TALKING POINTS

Rob Dand

Rob discusses the away win

WIND GAMES

Much is often said about the ability of a crowd to effect the game so much that they act as the collective 12th man – well, today the 12th man was a woman, and her name was Amy. United won the toss and wisely chose to switch ends before kick-off, giving them the advantage of an oppressive tailwind that would howl relentlessly at the Salisbury net for the opening period. The gamble paid off, as the home side had a torrid time defending against a Mett Office weather warning, with simple clearances frequently ending up in the stands. Thankfully, for the most part, the Yellows had the intelligence to keep the ball low and while there were a couple of overhit crosses and balls over the top, we largely used the conditions to our advantage. The weather improved into the second half, which meant that we probably didn’t have to defend with quite the same vigor as our unfortunate hosts.

THE GOAL

Eight minutes in, Matt Worthington became the first (and only) name on the score sheet. A dogged from Callum Dolan saw him emerge into space on the left wing, and he had the composure to look up and pick out his advancing captain, who neatly knocked the ball into the corner and beyond Salisbury ‘keeper Will Buse. It was a smooth, concise passing move and enjoyable to watch. Nobody panicked, nobody overthought it – just cool-headed decision-making and taking the simplest option. Training ground stuff, really, but it’s rare that these sorts of situations come around in the National League South.

CHANCES WASTED

The Gulls could and probably should have been at least 3 goals to the good by the time the half-time whistle blew. Salisbury had managed to carve out one or two half-chances, but had offered very little going forward despite having quite a bit of the ball following the goal. When the Yellows did get forward again, it typically ended in a more clear-cut opportunity to score, and Worthington in particular will be disappointed not to have hit the target with a shot that he blazed over the bar from fairly close range after a rebound.

Jordan Young will also probably still be seething with himself after his tame penalty was easily saved by a thankful Buse (what is it with that family and Torquay United penalty situations?). Was it a fair penalty? I’d love to give some insight, but I was actually sharing a moment with a man in the urinals (stop sniggering at the back). We raced to get back to the game, all the while dealing with downwind conditions in an open-sided Portakabin – a high intensity situation which demanded my full attention for obvious reasons.

Luckily, those missed chances didn’t come back to haunt us and the Yellows were able to post successive clean sheets, with a helping hand (or foot) from a late James Hamon save, and some timely defensive interventions from Sam Dreyer and Denzel Akyeampong late on. Nevertheless, it wouldn’t have hurt to have been a bit more ruthless in front of goal, though, because not every team is going to be as meek as Salisbury. No doubt PW will have them working on this in training this week.

CIAN DILLON

The incoming QPR loanee might have been surprised to start the game in place of regular striker Cody Cooke, and in truth didn’t really get to see a lot of the ball before being replaced in the second half. His off-the-ball presence was encouraging, though, as he remained on the front foot, challenging for headers and putting pressure on the kickers. He excelled at forcing a few errors and generally making people feel uncomfortable. Coincidentally, that’s how I like to behave at parties. A Republic of Ireland U21 international, Dillon arrives with good pedigree, but will likely be the latest in a long line of young strikers enjoying a month on the English Riviera before heading back to civilisation. Hopefully his time here yields a goal or two and takes the pressure off Cody until the injured Sonny Fish is back in contention.

HEALTHIER SQUAD

After a spell of troublesome injuries in the squad, it was nice to see almost everyone back to full fitness, alongside a full and strong bench yesterday. The likes of Calum Dolan, Sonny Blu Lo-Everton, Louis Dennis and all look sharp, and there were more minutes for Dylan Morgan as well. The squad overall appears stronger than last season. Ending the game with Morgan, Cody Cooke and Matt Jay coming on to fill some of the forward positions feels like it should give us enough to cause problems for 90 minutes at this level – something which wasn’t true for the entirety of last season.