to County Cup commitments and so the following Tuesday has been provisionally pencilled in.

Another fixture change has been confirmed by the club. The Somerset Premier Cup Quarter Final clash with Taunton Town at Wordsworth Drive has been put back by 24 hours to Wednesday 16th February.

Meanwhile attempts are being made to schedule the Conference home tie with Kingstonian. This fixture has been postponed from its original place in the calendar, due to both sides progressing in the FA Trophy. The Fourth Round day Conference fixture now could find itself rescheduled for Tuesday 29th February, although again it should be pointed out that this fixture date is provisional on Kingstonian agreeing to the date.

There are no current plans to rearrange the postponed Conference home fixture with Doncaster Rovers.

Phil Simpson goes under the surgeon's knife on Thursday for the operation he hopes will rescue his career. The 30 year old midfielder badly damaged ligaments whilst playing on loan for Ryman League Premier outfit Enfield, and returned to the club late last year for medical treatment.

Simpson has made just two substitutes appearances for Yeovil this season, and at the end of August he put in a transfer request. Enfield took him on loan, and expressed an interest in purchasing him, but financial problems at Southbury Road and Simpson's injury put paid to that.

Looking forward to Thursday's operation, Phil said that he was hopeful that he would be fully recovered from his ligament damage in two months time. It remains to be seen as to whether he will look to fight for his place under Steve Thompson, or whether he will continue to seek a transfer to another club.

Er .... but not the Somerset Green and Whites!

Former Yeovil Town goalkeeper Malcolm Rigby is back in the Nationwide Conference on a permanent basis. Following a successful one month loan from Stafford Rangers, the 24-year old has signed for Northwich Victoria for a small four-figure fee.

Rigby, who deputised for Tony Pennock after the Welshman cracked his ribs during a Conference match against Hayes, has timed his move to Cheshire well, with his team mate and rival goalkeeper Lance Key being placed on the transfer list at his own request, due to travelling commitments.

"We are now building for the Nationwide League," said Fry. "We are in the process of formulating our final plan of building a club capable of more than holding its own in the Third Division. This means having a professional approach to every aspect of the club".

The outcome is a series of new appointments at the Huish Park Stadium. The club have appointed a new Financial Director, Martin Warr, who will sit on the Board in a non-executive capacity. Club Director Brian Willis has also been made Stadium Development Director - the club see this as another indication of the Glovers' "going forward policy".

Mr Fry also spoke of additional appointments in the coming week, saying "Another new, exciting post to be announced within the next few days will be that of Technical Director of Football. This will be a consultancy position, and will go to a high-profile 'football man'. He will work with Head Coach Steve Thompson, but Steve will remain very much in control".

Ex-Chelsea, Brentford and Southend man Dave Webb has been linked with the position (see our story on Ciderspace from Saturday) although the club have not confirmed or denied Webb's involvement in the club.

Woking Secretary Phil Ledger commented "We have informed Michael of the bids and while he is extremely flattered he is currently on a two year deal which is due to expire at end of the 2000-2001 season. Michael has said that he enjoys playing for Woking and would very much like to honour the contract."

The former Nottingham Forest and Cambridge United man, who joined the Kingfield set-up from Aylesbury United in September 1997 for £15,000, had previously been linked with a move to Nationwide Conference title favourites Rushden & Diamonds, but chose to sign a two year contract with his current club instead of moving to Northamptonshire.

Newport County are eighth in the Dr Marten's Premier League with the following record :

Newport County P24 W8 D11 L5 F44 A34 Pts35

As a comparison of the standard of football we will face should they win the replay, that record puts them one point ahead of Weymouth with a game in hand.

They have a Web Site which can be found here. Ex-Yeovil and Cardiff City striker Carl Dale is their top goalscorer with 13 league goals and 3 FA Cup goals. He has dried up a little as the season has gone on but at one point he was the Pyramid's top goalscorer. Ex-Glover Pat Mountain also plays in goal for Newport County. He clocked up a small handful of first team appearances for Yeovil, but was largely a reservist.

Bedford Town are in 10th position in the Ryman Division One, having, like Newport County, been promoted from their respective league last season. As a comparison of what to expect, they are two points behind Whyteleafe, who Woking beat 4-2 on Saturday, and are three points behind Worthing. Bedford's web site can be found here.

