Chesterfield secured their place in the FA Cup second round with a dramatic 4-3 victory over Yeovil Town on Saturday. The win, which epitomises their unpredictable League Two season, was sealed by a late Joel Randall strike after the Spireites had twice surrendered a lead.
Jack Simpson scored his first senior career double, netting either side of half-time, while Josh Koroma added his fifth goal of the season. The hosts, however, were pegged back three times by the National League side, who scored from their first three meaningful entries into the penalty area. The match was played in front of a crowd of just over 4,000.
Manager's mixed review
Manager Paul Cook was clear in his assessment after the final whistle. "We do such good stuff on a football pitch, we play some really good football," he said. But his praise was tempered by significant concern. "If you had any knowledge of football you would say either we are tremendously unlucky or there is a fundamental problem," Cook added. "Without a doubt we are conceding too many goals, especially for a team that doesn’t give many chances up."
The result leaves Chesterfield 10th in League Two with 19 points from 14 games, a position that reflects their inconsistent form of two wins, a draw and two losses in their last five outings. They have scored 24 goals this season but conceded 21, a defensive record Cook is determined to address. "We change it by watching, analysing, working and trying to get better," he stated.
How the drama unfolded
Yeovil took a surprise lead from the penalty spot in the 38th minute through Slavi Spasov. Chesterfield responded quickly, with Simpson heading home from a Josh Koroma cross five minutes later. Koroma then turned scorer just before half-time, firing in from Remeao Hutton's assist to give the hosts a 2-1 lead at the break.
Simpson grabbed his second ten minutes after the restart, finishing from Kiano Dyer's pass to make it 3-1. Yet Chesterfield's vulnerability resurfaced. Yeovil's James Daly pulled one back in the 78th minute, and Hayden Muller levelled the scores just four minutes later. With extra time looming, substitute Dilan Markanday set up Joel Randall to slot home the 89th-minute winner.
Cook made five changes to his side for the cup tie, which followed a heavy 4-1 league defeat at Newport County. The team kept a clean bill of health ahead of a quick turnaround. Attention now shifts to the Jersey Mike’s Trophy, where a sold-out away following will travel to face Mansfield Town in a 7pm kick-off on Tuesday. After that, the league campaign resumes with a trip to 17th-placed Bristol Rovers next weekend. Chesterfield are ball number 17 in Monday's FA Cup second round draw.
This story first appeared at Derbyshire Times
