By Dan Howell

Yeovil Town suffered a heavy defeat on the road, falling 4-0 to York City. The return of Morgan Williams to the starting XI saw him slot into the defence as a direct replacement for the suspended Jake Wannell.

The Glovers began brightly, creating the first chance of the match when Brett McGavin worked the ball through a crowded area to James Plant. Plant delivered a cross into the box, which was met by the head of Williams, but his effort went wide.

However, Yeovil’s positive start was quickly undone when Finn Cousin-Dawson was sent off after just nine minutes. The defender lost control of the ball and was dispossessed by Ollie Pearce, before pulling him back in desperation. The referee had no hesitation in showing the red card.

To compound matters, York capitalised immediately from the resulting free-kick. Pearce curled a low effort beneath the leaping wall and into the bottom corner, giving the hosts an early lead.

The sending-off forced an early tactical change, with Dom Bernard introduced to shore up the defence at the expense of Pedro Borges. Despite being down to ten men, Yeovil managed to carve out some opportunities. Michael Smith attempted a looping volley, while there were strong penalty claims after James Plant beat York goalkeeper Harrison Male to the ball, only for the referee to wave play on.

York, meanwhile, began to take control of the match, making the most of their numerical advantage. Alex Hunt saw a curling effort go just wide, while Tyrese Sinclair struck the side netting with a powerful drive from the right wing.

Sinclair doubled York’s lead shortly before the break, following an uncharacteristic error from Yeovil goalkeeper Ollie Wright. Sinclair’s low shot seemed manageable, but it slipped beneath Wright and into the net.

The second half saw Mark Cooper introduce Josh Sims in place of Aaron Jarvis in an attempt to shift the momentum. However, York continued to dominate. Ten minutes into the half, David Ajiboye dragged a shot narrowly wide following a lay-off from Marvin Armstrong.

Cooper made further changes, bringing on Harvey Greenslade for Michael Smith in a bid to inject more attacking impetus. But just after the hour mark, York struck again. Malachi Walcott’s incisive pass found Pearce, who steadied himself before finishing clinically off the far post.

Shortly after York’s third, Yeovil had their best chance of the second half. Kofi Shaw danced through a congested penalty area to find Josh Sims, whose shot was deflected wide. The Glovers’ fourth change saw Sonny Blu Lo-Everton replace Charlie Cooper.

York also made substitutions, with Ashley Nathaniel-George and Luca Thomas entering the fray. The hosts continued to pile on the pressure, and Pearce completed his hat-trick with 20 minutes remaining. After being denied moments earlier, he converted from a corner to put the result beyond doubt.

The closing stages saw further substitutions and another blow for Yeovil, as Dom Bernard was sent off for a challenge on Nathaniel-George, reducing the Glovers to nine men. Substitute Luca Thomas had two late chances for York, one saved by Wright’s head and the other narrowly missing the target.

As six minutes of added time ticked by, York comfortably saw out the match, condemning Yeovil Town to back-to-back defeats.