The full 4th Round draw, ties to be played 5th February, is as follows (Conference teams in bold) :

Heybridge v Purfleet/Newport IOW
Bedford Town/Newport County v Yeovil Town
Hednesford/Hyde v Runcorn
Spennymoor/Harrogate Tn v Spalding/Bishop Auckland
Kingstonian v Moor Green
Kettering v Rothwell/Walton and Hersham
Billericay v Rushden & Diamonds
Burnham v Stocksbridge/Scarborough
Woking v Aldershot
Telford v Farnborough
Blakenhall v Marine
Sutton Utd v Forest Green Rovers
Southport/Altrincham v Emley
Worksop/Lancaster v Workington/ Burton Albion
Gravesend/Dover v Doncaster/Halesowen
Stalybridge v Worcester

However, plans are afoot to appoint a non-Executive level director who will relieve the club's Executive Committee of those duties, giving one person the dedicated responsibility of dealing with the administrative, contractural and bureaucratic side of football. If the position is carried out as expected, he should act as a cushion between the various team coaches and the purse-holding Directors.

When Colin Lippiatt joined Yeovil Town as Head Coach, the club promised that a Director of Football would be appointed in the summer. However, this position was never filled, and John Fry later stated that the club had not found a suitable candidate who they could put their faith in. Now it looks like they have found their man. The appointment is claimed by sources to be a "high profile apppointment with plenty of experience". No specific date has been given for the appointment, but suggestions were that the announcement is likely to be this week.

The rumourmill points to Dave Webb. He was spotted by reliable sources at the game today, and as a former Chelsea player with managerial and directoral experience with Southend United and Brentford, he would seem to fit the bill. However, it wouldn't be the first time that the presence of such a person has served to divert from the club's real target.

The planned Meet The Manager session for Wednesday night has been cancelled. No reason has been given as yet, and no rearranged date has been given.

In other news floating around on the grapevine, suggestions were that Yeovil were continuing their interest in Rushden & Diamonds Mark Cooper. The name was circulated on the Ciderspace Fans Forum a short while ago, and one source claimed that the club were lining the 29 year old midfielder up for next weeks match against Telford United. If true, that would be ironic for Telford, given that he turned down a chance to join them earlier in the season.

In more concrete news, Steve Thompson today said that if his search for new players continues to prove fruitless this week, then he would look to a Nationwide League club for a loan signing, to help strengthen the squad. There was little point in attempting to sign a loan player this week, due to the seven days notice required for a player to participate in the FA Trophy.

Finally, Adrian Foster's late booking today is expected to be confirmed as his tenth booking of the season. When confirmed, Foster will miss the away match at Kettering plus the Fourth Round of the FA Trophy, unless the club is able to sandwich a round of the Nationwide Macmillan Trophy or the Somerset Premier Cup into the week between the two ties.

The draw for the Fourth Round of the FA Trophy will take place on Monday lunchtime at Stamford Bridge, and long-serving Yeovil Director Bryan Moore will be representing the club at the draw.

The Glovers will be missing several key players for the game. "Apart from our long-term injury problems, to the likes of Murray Fishlock, Matt Hayfield, Phil Simpson and Steve Stott, we will also be without Jamie Pitman and Chris Sparks, who are suspended.

"My injury is fast righting itself, so I expect to be on the bench. I have drafted three youngsters from our Screwfix Western League set-up into our 17-man squad: Keeper Tim Malessa, central defender Paul Steele, plus recent signing, full back Ellis Willmott. Ellis is aged 20 and was previously with Bristol City and Weymouth - he is a great prospect."

Life goes on however - we here at Ciderspace are certainly not averse to getting our news anywhere we can find it and re-publishing it here, duly credited naturally! So it's nice to see The Clarion crediting this website as its source when it reports on Yeovil's (so far) abortive bid for Woking's Michael Danzey amongst other snippets of news already reported here. The paper also mentions Kingstonian's Gary Patterson as being a possible transfer target but blots its copybook slightly by claiming the midfielder plays for Woking... Typo of the Year so far comes along when the paper describes the club as "Evil Town..." Freudian slip, or does Fat Harry know something we don't? I think we should be told...

