Match Report: Gateshead v Yeovil Town

Yeovil Town went down with a whimper in the North East last night as relegation rivals Gateshead put Yeovil to the sword with a crushing 4-0 victory. Marcus Dinanga put the home side ahead on 19 minutes and doubled the lead 8 minutes later. Connor Pani increased the lead further 10 minutes into the second half and Owen Bailey capped it off with 2 minutes to go to send us on the long journey home with nothing.

Mark Cooper made three changes to the side that lost 2-0 at home to Southend United at the weekend. Miguel Freckleton was out through suspension after picking up a second yellow during the game while Jordan Maguire-Drew and Ryan Law dropped to the bench. Jamie Reckord and Max Hunt stepped in and Matt Worthington also returned after serving his two match ban.

Yeovil opted for a 4-3-3 formation with Jamie Reckord, Josh Staunton, Max Hunt and Owen Bevan in front of Grant Smith. Matt Worthington, Jack Clarke and Charlie Cooper made up the middle three while Scott Pollock, Jordan Young and Andrew Oluwabori lead the front line.

On the bench was Jordan Maguire-Drew, Malachi Linton, Ryan Law, Chiori Johnson and Zanda Siziba.

Yeovil got the game underway, attacking the far end.

Yeovil got off to a decent start to the game, trying their best to take the initiative but as has been the case on so many occasions this season, there was no end product.

The early pressure from Yeovil soon began to waiver, and on 18 minutes Yeovil almost fell behind when Max Hunt had to head the ball off the line.

One minute later though, Yeovil conceded when some very poor defending allowed Marcus Dinanga to get a shot in at the near post which beat Smith to put the home side ahead.

Just eight minutes later, it was 2-0 when a ball into the box was headed in by Dinanga.

There isn't really much else to report on for the remainder of the half, other than that Yeovil were poor and offered no attacking threat. By the 38th minute I opted for the concourse, again, for another few beers.

Half Time: Gateshead 2-0 Yeovil Town

Myself and a few fellow supporters couldn't muster the strength to go back out to witness much of the second half, so most of the remainder of this match report is based purely on that from the Gloverscast!

A simply huge half lay ahead of the players, 2-0 down in a must win game but just 10 minutes into the second half it really was game over. Connor Pani produced a superb shot from 25 yards which flew past Smith and any glim hopes of a fightback were over.

With 2 minutes to go, Gateshead added a fourth when Owen Bailey turned home to seal a convincing win for the home side.

Full Time: Gateshead 4-0 Yeovil Town

131 fans made the trek to the North East for this game. A simply superb effort that wasn't matched on the pitch. We can take losing, but to lose in the manner that we did was unacceptable. There was no fight, no passion, no urgency and Gateshead were miles better than we were. The general consensus among the fans is that we are now effectively relegated. The team just haven't shown that they are up for the fight and, barring a miracle, Yeovil Town will be playing regional football for the first time since 1997.

Man of the match voting for this defeat is now open. You can cast your vote here.

Match Attendance: 959 (131 from Yeovil Town)

Gateshead

1 - Filip Marschall, 2 - Robbie Tinkler, 6 - Louis Storey, 3 - Ethan Pye, 17 - Connor Pani, 44 - Stephen Wearne (replaced by 12 - Dan Ward on 71 minutes), 33 - Callum Whelan (replaced by 8 - Owen Bailey on 85 minutes), 18 - Ed Francis, 10 - Greg Olley (replaced by 42 - Kamil Conteh on 64 minutes), 11 - Adam Campbell, 9 - Marcus Dinanga

Substitutes

31 - James Montgomery, 8 - Owen Bailey, 12 - Dan Ward, 15 - Aaron Martin, 42 - Kamil Conteh

Kit

White Shirts, Black Shorts, White Socks
Goalkeeper: Yellow

Yeovil Town

1 - Grant Smith, 3 - Jamie Reckord, 5 - Max Hunt (replaced by 31 - Zanda Siziba on 58 minutes), 7 - Matt Worthington, 11 - Jordan Young, 24 - Charlie Cooper (replaced by 10 - Jordan Maguire-Drew on 57 minutes), 26 - Owen Bevan, 27 - Andrew Oluwabori, 30 - Jack Clarke (replaced by 14 - Malachi Linton on 63 minutes), 32 - Josh Staunton, 33 - Scott Pollock

Substitutes

10 - Jordan Maguire-Drew, 14 - Malachi Linton, 16 - Ryan Law, 17 - Chiori Johnson, 31 - Zanda Siziba

Kit

Pink and Purple Striped Shirts, Purple Shorts, Pink Socks
Goalkeeper: Orange

Referee: Aaron Jackson
Assistant: Ashley Royston
Assistant: Danny Guest
Fourth Official: Darius Bradley