Yeovil Town: Club secure promotion to National League after season in sixth tier
Yeovil Town secured immediate promotion back to the National League with two games of the season remaining.
The Glovers beat Truro City 2-0 on Thursday to confirm their return to the fifth tier after one season in the National League South.
Yeovil were relegated to the regional leagues for the first time since 1997 last May.
Victory leaves them nine points clear of second placed Chelmsford at the top of the table.
Having lost 2-1 to Torquay United on Monday and drawn 0-0 with Eastbourne Borough on Wednesday, defeat for Truro - who changed all 10 of their outfield players for the match - leaves them in 19th place, five points above the relegation zone.
They still have four games to play in the next nine days as they make up for a run of postponements.
Rhys Murphy's header gave Yeovil the lead after 12 minutes before Alex Fisher made it 2-0 midway through the second half to secure the win and league title.
Promotion caps a remarkable turnaround for Yeovil after a period marked by discontent and instability around the club's ownership only a year ago, when a sale fell through and staff and players went unpaid.
In May 2023, however, they were taken over by the locally-run Hellier Group and on the pitch things have stabilised.
Manager Mark Cooper stayed on at the club alongside a number of experienced players, including Jordan Young who is this season's top scorer, while 14 new faces were brought in over the summer.
Of their 43 league games, Yeovil have won 27 and were unbeaten from September through November - setting a new 14-game club record unbeaten run in all competitions - and have seen the highest average attendance at home in the league by far this season, with over 3,700.
Yeovil saw their last game on Easter Monday against Weymouth abandoned after 75 minutes due to a medical emergency in the crowd and missed the chance to secure promotion at their home ground last Saturday, when they lost 3-1 to Worthing.
The Glovers' promotion comes after Tamworth also secured their place in the fifth tier for next season having wrapped up the National League North title on Saturday.
'Sights set on back-to-back promotions'
Analysis - Jack Killah, BBC Radio Somerset
What a difference a year makes. At this point in 2023 Yeovil Town were staring down the barrel of relegation and facing a fight to keep the club out of administration.
It had been a decade-long downward spiral for the Glovers, falling from the Championship to the sixth tier of English football.
This season, with a new ownership in place, manager Mark Cooper has been able to build a team with a strong mix of youth and experience.
A 12-game unbeaten league streak before Christmas showed just what the side is capable of. Smart signings like Jake Wannell, Morgan Williams and Michael Smith creating a solid backline to build from.
Promotion back to the National League was always going to be the ambition for the club, but nothing is guaranteed in football.
I spoke to striker Frank Nouble a few weeks ago and he told me he's got his sights set on back-to-back promotions and returning Yeovil Town to the English Football League.
Glovers fans will be hoping that dream becomes a reality.
