STUART FINDS RIGHT WAY
Keeper happy at Yeovil
WHEN Stuart Nelson started searching for a new club after leaving Gillingham in January, the main factor was to find a manager with the same philosophy of the game.
In Darren Way, he found that man.
That should come as little surprise, after all the pair come from similar backgrounds. When Nelson was an up-andcoming keeper at Doncaster back in 2002 in what was the Conference, Way was the heartbeat in midfield for their promotion rivals Yeovil.
In the end it was the Glovers who won the league that year, with Rovers coming up through the play-offs, and 16 years later Nelson and Way are now on the same side at Huish Park.
After signing in early February, Nelson, 36, has stepped in for the injured Artur Krysiak, earning clean sheets in each of his first two matches.
A creditable 0-0 draw at promotion-chasing Exeter was backed up by a fine 1-0 win at Colchester, Nelson saving a penalty in the latter.
Excited
And a couple of months into his time in Somerset, he could not be happier with his relationship with the manager.
He explained: “From the minute I took the call from Darren (pictured), I wanted to play for him. The way he was when I went down there I realised that he was a really good manmanager.
“It excited me the way he was with the players. It’s a young squad and he’s able to really get through to them. “I asked myself before signing ‘Can I work with this manager?’ It was an easy answer. “I’ve played at a lot of places, and what I really like at Yeovil is that the little things are done right. It might seem minor, but you turn up to training and everything is in place, they don’t cut any corners. “For me those simple things are ones that every club can do, but it doesn’t happen everywhere. “In terms of performances, you can’t get carried away with a couple of good results, and we know this club has a lot further to go. I’ve come down from League One, but it doesn’t feel like a step down because this club has been up the leagues before, and you can tell straightaway that it deserves to be playing at a higher level.”
Nelson is the oldest player in the Yeovil squad, bar goalkeeping coach and registered player Steve Phillips.
Fitness
Although goalkeepers go on longer than outfield players, that is still closer to the end than the beginning of his career, but Nelson believes a new fitness regime has given him the chance to extend his playing days well into his 40s – provided someone gives him a chance.
“Midway through last season at Gillingham I lost my place and so I sat down and asked myself what I could do to improve things,” said Nelson, who has signed a contract through to the end of the season with Yeovil.
“I’ve started a new fitness programme and I believe I’m in the best condition I’ve ever been in, and that includes back when I was in my early 20s.
“It’s not a case of being lean to look good, it’s trying to be athletically in shape. I’m eating seven meals a day, I’ve never eaten this much in my life.
“But it’s working. I might be 36 but I feel like I’m only 32. I honestly think I could keep playing into my 40s. It just needs people to look at what I can do, rather than my age.”
For now, Nelson’s ambition is to help Yeovil – 18th pre-weekend - avoid a relegation battle. If he and Way can do that, do not be surprised if the veteran keeper continues to confound the odds.