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Dom Roman
@DomRoman
The banter has started flying already on social media between the Gulls and Glovers supporters, and it will no doubt continue for the entirety of 23-24, with the supporter bases accusing each other of obsession with the other! With Plymouth Argyle four divisions above us and Exeter City three, the presence of Yeovil Town in the NLS this year at least livens things up and give us a proper local(ish) derby (67 miles away!) to get stuck into. No disrespect to the mighty Taunton Town and Truro City but these are two clubs who should be pushing for the title this season and it could help make it a year to remember. Let’s take a look at our on/off history with the Glovers of Yeovil Town…
THE 80s AND 90s
Torquay’s first fixture against Yeovil Town was not until November 1984. The Glovers were a struggling Conference team that year and Dave Webb’s team beat them 2-0 in the 1st Round proper. The next fixtures were during the 1988-89 season when the teams drew each other in the 2nd Round of the FA Cup, United having beating Fareham in Round 1. The first tie at Huish Park finished 1-1, and four days later Cyril Knowles’ team won the replay 1-0 at Plainmoor. Torquay then lost 5-1 to Sheffield Wednesday in the 3rd Round at Hillsborough. In 1992 Yeovil came to Plainmoor for another 1st Round FA Cup tie and this time soundly beat United in a game that included two red cards, two penalties and a total of 7 goals on a terrible afternoon for the Yellows under Paul Compton.
The Fixtures
17th November 1984 – Torquay United 2-0 Yeovil Town – FA Cup 1st Round
10th December 1988 – Yeovil Town 1-1 Torquay United – FA Cup 2nd Round
14th December 1988 – Torquay United 1-0 Yeovil Town – FA Cup 2nd Round Replay
14th November 1992 – Torquay United 2-5 Yeovil Town – FA Cup 1st Round
THE 2000s
11 years passed before the teams met again and in 2003-04 we faced Gary Johnson’s newly promoted team, who had pushed into the Football League after winning the Conference with an impressive 95 points and 100 goals. The two sides met in a hotly anticipated match in September 2003 at Huish Park, and it was Leroy Rosenior’s United team who came out victorious. David Graham scoring a tidy first, before Jo Kuffour finished the Glovers off with a sweet second half back-heel. The return fixture was in April and with United chasing promotion a big crowd filled Plainmoor. Yeovil grabbed an early 2 goal lead, but United rebounded with centre backs Craig Taylor and Steve Woods scoring in reply. It was a sizzling atmosphere and occasion that afternoon, one you can definitely pencil under the heading of ‘the good old days’.
There was time for two more games during that decade, but with the clubs in different divisions these were both Cup ties. United triumphing 4-3 in the Football League Trophy in September 2004, new striker Akinfenwa bagging an extra time winner and then getting a red card as well. The next visit of the Glovers was in November 2007 in the FA Cup 1st Round. By then Yeovil had leapfrogged us into League 1, whilst United got to grips with a 1st season in the Conference. On a perfect day on the BBC for the Gulls, Chris Todd and Danny Stevens both scored twice in a fabulous 4-1 victory. This is one of my favourite Cup games as a United supporter, and FA Cup progress would continue under Paul Buckle in the following years. 16 years later we start in a sobering 2nd qualifying round…
The Fixtures
27th September 2003 – Yeovil Town 0-2 Torquay United – Division Three
3rd April 2004 – Torquay United 2-2 Yeovil Town – Division Three
28th September 2004 – Torquay United 4-3 Yeovil Town – Football League Trophy
11th November 2007 – Torquay United 4-1 Yeovil Town – FA Cup 1st Round
2019-2023 – NATIONAL LEAGUE
The fixtures between the two teams again halted at this point, with Yeovil pushing up the leagues whilst Torquay United moved between the Conference and League Two…before dropping back down to the Conference again. There was a meet up wedged in during October 2012, a 2-2 draw in the Football League Trophy. But then in 2019 Yeovil Town were relegated down to the National League, and with Torquay winning the NLS, it was time for the fixture to become a regular Xmas/New Year occurrence, this time with Gary Johnson in charge of the Gulls! Since then there has been 8 games between the clubs, 4 wins for Yeovil, 3 wins for Torquay and one draw.
Notable games out of those 8? Well the 2019 Boxing Day 6-2 hammering in the rain at Huish Park still makes me shudder now, such was the misery of that afternoon. But exactly a year later on Boxing Day 2020, United turned the tables with a 6-1 drubbing at Plainmoor, unfortunately with Danny Wright getting injured it turned out to be somewhat bittersweet – but Torquay had moved clear at the top of the NL table, so it was the perfect Xmas present. Since then there has been late goals – Yeovil winning 2-1 on New Year’s 2021, and of course Dan Holman scoring a beauty to snatch 3 points at the death in 2022. Last season’s games are best forgotten, United failing to hold onto a lead on Boxing Day 2022 and then getting turned over 2-0 in a turgid return fixture, with Gary Johnson taking a swipe at the Yellow Army afterwards.
The Fixtures
16th October 2012 – Torquay United 2-2 Yeovil Town – Football League Trophy
26th December 2019 – Yeovil Town 6-2 Torquay United – National League
1st January 2020 – Torquay United 0-2 Yeovil Town – National League
26th December 2020 – Torquay United 6-1 Yeovil Town – National League
2nd January 2021 – Yeovil Town 2-1 Torquay United – National League
26th December 2021 – Torquay United 3-0 Yeovil Town – National League
2nd January 2022 – Yeovil Town 1-2 Torquay United – National League
26th December 2022 – Torquay United 1-1 Yeovil Town – National League
1st January 2023 – Yeovil Town 2-0 Torquay United – National League
OVERALL RECORD
Torquay United Wins 8 – Draws 4 – Yeovil Town Wins 5
TOP 5 GAMES
1 – Torquay United 4-1 Yeovil Town 2007 – FA Cup glory for Bucks in front of the TV cameras.
2 – Torquay United 6-1 Yeovil Town 2020 – Payback time one year on from the Huish Park massacre.
3 – Torquay United 2-2 Yeovil Town 2004 – Fighting comeback by United in front of a packed Plainmoor.
4 – Yeovil Town 1-2 Torquay United 2022 – A late Holman strike and scenes on the terraces!
5 – Torqay United 3-0 Yeovil Town 2021 – A red card for Yeovil and 3 goals for United on Boxing Day 2021.
2023-24?
Will it be a two horse race for the 23/24 NLS crown as many are predicting? Maybe, maybe not… Yeovil manager Mark Cooper is getting well backed, and is now under big pressure to deliver for new owner Martin Hellier. Hellier is full of lively social media chatter, whilst you can count on Frank Nouble being vocal as always, so the Glovers will probably shout the loudest, but Gary Johnson will hope that his Gulls squad has enough quality to do their talking on the pitch. It’s a rivalry that’s never really caught fire, with underwhelming away followings from Yeovil and a disappointment lingering around that both teams should be doing rather better. But neither Torquay or Yeovil want to stay in the NLS for longer than they have to and both should be pushing for the league title, so it could be spicier than ever…especially with the ex-Gulls contingent at Huish Park. Let’s hope that once the dust settles the Yellows come out on top.
COYY – DOM
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