TALKING POINTS

Dom Roman – @DomRoman

Dom looks ahead to the NLS game

AWAY TO OUR BOGEY TEAM

Torquay’s first fixture with Maidstone was in December 1989, a match which they won 2-1 (Dean Edwards and Mark Loram on target), and in the 15 head to head match ups since then the Gulls have only triumphed once, a 1-0 win at Plainmoor in early 2023 (Aaron Jarvis the matchwinner). So the Stones are definitely our bogey team! In that time, the team from Kent have won on 11 occasions and we’ve never beaten them at their gaff. Is this the time we finally break our duck at Maidstone (a)? Well…after a sticky run of form and with some key players missing the omens don’t look very good, plus there is the artificial pitch to deal with. But the Stones are not exactly in sparkling form themselves, so this task isn’t mission impossible. Maybe it’s just our time! I’ll tell you at 5pm on Saturday…

PRESSURE ON PAUL

Torquay looked to be hitting their stride in the run up to Xmas and we managed to grind some results out in early January, but as we perhaps feared, the away day issues have returned recently and suddenly our fine home record has also been disrupted by an unfortunate loss to Hampton. There is no doubt this heaps some pressure onto Paul Wotton, and he would not expect anything less. The aim is clear, win the title and move us back to the National League, and whilst we are in the play-off positions, the NLS is so tight, that any team from 6 could hit the top spot this weekend…and considering we’re moving into February, that is crazy! Maidstone – Eastbourne – Worthing are three fixtures that could have us gloriously punching the air proclaiming our status as title contenders, or have us licking our wounds around 7th. With the addition of Matt Jay, it feels like Paul has enough tools at his disposal in attack, very much time for him to show his expertise to knit them together.

THE LINE-UP

It sounds like Jay Foulston and Jordan Dyer will both miss the trip, and whilst that is disappointing, it’s important not to rush those two back and cause more damage that hinders their fitness for the rest of the season. Whilst we lost last week, the 4-2-3-1 formation showed good signs going forward, so I’d imagine a similar line-up, though perhaps Wotton will decide to make one of last week’s subs a starter, WJD, Mussa, Hasani, Ilesanmi, Moxey, being the players in question. With the Chippenham game cancelled, the squad should be fresh and energized ready for this fixture, and we’ll certainly need them to be at their best.

MATT JAY & JORDAN YOUNG

Jordan Young has been Torquay’s most dangerous attacking player in recent weeks, and his combination with Matt Jay could hold the key to our hopes of promotion this season. Both of these guys are quality players who should be able to forge an understanding in training and in matches that allows us to create opportunities and unlock defences. Maidstone (a) might come too soon to see the best of Matt Jay, he has after all not played an awful lot of football in recent times, but it may take a bit of magic on Saturday and he’s certainly capable of it.

THE OPPOSITION

George Elokobi’s Maidstone team have had a strange season in some ways, with a poor start followed by an unbeaten run that propelled them up the league, before some inconsistency that’s kept them from moving to the top. In a similar way to Torquay, their main strength has been defensively whilst their attack has stuttered, with only 2 goals scored in the last 4 games, so both teams are looking for a big win to get back on track. It feels like the first goal could be crucial in this game, and it wouldn’t surprise me if this is a cagey affair that is decided by one big moment. As mentioned above, we are surely due a victory in this fixture at some stage, and 3 points would be a huge stepping stone heading into a testing run of fixtures.