Today's Western Gazette leads with the results of the paper's competition - in association with the club - for readers to pick their the best-ever Yeovil team. Such choices are always subjective, so much so that the club's panel of judges didn't actually find an entire readers team they liked and so picked their own. Firmly putting such thoughts as 'why bother having a competition if you're not going to choose one of the entries' aside, here is the team picked by the judges:

Tony Clark, Alan Herrity, Mik Nagy, Len Harris, Ralph Davis, Bill Albury (capt), Cyril Davies, Danny Paton, Guy Whittingham, Dave Taylor, Johnny McKay. Subs: Johnny Hayward, Terry Cotton. You may (and probably will) disagree!

The Gazette's main feature this week is a half-term report on Yeovil's season so far. Their conclusion is: "Yeovil have been too inconsistent in the league this season, although they are still in with a shout. They must put together a long winning run during the next four months." Even this column can't argue with that.

The self-styled Fans' Voice, Cathy Pickford, has her own thoughts on where we have been going wrong in the meantime: According to her the defence needs strengthening and as, also according to her, there are no Conference defenders good enough (don't tell her about our bid for Michael Danzey whatever you do) she is urging head coach Thommo to take a Football League defender on loan, and forget about going for frontmen like Marc McGregor. In her next paragraph she also urges Thommo to sign Bath City striker Martin Paul, who is, of course, a frontman... And the Gazette calls the club inconsistent?!

In todays Yeovil Express, sports editor Steve Sowden details the latest bout of injuries to hit Huish Park and calls on the Yeovil board to put their hands in their pockets to keep the club's faltering championship challenge on the rails. Time to splash the cash! is his main headline and in the somewhat pessimistic - but in this reviewer's judgement also realistic - article Sowden insists that any bids made have to be sensible, citing the reputed £40,000 bid made for Gary Patterson as simply not being enough for that particular player. Sowden also reiterates worries that head coach Steve Thompson may not have the contacts necessary to bring new players to Yeovil and says, "so far those fears would seem to be coming to fruition." He ends the article by saying: "It must be frustrating for fans to see Yeovil struggle to buy players and have a seemingly distinct lack of desire to part with big bucks when other Conference clubs such as Doncaster Rovers, Scarborough and mega-rich Rushden & Diamonds seem to do so on a weekly basis and with comparative ease."

In other news The Express reports that Murray Fishlock's continuing injury problems are becoming a real cause for concern at the club, but that having seen a specialist after his latest setback against Dover last weekend he coud be back playing again within a fortnight. The paper also give us Ladbrokes latest odds for the title race: Rushden are still favourites at 4-5 on; Kidderminster Harriers 2nd favourites at 7-1; with Yeovil, Stevenage, Morecambe and Dover all at 10-1. Nuneaton have droppped right out of the betting race, going from 4-1 to 25-1.

Erection 2000 News :
A reminder that time is running out for teams to enter the Ultimate Quiz at Huish Park on January 22nd. The cost is £6 per team of 4 to enter the quiz which will consist of 10 rounds of questions on sport, history, local knowledge and pot pourri. For an entry form and further details phone Jayne Burton on 01935 423662.

The Reserves pulled off a shock 2-1 away win at Mangotsfield yesterday. It was Mangotsfield's third defeat of the season, and Yeovil's win was kick-started by a James Bent penalty. With the game seemingly heading for a 1-1 draw, a Paul Steele header in the last couple of minutes grabbed Yeovil all three points.

It was Steele's second start for the Reserves since his recent lay-off, suggesting that he could well be back to his old self. The win raises the Reserve side to third in the Screwfix Direct League Premier Division, although admittedly there are a host of teams who are tucked in behind them with games in hand.

Meanwhile, earlier in the day, at Huish Park's Top Pitch, Yeovil Town Youth Team beat Swindon 2-0 with second half goals from Chris Giles and Nick Stavri, to stay top of the SWEB South West Counties League. According to reports at the game, midfielder Stavri had an outstanding game for Yeovil, and was very much an instrumental part of the win. The Youths' now only need to win against bottom club Trowbridge this weekend to clinch the title - a truly magnificent achievement and one which bodes well for the future of Yeovil Town.

[With thanks to Martyn Starnes for his Youth Team report. If anyone is able to oblige us with regular reports on either team, please mail us].

