MATCH VERDICT
Ian East
@Easters86
Ian discusses another 1-2 loss at Plainmoor
TORQUAY UNITED 1-2 DAGENHAM & REDBRIDGE – MATCH SUMMARY
I don’t know what to say anymore (Nice opener – Ed). The 4th home game in a row that Torquay have lost 2-1 with 3 of them with 90th minute winners, United slumped to another pitiful defeat that all but condemns the club back to regional football again next season.
The game was dreadful, a first half of nothing until the 45th minute when Kevin Dawson won a good challenge 25 yards from goal, the ball making it’s way to Aaron Jarvis who arrowed a brilliant shot into the far corner to give Torquay a half time lead.
How would United play the 2nd half? Well badly in a nutshell. Despite the “Gaffers” assumption that we played well for an hour, Torquay didn’t play well at all. Aimlessly booting the ball to nobody in desperate hope to just defend our own goal for 45 minutes. Up until the 75th minute Dagenhams ineptitude in creating anything at all looked like it may gift Torquay a priceless win, but Gaffers Gaffes made sure that didn’t happen. Shaun Donnellan hopelessly gave the ball away on the half way line and Dagenham exposed the space in the right back position as Sydney Ibie ran into the United box and Ross Marshall did the Torquay thing of bringing him down and gifting Dagenham a penalty, which Effiong dispatched.
This typically sprang Torquay into life temporarily and we thought we’d won it when Lewis Collins’ excellent cross was headed home by Frank Nouble late on, but it was given offside. Such is our luck at the moment we can’t buy a decision or a break but even so a point keeps feint hope alive…but this is Torquay madam. So of course in true Fawlty style this collection of losers find a way to lose the game. Donnellan again hopelessly passes the ball out of play enabling a quick goal kick into the vacated right back area again, this time for Effiong who just runs with the freedom of Torbay to cut inside and slam in a 94th minute winner for Dagenham. Only this Torquay side could have lost this game and right on cue they did..again.
PLAYER RATINGS
1. GK: Mark Halstead – 5
Had next to nothing to do but don’t think he looked 100%. No chance with the goals.
16. RB: Shaun Donnellan – 3
Useless again. Major part in both the goals against and just one of a number of players not good enough for this league.
19. CB: Nico Lawrence – 6
Best of the defenders but still didn’t cover himself in glory for the winner. Could have done more to stop the shot.
6. CB: Ross Marshall – 3
His naivety was exposed again for the penalty. Didn’t know how to deal with Effiong and spent most of the game just fouling him.
21. LB: Dean Moxey – 4
Awful set piece delivery first half, he competes at least and is one of the few I find it hard to be upset with.
8. CM: Asa Hall – 5
Did OK nice to have him back we’ve missed him albeit he doesn’t have the same impact as he did a few years ago. We needed to keep the ball better in the 2nd half and he didn’t do enough of it.
28. CM: Kevin Dawson – 7
MOTM – See Below.
27. RW: Jack Stobbs – 4
Decent first half and started the game really well but then got worse and worse as it went on. Offered nothing in the 2nd half.
11. MF: Kieron Evans – 5
Got injured in the first half but looked like the only one with any real confidence. Massive blow that he had to go off when did.
31. LW: Lewis Collins – 4
Just not really good enough. The ball for the offside goal was his only contribution in the game.
9. ST: Aaron Jarvis – 7
Brilliant goal and ran his socks off as per usual. Deserves better than playing in this God awful side.
Subs
45. ST: Frank Nouble (for Evans 67) – 6
Did OK when he came on and nearly scored the winner but for the offside flag. Had a few nice touches but we don’t have time for him to get up to speed.
14. MF: Brett McGavin (for Hall 88) – N/A
Brett wasn’t on long enough to rank on fairness, albeit offered nothing as per.
MAN OF THE MATCH – Kevin Dawson
Kevin was the best of the midfielders and my man of the match. Not saying much with the latter but his challenge set up the goal and he’s come in and given it everything. Had he played McGavin’s/Hanson’s minutes this season we probably would have 2 or 3 more wins.
THE OFFICIALS
The big decision was the off-side goal. Only seen it the once didn’t have the best view so impossible to judge. The referee was OK.
TACTICS
4-4-1-1. Gary Johnson decided against putting Nouble into the line-up, and instead slotted Lewis Collins in with little success. Kieron Evans tried to make things happen behind Aaron Jarvis, whilst Hall and Dawson did what they could around the midfield to take the game to the Daggers.
THE OPPOSITION
Dagenham were a typical NL mid-table side. Absolutely dreadful created very little, but had a striker who could finish and left Plainmoor with 3 points.
CONCLUSION
I’ve completely had enough of this team and this club now. We all knew this was a bad team after 8 or 10 games we’ve been in the bottom 4 for pretty much the entire season, yet no one at TUFC has seemed to acknowledge it or seemingly be worried about it. This completely non fussed attitude to our predicament from the management has definitely filtered through to the players. Numerous games have been there to be won but this team just lacks the quality, the fitness and the urgency to go and win them. They seemed almost shocked that they got stick at Aldershot and Gateshead when we drew those must win games. This is why, because this team can’t even beat the crap sides on holiday mode in the middle of the season either.
Torquay are getting relegated this season back to the National League South and that is an absolute abomination of a season from all concerned. For all the talk of budgets and whatever, there is no way this is a bottom 4 budget or a club that should be anywhere near the bottom of Division 5 but here we are.
The owners (who probably don’t even know the team were playing today) couldn’t care less, the manager who should have been sacked 4 months ago has completely run out of ideas and is just making the situation worse and worse every week. Gary got hero worshipped here and I never really understood that, but even so he was well thought of, well now he’s managing one of the worst teams in the clubs history.
No manager has had the full season and taken us to regional football but that’s what he’s done and he seems almost surprised that a section of fans think he should be removed? The only surprise is that there aren’t full scale protests because at any other ex-football league club of our historical standing that’s what would be happening right now. It sums up the apathy and the stench of the acceptance of failure that whiffs through the entire football club, compounded by the North Korea style reporting of the club from the media side and and the local press.
For us fans this is the darkest time in the clubs history and no-one really seems to care. Sad.
COYY – IAN
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