Sunday 27 October 2002 - Twerton Park - kick off 12.00 FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round

City's line-up showing just one change from the win at Welling United eight days earlier - Frankie Bennett returning for the cup-tied Stuart James - and with the strong wind at their backs they started brightly. Despite the conditions City did not result to pumping the ball forward at every opportunity and this approach soon began to pay dividends. Jim Rollo's neat pass sent Bennett clear but he sliced his shot well wide. Shortly after the referee showed his colours - literally and metaphorically - by booking Iain Harvey for the first foul of the game when he tripped the ridiculously gloved McIndoe. With Bennett and Williams creating havoc down both flanks City maintained the upper hand. One Williams run was only halted by Way's last ditch tackle before Thorne fired in a low free-kick that keeper Weale comfortably gathered. Gary Kemp followed Harvey into the book after just 11 minutes for a foul on Grant. Yeovil briefly showed their supposed pedigree with a powerful run by Williams that ended with a tame shot and a neat move that saw Demba shoot into the side-netting. Normal service was soon resumed when Bennett's low cross just failed to pick out Jason Eaton. The deserved goal finally arrived on 36 minutes. Eaton pressured Skiverton into giving the ball away deep in the Town half. Spotting an unmarked Dan Cleverley in the box he lifted over a perfect cross that the teenage striker gloriously volleyed past Weale into the corner of the net. Despite further possession City couldn't find another goal to really take advantage of the conditions in fact Yeovil could have drawn level before the interval only for Grant to drag a shot wide after McIndoe's pass sent him clear.

With the strong wide to the advantage of the visitors City must have expected a 45 minute onslaught as the second half began but it just never happened. Within the opening minute another surging run by Williams left Lockwood trailing and his cross was almost turned home by Cleverley. Harvey then collected a loose ball 25 yards out and sent a curling shot narrowly wide. Bennett then earned City a free-kick on the right that was scrambled away for a corner by the overworked Yeovil backline. Clearly City could not keep up this pressure but even when they were forced back their defence stood firm. The 60th minute saw Bryant forced into his first difficult save, parrying Crittendon's shot. Alford blasted the rebound high over the bar. It was beginning to look as if City could hold onto their slender advanatge but in the 69th minute their one and only uncertain piece of defending handed Yeovil the equaliser. They failed to deal with Johnson's centre and when the ball flew up into the air from Kemp's attempted clearance Lockwood beat Bryant to loop a header over Thorne on the line. The relief was evident and the Somerset side must have thought the game was theirs for the taking. However, Thorne and co regrouped and continued to deny their full-time opponents. This job was not made easier when, almost predicatably, Harvey received his second caution for a lunge at Johnson and headed for an early bath with eleven minutes remaining. But again any worries about facing a late onslaught soon faded as Cleverley saw another chance go begging moments later. The best chance Yeovil created came in the last minute. Forinton was picked out by a long ball forward just eight yards out but his well-struck shot was blocked by Bryant. Lockwood did see a header bounce back off the bar in stoppage time, although a push would have ruled a more accurate effort out, and fittingly it was City would almost snatched the win at the death. Even more fittingly it was from a Williams cross that the chance fell to Cleverley, but he could not direct his header on target and Yeovil were given a 2nd chance to prove they deserve to be a side aiming for league status at the end of this season.