Yeovil Town travel to Derbyshire on Saturday afternoon (3pm) to face Chesterfield in a clash of the National League’s two in-form sides.
After three back-to-back victories, Town come into this one in fine form with the play-offs truly in Darren Sarll’s sights.
The play-offs are also the objective for Chesterfield who have also seen a resurgence since manager James Rowe joined the club from Gloucester City in late 2020.
Darren Sarll’s thoughts
Speaking in his weekly press conference, Darren Sarll was in fine form as he looked forward to the trip to the Proact Stadium; “It’s going to be a tough one, when you go anywhere as a young manager you hope you’re going to get the resources to shape the team, and the one thing I’ve got to say about Chesterfield is that they’ve backed James (Rowe), and given him the resources to shape the team.
“He’s had a small period of time there, but they’ve certainly shown a lot more ambition, on and off the pitch than what they were.
“I really like going to Chesterfield, it’s a good club, and I like the area, I spent a year in that part of the world when I worked at Rotherham, so, I quite enjoy the away day at Chesterfield.”
Team news
There was some disappointing news from Sarll’s press conference on the injury front as he confirmed that Luke Wilkinson’s return date has been pushed back to April.
However, midfielder Lawson D’Ath updated fans with some good news on twitter, as he will likely not need surgery on his injury, and he continues his road to recovery.
Lee Collins is also returning to fitness, but Sarll is not willing to rush the club captain back into the squad to ensure he’s fully fit when called upon.
It’s a similar situation for Emmanuel Sonupe, who is nearing a return after a groin injury.
A foot in the opposition camp
After a disappointing start to the season, the Chesterfield board made a change in management, replacing John Pemberton with Rowe in November 2020. Rowe’s impact has certainly been a big one, with 10 wins in 15 games the Spireites have flown up the table.
The star man for Saturday’s hosts is Akwasi Asante. Following his manager from Gloucester to Derbyshire, the Dutch forward has continued his red-hot form, scoring nine goals in his 13 appearances for Chesterfield.
There are also a couple of familiar faces for Yeovil fans within the Chesterfield ranks, former loanee Jack Clarke joined Rowe’s side for the rest of the season in January, alongside him Tom Whelan also signed following Rowe’s arrival, putting pen to paper on a permanent move in December.
Coverage
Fans can tune into Saturday’s game via Chesterfield’s live stream, linked HERE.
Radio coverage will be provided by the BBC Somerset and Three Valleys Radio alongside text updates across the Yeovil Town social media feeds.
