TALKING POINTS

Sam Jones

@Samuellejones

Well, that was a game of football. United made it 3 wins on the trot with a nervy 2-1 win at Slough. The only real positive about the performance was the 3 points, but more questions were raised than answers given about the squads ability to bounce back to the National League. I look at some of the key talking points from the game.

BRADLEY ASH HAS ARRIVED

Gentlemen, Bradley Ash has landed. After four games without a goal, this summers marquee signing is off the mark with his first two goals for the Gulls. Despite a slow start to life on the English Riviera, the former Weymouth man showed why so many celebrated his arrival with two outstanding goals. The first was a lesson in perseverance, with Ash chasing down a hopeful flick on from Collins to win the ball back from the defender and curl a delightful finish into the far corner. The second was a pure poachers goal, making space for himself in the box and planting a header past the despairing keeper (credit to the cross from Collins though, absolute peach). He looks like the sort of players that could get 20+ goals, if he has the right service. Whether he gets that consistently is a different question.

HALSTEADY AS THEY GO

It feels like we could say the same thing every week, but Halstead is becoming our Lord and Saviour. After possibly the worst start for a keeper in TUFC history (I refuse to call it TUAFC), he has now become one of our most important players. He made multiple stops that kept us in the game, and could do nothing about their goal. He also looks so comfortable under the cross, never once flapping or flummoxed by United’s attempt at defending. His distribution seems to have improved too, with one fantastic ball to Stobbs setting United away. We’ve had some good keepers in the last few years at Plainmoor, and he is definitely continuing that trend.

MISSING: MIDFIELD. PLEASE RETURN IF FOUND.

Gary truly is a football revolutionary. A man that makes Pep look like Mike Bassett. A tactic that involves no midfield? Incredible. That’s the only explanation I can think of that explains our lack of midfield, that isn’t that it’s a result of a complete failure in the transfer market. Oh wait…Much like last season, our midfield is non-existent. Hall and Dawson aren’t fit, Lapslie can’t stay fit, Jenkins Davies isn’t convincing and the other two are McGavin and Hanson. So many times the middle of the park was just empty, as Lapslie and WJD were dragged pillar to post, looking slightly lost. Lapslie was a bundle of energy, winning the ball and making some fantastic runs into Slough’s box and WJD looks like he is adjusting to Senior football, but there is just no structure at all. Maybe we need to put Kevin Dawson on a milk carton, that might help.

GULLS A PLENTY

An unconvincing team, playing reginal football weather hit and miss, strikes on the train, all ingredients for a poor away turn out, right? Well, wrong. Despite the official attendance of 1127, I reckon a good 400 Gulls turned up yesterday. Despite very little going right on the pitch, the Yellow Army is the best this about the club (apart from TorquayTalk of course). A true credit to the club.

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CRACKS PAPERED OVER?

There are two ways to look at the start of the season. The first is that we have 10 points from five games, including 3 wins in a row. We have a few new signings, and are just settling in as a squad. The fact we are still winning despite not playing well is a good sign, and we can only get stronger, especially if we dip into the loan market. That is the view I want to have.

The view I actually have is that we could easily be looking at five defeats in a row. Slough could have easily been four up at half time if it wasn’t for Super Mark, and we didn’t have a shot till the second half. I think most fans would find it hard to say that we were definitively the better team in any of our five games so far. As long as we keep winning, then no one is going to argue, but it feels like we are riding our luck. Maybe I’m just being pessimistic, but this doesn’t feel like a team that will go up, let alone win the League. Gary always says give it 10 games, lets see if we become any more convincing in the next five.