By theimps.tk
August 5 2009

Torquay United are back in League Two after a two year absense. Since an horrendous year in League Two, they have regrouped, redeveloped, grown and strengthened to the point where I believe they are good enough for a Playoff push.

Torquay United's final season in the Football League had started quite well. Two last minute victories against Barnet and Rochdale had seen them become the early favourites for promotion, then came Lincoln. Torquay had scored a fairly decent goal to open the scoring in a dire game before Paul Mayo missed a penalty. With 92 minutes played and victory seemed certain for the Gulls, but then a defensive mistake allowed Paul Morgan to head home what was his second (and subsequently last) goal for the Imps.

It got better for City in the fifth minute of added on time (even though only three were indicated) when Martin Gritton, a former Torquay United player, came up and smashed home the winner, that despite appearing to be a fair way offside. Those late goals effectively destroyed Torquay's season and they never really recovered, infact they only won twice more in the League before January 26^th, including a run at one point of twenty League games with sixteen defeats. Torquay were unsurprisingly relegated at the end of the year and spent the next two years in the Conference.

A failed Playoff campaign in 2007/8 was followed by an awful start to last year, winning just one of their opening seven games, that came just before a run of twelve victories in thirteen League games. They made the Playoffs with victory over Burton on the final day and squeezed beyond Histon in the semi-finals to set up a day at Wembley with Cambridge. Torquay were outnumbed more than 2 to 1 but it mattered little as despite not being brilliant, Torquay took their chances thanks to goals from Hargreaves and Sills to confirm victory.

The Torquay side of the last two seasons has been one of character, not only coming back from Playoff disappointment to win promotion, but also being 3-0 down to Oxford United at half time and still securing a point. That attitude is personified by Tim Sills, a man nicknamed Zorro after wearing a mask towards the end of last season to protect a broken nose. The 29 year old has gradually worked his way through the non-League structure before appearing in the League with Hereford in 2006-7, joining Torquay in 2007. His record at Plainmoor speaks for itself, averaging better than a goal every three games after 32 net-busters in 84 League games.

It's almost ironic that he scored a goal in the Playoff Final as his new strike partner is a man who played against him during that game. Scott Rendell was allegedly on the verge of a move to Sincil Bank but has ended up at Plainmoor after an excellent record for Cambridge United during two spells in recent years. These two between them should score a plentiful amount of goals in League Two, maybe even forming one of the few striker partnerships where both get 20 goals.

Torquay's squad also has plenty of League experience, especially Chris Hargreaves as he has helped teams such as Northampton win promotion and Wayne Carlisle was a player who often popped up with some pretty special goals.

I think Torquay have more than enough about them to push on for the Playoffs. I've watched them quite a bit in recent seasons and have usually been impressed with them. They are FAR, FAR better than quite a few sides that have come up to the division in recent years and I wouldn't be at all surprised if I saw them in the Playoff positions at the end of the season.

6th : The Gulls are back

Discussion started by theimps.tk (IP Logged), 05/08/2009 13:26

theimps.tk
05/08/2009 13:26

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I Blame Paul Mayo
06/08/2009 21:33

im not sure there, i have them as one of my tips for relegation. although at the playoff final, one player who did really well was that little winger, stevens i think his name is?

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