Oldham Athletic extended their unbeaten run to five matches with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Yeovil Town at Boundary Park, courtesy of Mike Fondop-Talum’s late winner. The decisive goal in the 81st minute broke the deadlock in what had been a tense and cagey encounter, ultimately sending the home crowd into raptures and leaving the Glovers scoreless for a second consecutive match.
The first half was a tightly contested affair, with both sides struggling to carve out clear opportunities. Yeovil’s Frank Nouble earned the first booking of the match in the 28th minute for a foul, with Oldham’s Charlie Raglan following suit shortly after for a similar infringement. Despite both teams probing and testing their opponents’ defences, the sides went into the break goalless.
The second half saw a flurry of substitutions as both managers looked to inject some impetus into their attacks. Oldham introduced Callum Dolan and Jesurun Uchegbulam, while Yeovil brought on Dominic Bernard, Brett McGavin, and Ciaran McGuckin. These changes helped open up the game, creating more space and opportunities.
The breakthrough finally came in the 81st minute. A well-constructed Oldham move culminated in Reagan Ogle delivering a pinpoint cross to Fondop-Talum, who expertly guided the ball into the net. The goal sparked immediate reactions, with Yeovil’s Matthew Worthington picking up a yellow card for a foul as the visitors desperately searched for an equaliser.
The closing stages descended into a frantic and increasingly fractious affair. Yellow cards were shown to Oldham’s Mark Kitching and Mathew Hudson, and to Yeovil’s Mark Cooper and Dominic Bernard. The tension reached boiling point in the 99th minute when Yeovil manager Mark Cooper received a second yellow card and was subsequently dismissed for foul and abusive language. The final whistle blew shortly after, confirming Oldham’s 1-0 victory and lifting them to sixth in the National League table with 17 points. The defeat leaves Yeovil in 16th place on 13 points, and extends Oldham’s recent dominance in this fixture, having now won their last three encounters against the Glovers without conceding a goal.