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Dom Roman

@DomRoman

Dom discusses the Gulls

-10

And so it comes to pass, a 10 point deduction for Torquay’s ‘intention to appoint administrators’. It doesn’t seem fair to be honest. With the club trying to do all the right things to fund their short term existence, whilst new owners are discussing the takeover bids – could leeway not be given by the National League? Rules are rules of course so the club would have known this was going to happen, and this is obviously an opinion biased by my love for the Gulls, but it feels like we’ve been swooped upon quicker than a Seagull nose diving on some chips down the harbour.

I think we generally felt quite optimistic last week. The club’s supporters had been united behind their football club, a club that finally felt closer to them after a period of ‘them and us’. New ownership interest was confirmed, and hopes were abound that Torquay’s future could possibly be secured without the 10 point deduction coming into play. Add to that a morale boosting 4-1 win over Dartford, a win that looks even more important now considering the Darts position in the league.

One week on and the ownership situation is no clearer, with discussion about whether Edwards is going to be part of a new takeover (urrgh) as he continues to march gloomily around Plainmoor, whilst rumours and speculation continue on the identity of the main bidders for Torquay. Meanwhile on the pitch the team put in a dreadful performance to lose to Taunton Town and now we suddenly find ourselves in 17th place, only 3 points above the drop zone. Positivity has dropped and understandably so. This club is a rollercoaster of emotions season after season, but even by Torquay’s standards, 22nd Feb onwards has been crazy,

The best case scenarios are still possible, and I always think the best will happen (it’s my natural instinct, even with the Gulls!). A) A new owner comes in who has the right intentions for our football club and wants to work with the TUST, B) The team pluck up the requisite quality to win sufficient points to stay in the National League South, C) The new owners completely refresh the management and playing staff at the football club and give us hope for a positive new era at Torquay United.

Unfortunately the worst case scenarios are also lurking. With the Gulls looking fragile and a tricky run of fixtures to come, the players must stand up and be counted, but unfortunately they’ve let us down too many times to inspire confidence. And let’s be honest it feels like anything could happen with the takeover bids – it’s unlikely someone will come in promising a new stadium and employing Gary Owers – but who knows how it will unfold and whether the possible prospect of taking on a club in the (shudder) Southern League will put people off…

It’s ridiculous that it’s got to this point, a once proud Football League club fighting for their future and to stay in a regional league – Osborne, Johnson, Edwards and Hayman should be ashamed of it all, but in truth I doubt they are. Johnson told us he’d give supporters a fun season pushing for promotion, Osborne once again promised a new stadium only a few months ago, whilst Edwards just repeated the tragic ‘One Club, United’ phrase and blindly told supporters that everything was fine and dandy. Trust us they said, we’re on the right track. What a load of rubbish.

For the Yellow Army in the immediate future we just have to shake off the Taunton defeat (as hard as it may be), use the 10 point deduction as motivation, and get behind Aaron Downes and the team again, starting with Tonbridge Angels on Saturday. We’ve all experienced relegation fights at Torquay, so we all know how to react, by rolling our sleeves up and giving the club all we’ve got. We don’t give up on our Football Club, and when the dust settles I hope my best case scenarios are not just entirely pipe dreams. Stressful times at Plainmoor.

COYY – DOM

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