Barnard gets first Crawley goal but Reds are beaten
Reds woes on the road continued after two second-half goals condemned them to a fifth defeat in the last seven SkyBet League 2 games at Huish Park.
They were sunk by goals from Yeovil substitutes Ryan Bird and Tahvon Campbell.
Bird netted the opener from close range on 61 minutes and Campbell produced a thunderbolt from 25 yards to make it 2-0 on 74 minutes.
Lee Barnard scored his first goal for the Reds with a looping header seven minutes from time but Yeovil held on for a deserved win that left Crawley still looking for their first win at Huish Park.
Mark Yates had rung the changes, with four of them compared to the team beaten 1-0 by Notts County last Saturday.
Callum Preston returned in goal, there were recalls for Josh Yorwerth and Roarie Deacon and a first start for Crewe loanee Chris Atkinson. Reds only had five subs with Luke Rooney (illness) joining injured trio Lanre Oyebanjo, Joe McNerney and Jimmy Smith on the sidelines. Lee Barnard, Ross Jenkins and Gavin Tomlin dropped out of the starting XI.
Reds started with three central defenders but with Lewis Young and George Smith kept busy by Yeovil’s wide players the visitors struggled to get any sort of foothold in the early stages.
The hosts created a couple of chances in the first 20 minutes but their lack of punch up front was again evident as Shaun Jeffers just failed to get a touch onto Francois Zoko’s cross before Zoko met
Conor Roberts’ cross with a header with Preston parried to Jack Compton whose cross was fired high and wide by Jeffers at the far post.
Reds soon switched to a 4-4-1-1 with Deacon playing just off Matt Harrold and they began to enjoy some decent spells of possession.
Josh Yorwerth went down in the box under a challenge from Nathan Smith but the referee waved penalty appeals away before Harrold just failed to get a decisive touch to Gwion Edwards’ left-wing cross on 29 minutes in what turned out to be Reds’ best chance of the first half.
Eight minutes later Deacon’s low drive was saved by Krysiak before he robbed the dithering Smith inside the box but Jakub Sokolik got across to deflect his shot.
Roberts whipped over another decent ball from the right which eluded Zoko in front of goal but Yeovil’s bright start had fizzled out while a sticky surface which cut up quickly was hardly conducive to attractive football either.
The points were there for the taking for the team which could grab the initiative and both came close to breaking the deadlock in the space of a minute early in the second half.
Krysiak’s clearance bounced over Jon Walton and into the path of Jeffers, but Preston stood tall to block his shot. Reds countered and Simon Walton’s far-post cross from the left was met by Harrold, but Krysiak brilliantly blocked his header for a corner.
, who had only come off the bench two minutes earlier, and the striker made no mistake from close range.BirdThe deadlock was broken on the hour and it was a soft goal for Crawley to concede. Dickson wasn’t closed down on the left and his cross dropped between Sonny Bradley and Preston to the unmarked
Reds brought on Gavin Tomlin for Deacon midway through the half to try and provide more attacking impetus but it was Yeovil who went desperately close to adding to their lead on 71 minutes when
Zoko headed Bird’s cross onto the bar before Dickson forced a flying save with a shot from the edge of the box.
made the most of it when he doubled their lead with 14 minutes to go, ripping a tremendous shot from 25 yards that flew into the top corner which gave Preston no chance.CampbellYeovil had a strong breeze and driving rain at their backs and substitute
minute but his shot was high and wide of the near post with Edwards unmarked in the centre. Young and Harrold then made way for Tomlin and Jenkins.thLewis Young had a great chance on the break in the 74
looping header from eight yards.Barnard’sReds did score with seven minutes to go when Krysiak came for Simon Walton's diagonal ball into the box, hesitated and was then left stranded by
Referee Kavanagh awarded Yeovil a penalty in the final minute of normal time for a foul by Bradley on Bird, but changed his mind after consulting his assistant and awarded a free kick instead.
There were four minutes of stoppage time but not enough time for Reds to find an equaliser.
