Lee Trundle was the hero of the day again as Swansea City stay top of the league with a 2-0 win against Yeovil Town in front of more than 19,000 fans at the Liberty Stadium.
His first goal will be overshadowed by his stunning second, picking the ball up 35-40 yards from goal, and after noticing the keeper was off his line he let fly with a volley that lobbed the keeper and put the game safely in Swansea?s hands.
It was a goal we desperately needed at that point. Despite our opponents going a man down after former Swansea target Johnson got sent off after 53 minutes, they certainly didn?t show any signs of giving up and they had chances to bring the scores level.
Iriekpen nearly gifted them a goal with a careless back pass just after the break while 3 or 4 other chances they created were off target.
Without Martinez, we resorted to hoofing the ball up to Akinfenwa too often and maybe we needed him in the centre to get our passing game flowing. O?Leary did a good job though alongside Tudur-Jones to be fair, he made some good tackles and won back possession for us on several occasions.
Sam Ricketts also kept his place in the side despite playing in Wales? shocking defeat in Cyprus on Tuesday. Our other full back, Alan Tate was busy in the first half and attacked well down the right flank.
Lee Trundle got the breakthrough after 25 minutes. He took on 2 or 3 defenders and was brought down near the by-line. The ref awarded the penalty and Lee made no mistake from the spot to put us 1 nil up.
He nearly got another when his curling shot hit the bar as the keeper could only look on.
Yeovil are always up for games against us and they really showed that they didn?t want to lose this one.
They did manage to put the ball in the net but cheaply as Gueret was down with a head injury after a clash with Izzy.
Johnson was stupid to get sent off after 53 minutes, mouthing off at the ref twice hindered Yeovil?s chances of getting back into the game. Despite going down to 10 men though, it didn?t affect them as they were still the team creating the more goal opportunities.
The Swans didn?t start the 2nd half too well as the Glovers were having the more possession. Izzy nearly gifted them a goal with a poor back pass soon after half time but Yeovil fortunately were unable to take advantage of it.
The game was far from safe at this point, we needed a second to kill the game off and it was Trundle again who created something out of nothing. Weale?s poor clearance only went as far as Trundle, and in no time after noticing the keeper was off line, he controlled it with his best before unleashing an unstoppable volley from 35 yards out.
We now had some breathing space and a 1-man advantage; but Yeovil still didn?t give up. They still got themselves in our penalty box, causing our defenders problems and rushing their corners ? even deep into the 4 minutes of stoppage time.
A female streaker then made an appearance to please the male Swans fans even more! Fair play, because it was absolutely freezing!
Overall, the Swans weren?t brilliant but we did what matters most and that was to get all three points. Yeovil never gave up but we were strong enough not to concede.
Trundle was simply awesome again today. His confidence grew after his penalty, as he got more involved in the game from that point. His second his well worth watching over and over again!
?AND THAT?S WHY WE?RE TOP OF THE LEAGUE!?
19 Match Photos here
Player Ratings
Willy Gueret 7/10
Defence let him down on some occasions, but managed to keep a clean sheet.
Sam Ricketts 7/10
Not a bad game considering he was playing for Wales on Tuesday.
Garry Monk 7/10
Yeovil caused problems but Monk coped with it well. Good to see him performing well again.
Izzy 6/10
Was lucky not to give away an early equaliser in the second half. Looked dodgy at times.
Alan Tate 7/10
Attacked well in the first half and had a good game.
Kevin McLeod 6/10
Better performance than that against Chesterfield but it?s a shame we haven?t seen any glimpses of play he showed earlier in the season.
Kristian O?Leary 8/10
Battled well and won some key tackles. I did think we needed Martinez in the centre though to get us passing more.
Owain Tudur-Jones 6/10
Can?t say I noticed him much in the game tonight. Plays better alongside Martinez.
Leon Britton 8/10
Superb. Great pace and was involved in many of our attacks. He?s having a great season so far!
Lee Trundle 9/10
See star player.
Adebayo Akinfenwa 6/10
We hoofed it up to him far too often and he couldn?t cope with it really. Didn?t pose much of a threat to Yeovil.
Manager Rating
Kenny Jackett 8/10 ? Maybe he should have brought Martinez back to the side but the main thing is we won. It wasn?t a great performance but we managed to keep a clean sheet against a good Yeovil side.
Opponent Rating
Yeovil passed the ball about well and looked comfortable on the ball. They could have left Swansea with a point but they were poor when finishing off their attacks. Johnson?s stupidity also hindered their chances.
Swansea Assistant Manager Kevin Nugent:
“Lee has stolen the show, but it was a good all-round performance against a very good Yeovil side,”
“It was a fantastic result and the pressure is now on the other sides and it was good to get one over our bogey side.
“Lee’s second goal was typical of him as he has been doing that in training every day and you could tell it was a goal the moment he struck the ball.”
Yeovil Manager Steve Thompson:
“We played well in the second half especially when we were down to ten men. We changed things round and were able to get forward far more and I am very proud of all of them,”
“The referee said Lee Johnson made a hand gesture towards him but I will have to look at the tape to see if we take any action.”
