TALKING POINTS

Dom Roman – @DomRoman

Dom discusses the key points

MOMENTUM

The momentum at any club football club is vital, and nowhere is this better illustrated year in, year out, than at Torquay United! We are a club that can quickly get bogged down in bad performances and poor results, meaning runs of depressing form follow, and seasons can be spoilt in the matter of weeks. On the flipside we are also a club that can suddenly find a big performance, find a big result and go on the sort of run that reclaims hope and momentum that takes us close to our ultimate goal. This is the rollercoaster of supporting Torquay, and 2025-26 has had it’s fair share of ups and downs! But currently we’re on the up, and whilst it’s too late to push for top spot (unless something miraculous happens), we are pushing towards a strong play-off position in the sort of form that’s eluded us since January. Jimmy Ball has helped stir the squad into life and the Gulls are having fun again, this promotion battle is very much on.

THE MENACE IS BACK

A major reason for United’s offensive struggles at the end of Paul Wotton’s reign was the lack of output from two players who had provided so much in previous months, namely Jordan Young and Louis Dennis, who grabbed two smartly taken goals on Good Friday (he was egg-static about this…). Louis Dennis is a high quality player and showed this time and time again earlier in the season, his delicate feet can make something happen out of nothing and the ability to play anywhere across the attacking line is huge at this level. The only issue is managing his minutes and in the first half of the season he probably played a fair bit more than PW had hoped, especially when the Saturday-Tuesday double headers came along. It just felt like this caught up with LD when the testing January/Feb period rolled along. But all is not lost, and Dennis looks fit and raring to go again. In front of a big crowd at Plainmoor it wouldn’t surprise me if Louis has a big afternoon on a stage he loves. He’ll be desperate to start.

THE LINE-UP

I’ve already mentioned Louis Dennis pushing for a starting spot, and the same goes for Dylan Morgan and Sonny Blu Lo-Everton, who both had sharp performances from the bench against Weston Super. I think Morgan has been hard done by at times this season, he so often gets subbed around the 60-65 minute mark, but has been one of our better performers during the last couple of months. Meanwhile, I can’t imagine Sonny not playing on Monday, his intelligence and ability to knit together attacks and make something happen has marked him out as a possible Player of the Year candidate. Having the ability to bring those three into the line-up is a massive advantage to Jimmy Ball, and whilst he’s clearly making his mark as a manager so far, he’s also experiencing the fortune of having a healthy squad, and that makes such a difference.

THE OPPOSITION

Bath City are in deep trouble, 7 points away from safety, sitting in 22nd place with only 37 points from 41 games. They do have a game in hand on the other strugglers, and won 1-0 at home on Good Friday, with a goal from veteran striker Scott Wilson…so all is not lost just yet under new manager Scott Bartlett! With United’s chequered history against struggling teams, Bartlett will be keen to quieten the Yellow Army and make this a close game of football, and if they grab the first goal then some nerves will be found around Plainmoor! But all the signs point to a home victory and it just feels like Torquay United are in the right place mentally and physically to push past ‘The Romans’ and make this Bank Holiday a jolly one. See you at Plainmoor.