Match Report
Yate Town 0 Malvern Town 3
Clark 4, Molyneux 29, Bullock 90 +1
Southern League Division One South
Saturday 25th January 2025
Malvern Town stunned Yate Town with a convincing win at the home of the league front runners as the Bluebells put on a below par performance to suffer only their fourth League defeat of the season.
With Yate Town captain, Joe Guest serving the second of his two-match suspension, Yate Town manager, kept the same side that won 2-0 at Larkhall the previous Saturday.
After a good break by King Baidoo down the left, his cross being cut out, it was the visitors who moved forward and immediately showed why they are the division’s top scorers with their incisive play and with just four minutes on the clock they took the lead through Harry Clark who pounced on the loose ball in the penalty area, after a good save by Joe Thomas in the home goal, but with the Yate defence slow to react, the hosts found themselves trailing.
After 16 minutes, following a foul on King Baidoo, Ross Stearn’s free kick from 25 yards out brought a fine full stretch save from Joshua Bishop in the Malvern goal and he was quick to react as Dan Dempsey was first to the loose ball but Bishop made a good block to help clear the danger.
Malvern goalkeeper, Joshua Bishop, reacts quickly to save Dan Dempsey’s close-range effort.
With a quarter of the game completed Ross Stearn had to go off injured and was replaced by Lucas Tomlinson but it wasn’t long before the visitors doubled their lead. A dangerous cross from the left by Clark just cleared the head of Jack Watts and the ball was put behind for a corner from which Dion Molyneux rose unopposed to head home from close range.
A few minutes later, referee Jack Bromham stopped the game to receive treatment on a leg injury but appeared to resume his duties without further ado. Meanwhile, Malvern continued to show their attacking prowess and Jack Watts tried to lob Joe Thomas but the young goalkeeper, on loan from Cardiff City, was quick to read the situation and managed to snatch the rising ball.
Stan Wyatt is crowded out by the Malvern defence.
The second half was delayed, with referee Jack Bromham unable to continue, and after a substitute assistant referee had been found in the crowd, assistant referee Dylan Bayliss took charge of the whistle.
With Malvern happy to sit back on their lead and Yate Town, very much out of sorts, unable to create many chances, there was little goalmouth action. A Lloyd James free kick from the left was glanced wide of the far post by substitute Will Larvin and James struck a free kick from just outside the penalty area straight at Joshua Bishop whilst James Taylor headed over, and at the other end, Joe Thomas was forced into one fine save when he turned the ball round the post for a corner.
James Taylor’s header goes close.
Despite Yate manager, Darren Mullings, using all his substitutes, a break through could not be made and in stoppage time Malvern substitute Joe Bullock added a third for the visitors, from close range, to compound a miserable afternoon for the Bluebells and a fine, fully deserved win for Malvern Town.
This performance by Yate Town was so unlike what the fans have seen all season and Bluebell fans will be hoping that this is just a blip in a long, hard season and that the team can get back to winning ways quickly. They have a 5-point lead at the top of the table from second placed Exmouth Town, plus a game in hand.
The Bluebells play Cribbs away on Friday night before Bideford AFC on Tuesday 4th February and Falmouth Town on Saturday 8th February visit the South West Interiors Stadium.
Yate Town: Thomas, Taylor, Christopher, (Lenihan 76), Hall, Dempsey (Larvin 61), James, Wyatt (McMillan 88), Byrne, Jackson (Nderemani 72), Stearn (Tomlinson 23), Baidoo
Unused subs: None
Bookings: Stearn (5), Baidoo (52), James (75), Tomlinson (90)
Malvern Town: Bishop, Ferguson (Walters 67), Payne, Molyneux, Johnson, Bell (Bullock 74), Clarke (Francis 74), Spurrier, Watts (Brunt (90+2), Tumelty (Sauntson 75), Clark
Unused subs: None
Bookings: Watts (29), Ferguson (56), Payne (80), Bullock (80), Walters (85)
Referee: Jack Bromham
Attendance: 412
Photographs by Aaron Norman
Yate Town Man of the Match: Stan Wyatt