Meanwhile other reports on Home Counties station Southern Counties Radio claim that Kingstonian have turned down a £40,000 bid for Gary Patterson, although they do not name the club involved in the bid. However, this would strongly link in with reports in last weeks press that Yeovil were chasing midfielder Patterson. They also claim that a bid was made for Woking defender Michael Danzey, which was also turned down, and this time Yeovil are named. The reported bid for Danzey matches with information that Ciderspace received from other sources a short time ago.

However it's for its news coverage that the paper prides itself which this week focuses on what appears to be mixed messages coming out of Huish Park. The Gazette quotes head coach Steve Thompson as saying that it is "70-30 against" the unnamed Ryman League midfielder he has been attempting to sign for Yeovil now coming to Huish Park - apparently the travelling involved for the player is the major stumbling block. At the same time Thommo hasn't given up on the unnamed Conference midfielder and defender he was reported to have made bids of £30,000 plus for last week. According to the Gazette he intends to review the situation and make any decision on renewed bids in a week or so.

In contrast, chairman John Fry is quoted as saying that he thinks the current squad is good enough to win the Conference title. He says: "When we get the right attitude and spirit we can do things without money. We put a squad together over the summer which we spent a lot of money on. I would rather give money to those players as a reward for their success than go out spending big money on players. I believe the players we have are capable of doing the job." One has to wonder why the club have apparently made big-money bids for two players in the last week in that case and have been attempting to sign a third?

The Gazette also reports the sad news that former Yeovil reserve team player Paul Muir has died in hospital after being attacked last August and suffering head injuries. Paul, who was 35, had been playing for Croydon Athletic FC for the last 5 seasons. Police are treating his death as murder. Our commiserations to his family and friends.

New Drill Tops are on their way for Yeovil Town's first team, courtesy of the Yeovil Town Independent Supporters Association. The organisation, formed last summer, has twenty new Drill Tops on order, and plans to present them to Terry Cotton and Steve Thompson soon. The first team currently have no specific uniform to warm up in, and usually take to the field in a variety of T-Shirts.

YTISA have already supplied the first team with a complete set of new kit bags this season, plus a set of new towels, but YTISA Chairman Mark Kelly says that the latest benefit for the first team squad would not have been possible had there not been such a positive reaction to the organisation.

"We've only been able to purchase these training tops because of the tremendous sales of merchandise that we've had this season", said Kelly. I hope that all Yeovil Town fans who have bought clothing and souvenirs from us this season will be able to take some personal pride when they see the team in their new tops. Without their generosity and enthusiasm we would not be able to do this".

The souvenirs available have been extended today by the arrival of some Green and White Steve Thompson Car Stickers, priced one pound each. This follows the successful sale of a similar line during Colin Lippiatt's reign at the club.

A win at fifth placed Dover Athletic's Crabble Ground could put third placed Yeovil Town top of the Conference. The weekend is a big one for all the title challengers as with second placed Nuneaton Borough playing host to fourth placed Kidderminster Harriers, at least two of the four clubs chasing leaders Rushden and Diamonds, who have no game, will drop points.

But Steve Thompson knows how hard it will be to pick up all three points in Kent, saying, "Dover are only three points behind us, so we will have to be at our very best if we are to do well".

Steve brings some very welcome team news for Glovers fans, saying "Warren Patmore and Ben Smith will both be in the squad following suspension. Also returning is central-defender Terry Skiverton, who has been sidelined through injury". Skiverton's return is a big boost for Thompson, as the club were not expecting his return until the Stevenage FA Trophy tie in 10 days time.

Thompson himself, who was injured at Forest Green on December 27th, will definitely not play.

Yeovil Town missed out by a whisker of becoming the Nationwide Conference team of the Year for 1999. Had The Glovers drawn or won their game at Forest Green, they would have won the award, which is based on league results during the calendar month, as opposed to league seasons.

The final analysis was so tight that Yeovil ended up losing the award on goal difference, but level on points with current Conference leaders Rushden & Diamonds. Both teams accumulated 72 points from 43 games during 1999, with Yeovil winning two games more, but a goal difference of only +4 lost out to the Diamonds by 13 goals.

Also worthy of mention are Hayes, who scored 69 points from 1999, from one less game. Telford United, Southport and Welling United prop up the bottom three positions.

Rushden's tally means that the award stays in Northamptonshire for the third year running. Diamonds were top of the tree in 1997, whilst their rivals Kettering Town were the best team in 1998. The runners-up slot for Yeovil represents a five place improvement from their seventh position in 1998.

