GLOVERS NEWS: Can Paul Sturrock lift Yeovil Town interest just like the Glovers' last Scottish manager of 30 years ago?

THE appointment of Paul Sturrock as Yeovil Town manager means the Glovers have a Scottish manager for the first time in more than 30 years.

Gerry Gow was the last manager from north of the border to wear the manager’s hat and that came back in the 1980s when he was boss at the old sloping pitch of Huish from 1984-87 (writes Steve Sowden, of the Yeovil Press).

Since then to now Yeovil Town have seen Brian Hall (twice), Clive Whitehead, Steve Rutter, Graham Roberts, Colin Lippiatt, Steve Thompson (twice), David Webb, Colin Addison, Gary Johnson (twice), Russell Slade and Terry Skiverton (twice) take the helm of the Good Ship Glovers.

But Sturrock’s appointment reminded me of Gerry Gow’s tenure with the Glovers. He arrived shortly after the start of the 1984-85 season when previous manager Ian MacFarlane, who had only been appointed a few months before, announced his resignation.

It was a terrible season for Yeovil and they suffered relegation from the Gola League (better known these days as the Conference) – it was the first time in the club’s history that they had been relegated.

But Gow seemed to get the interest going again among fans during the season with a succession of signings including Ian Botham who signed on a non-contract basis for a couple of months and his arrival certainly helped to get the turnstiles clicking at home and away matches.

PHOTO - TOP: New Yeovil Town manager Paul Sturrock.

PHOTO - RIGHT: Former Yeovil Town manager Gerry Gow, left, helped re-ignite interest in the club by signing England cricket star Ian Botham, right., who are seen with ex-Yeovil chairman Gerry Lock.

Another name to bring a glimmer of optimism was the arrival of a young Scot by the name of John McGinlay who would later go on to enjoy success with Bolton Wanderers and Scotland.

Although I had been to a number of Yeovil games in the previous few years, it was during the Gerry Gow managerial spell that my support of the Glovers grew.

It was during that relegation season that I started attending games with my mates from Preston Comprehensive School and then the following campaign in the Vauxhall-Opel League the club came alive as they had a fantastic battle for the title with Sutton United.

Gow brought in a succession of footballers who fans of old will still remember well today – Gerry Pearson, Dave Walter, Paul Randall, Tony Ricketts, Neil Coates and, arguably one of my favourite players to have worn a Yeovil shirt, Alan Pardew. Kevin Reeves, a £1m player in his time, also signed on loan from Manchester City.

That season also saw me make my first-ever away game – a 2-2 draw at Epsom and Ewell on November 23, 1985. Scary to think how far Yeovil have come and what they have achieved in the 30 years since then.

With Yeovil winning matches and playing good attacking football, the crowds came out to watch and who remembers that night in April 1986 when a crowd of 5,348 came to see Glovers play Sutton United at Huish. A 5,000+ crowd for a Vauxhall-Opel League game – unbelievable!

Many fans will remember Yeovil’s FA Cup clash with Hereford United at Huish which resulted in a 4-2 defeat for the Glovers, but the game was halted for a while due to a perimeter wall collapsing. There was also a disastrous 3-1 defeat at home to Saltash United in the FA Trophy.

You never knew what to expect with Gerry Gow, but that is why he had such a positive impact on Yeovil Town.

Yeovil lost out in the title race with Sutton United and the following season another battle commenced with Wycombe Wanderers.

But in true Gerry Gow style he stunned the fans by announcing his resignation early in 1987 due to personal reasons.

Gow had enjoyed a successful playing career with Bristol City and Manchester City and his contacts within the game certainly helped him getting players to move to South Somerset.

Thirty-plus years on from the Gerry Gow era, I sincerely hope that his fellow Scot, Paul Sturrock, will have the same impact on the Glovers as he did…..and early results tend to suggest that Operation Renaissance could have a positive result.

Keep the faith! 

The Yeovil Press is delighted that former Glovers’ player, Dave Piper, now of AJ Supplies, sponsors Yeovil Town coverage on this website. For more details about AJ Supplies – click on their logo-advert on the right-hand side of this website.

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