We are only a few weeks into the 2025/26 National League season, and already we have seen the first managerial casualty of the campaign, as Yeovil Town have parted company with head coach Mark Cooper.
On Cooper’s sacking, Town released a statement saying: “Yeovil Town Football Club can confirm Mark Cooper has been relieved of his duties as first team manager.
“We would like to place on record our thanks to Mark for his commitment to this club through some very difficult times and also his achievements during his three years at Huish Park. We wish him every success in his future endeavours.
Club Statement: Mark Cooper 📰
Yeovil Town Football Club can confirm that Mark Cooper has been relieved of his duties as First Team Manager.
We would like to place on record our thanks to Mark for his commitment to this club through some very difficult times and also his… pic.twitter.com/dSHQc4wLEC
— Yeovil Town FC (@YTFC) August 26, 2025
“In the interim, Richard Dryden will assume responsibility for First Team matters while the club begins the process of appointing a new permanent manager.
“We encourage all supporters to get behind Richard and the squad as we focus our attention on this weekend’s fixture against FC Halifax Town.”
Where did it go wrong for Cooper at Yeovil?
Unfortunately for Mark Cooper, Yeovil haven’t made a great start to their National League campaign. The Glovers currently sit in 18th place in the fifth-tier table, having won just one of their opening five league games of the campaign, while suffering three defeats and picking up just one draw in the poor run.
One major concern has been a lack of goals, as Yeovil have only scored five times in their five league outings. However, three of those goals came on Bank Holiday Monday, as they raced into a three-goal half-time lead against Gateshead.
A second-half fightback saw the north east team score four times to record a 4-3 victory. For many fans of the club, it was the final straw, and they made their feelings clear on Cooper and his team at the final whistle.
The decision to fire Cooper was not a surprising one, considering the team’s poor form this season. The Gateshead defeat was the final nail in the coffin of Cooper’s tenure at the Somerset club. Any manager who is in charge of a team that lets a three-goal lead slip will always have to face questions.
A struggle in recent years
Yeovil has experienced a turbulent period in recent years, marked by ups and downs. In the 2018/19 season, they were playing League Two football before being relegated to the National League.
Even worse was to come in the 2022/23 season, when they dropped into the National League South. It was the lowest ebb for a club that had played in the Championship less than a decade previously.
Yeovil were not in the sixth tier of the English game for long, though, as they won an immediate return to the National League by claiming the National League South title.
Last season was their first back in the fifth-tier since the 2002-03 season, and similar to their campaigns in the National League before relegation, they struggled. In the end, Town finished 18th place in the table, which is, of course, their current position in the table.
In fact, Yeovil finished just four points above the relegation zone last season, with a goal difference of minus-9. Perhaps some would consider survival a success for the Glovers, given they were newly promoted.
However, there is no doubt that the fans want more than just struggling near the bottom of the table this season, even if the team may not be of the best quality.
Still time to recover this season
Mark Cooper had been in charge of Yeovil since October 2022, which is a relatively long time for any head coach in the National League. Town needs another head coach who will come in and galvanise the team.
Whichever head coach comes in has a big job on his hands to lift the team, especially after such a morale-sapping result last time out. However, at this early stage of the campaign, there is still time for the season to be rescued. There is still time to move up the table and away from the danger of the fight for relegation.
Mark Cooper may be the first managerial casualty in the National League, but he certainly won’t be the last of the campaign.