Steve Thompson had a double reason to celebrate after yesterday's 1-0 win over Forest Green. As Jamie Pitman carried off the Sponsor's Man of the Match bubbly, Steve revealed that his wife Carol had given birth to their third child, coincidentally called Jamie, on December 30th 1999. Steve said "I've certainly perked up over the last few days. I was very down after the Hayes and the Forest Green results". The boy weighed in at a decidedly healthy 9lb 14.5oz, and was delivered 13 days late. With the Thompson family now carrying three boys, perhaps this is evidence of Yeovil Town's Youth Policy for the future ??? Congratulations, Mr and Mrs Thommo!

The 16th minute tackle by Forest Green Rovers midfielder Jason Drysdale, on Yeovil's Matt Hayfield has put Hayfield out of contention for an estimated three to four weeks. Hayfield strained his cruciate ligament in his knee when the force of the foul tackle hit him, and so he is not expected to play until the end of January.

In other injury news, some concern was raised that Murray Fishlock had felt some pain in his back towards the end of the Forest Green 1-0 win, however the club are waiting to see if this is any real cause for concern.

Meanwhile, there is little change in previously reported news on the other trio of injured players. Steve Thompson and Terry Skiverton will miss the Dover Athletic game, but hope to be available on or around the Stevenage game, whilst Steve Stott remains on target for a March comeback.

Definitely missing from the squad are striker Warren Patmore and midfielder Ben Smith, who are both suspended after picking up their fifth bookings of the season. They are joined by Steve Thompson himself, who is expected to be out for at least two weeks after a repeat of the calf injury problems that have plagued him all season. Long term injuries Terry Skiverton and Steve Stott continue to be unavailable.

Striker Adrian Foster is the player most likely to benefit from the changes. Although Foster is short of match practice, he is fit and available for selection, and Foster, Jason Eaton and Matt Hayfield are expected to compete for the two striker positions, with one option being for Hayfield to drop into the vacant midfield position.

Forest Green will be without Paul Hunt, who starts a three match suspension, and also Adie Mings, who joined Yate Town on a months loan this week.

Just by a stroke of luck, a new Unofficial Yeovil Town Web Site has been started up during the last few days and this has its own Web based message board which we recommend you use whilst the Ciderspace Message Board is out of service.

The New Site is hosted by Pieman of the Terrace and is called Green and White Dynamite. The message board for G&WD can be found here and we recommend you bookmark it.

The G&WD site is the fourth unofficial Yeovil Town Web Site to be launched, following Ciderspace occasional contributor Will Ranner's new Up The Glovers Web Site which was launched on December 28th. Things are getting a little crowded around here!

Thomas was a substitute for Cardiff City in the two FA Cup Third Round ties played in January 1999, but only made an appearance in the replay at Huish Park, when he came on as a 75th minute substitute. However, the view of Cardiff City fans is that he has a tendency to struggle with his weight, and this has contributed to his inability to get into the Bluebirds' side. Thomas has been transfer listed this season, but Cardiff have yet to have any serious takers from the Nationwide League.

Further possibilities are rumoured to exist for Yeovil Town that are not reported by the Argus. Cardiff manager Frank Burrows has indicated that he may be willing to put 20 year old Christian Roberts and 18 year old Robert Earnshaw out on loan to give them much needed first team experience. Both are products of Cardiff's youth policy, and Roberts was a substitute in Yeovil's tie at Ninian Park, and was initially credited with the equalising goal for Cardiff before Kevin Nugent was given the final touch for the goal. There is no firm evidence connecting either player with Yeovil Town, but with Roberts having played on loan for Hereford United recently, options could be available for Steve Thompson, should he wish to take them up. Merthyr Tydfil are also being connected with a possible loan deal for one or both players.

All Yeovil Town fans on the Internet have the ability to vote on the game, and can do so by using our Man of the Match Voting Form. Your votes go directly to the MOTM organiser, Paul Chesterman, who assembles the votes and publishes them on our Mailing List.

The results for the month of November are as follows :

Terry Skiverton 476
Kevan Brown 291
Ben Smith 265
Jamie Pitman 222
Warren Patmore 200

C0MMENTS

The points are calculated by dividing the points gained in each match by the total number of voters for that match, these are totalled each month and divided by the number of appearances, plus a factor for each appearance.