FAT: Torquay United v Bromley 3pm 10 January 2015

Bit of personal significance for me today.

My mum's parents were Bromley supporters who moved to Paignton in the early 50s. Their 'main' team was Charlton, although in those pre-telly, pre-hoolie, pre-manufactured rivalry days, they thought nothing of going over the river to watch West Ham if Bromley or the Addicks were away. Even the odd visit to Millwall wasn't off the cards then, although The Den has never been the most welcoming venue to outsiders.

On settling in Devon, they quickly adopted Torquay as their new second club, and it was through my gran's encouragement that I started watching United in the late-70s.

My mum has dementia now, and over Christmas she moved in to a care home close to Cary Park. I went to see her this week and said I'd be back to see her today, mentioning that Torquay were playing Bromley: "Bromley!? Is it the FA Cup?"

A nice little moment of clarity...

The 4-0 scoreline was an accurate reflection of a one-sided match and today's match was as comfortable as it gets for Gulls fans. What impressed me was how motivated we were today. Even up to the final whistle players were bursting a gut to try and get another goal. It was a game that our players and supporters needed to put a smile on our faces amidst all the doom and gloom talk in the last few weeks. Yes it was only Bromley but it was a game we could have easily have under estimated and messed up. In the end we made Bromley look a poor team and credit should go to us for that. Crowd a reasonable 1,507 with 114 from Bromley. Sponsors MOTM Ajala who played off the striker today.

Torquay started off well on top and could not finish off some excellent chances. Bowman had the best chance with a 1-on-1 but shot at their keeper and there were 2 or 3 other decent chances which we could not finish off. Bromley rarely threatened in the first half apart from a shot that stung Seabright's hands. Torquay's two first half goals had a touch of fortune about them but we fully deserved it. On 28 minutes Harding unleashed a powerful shot from outside the penalty that took a wicked deflection off a defender that wrong footed their keeper and went into the net. 5 minutes later Bowman looked certain to score from close range but their keeper saved and their defender's clearance hit Ajala and trickled into the net! From this point the rest of the match was very comfortable. Bromley did not seem capable of raising their game and Torquay continued to dominate with some good moves at times. It was a match where our flair players like Cameron, Chappel and Ajala could express themselves. There was not always an end product but they all impressed on the ball. It was good to see Harding make a decent contribution today scoring his first Torquay goal and linking play well. Young was a little disappointing today from his usual high standards.

Torquay's 2 second half goals had a touch of quality about them. Cruise put Cameron way on the left who pulled over a delicious cross from the by-line for Bowman to nod in from close range. Substitute Yeoman scored our 4th. hitting a low, hard shot from outside the box that beat their keeper at his near post. There were chances for our 5th. and substitute Briscoe made a few powerful runs and shots that just missed. Young had a chance from close range at the end but the ball bounced off his knee and wide. Young raised a smile and for once we could afford to miss the odd sitter. There was a decent ovation from the supporters at the end. Torquay made easy work of a potential banana skin and their attitude was spot on. Seabright helped his confidence by making a great reaction triple save in the first half. Someone near me said it was like Montgomery's saves in the FA Final against Leeds. Well it was not perhaps that good but it was decent. Later Seabright tipped over a shot smartly.

So a good all round performance and a bit of extra cash earned. The Plainmoor pitch is also holding up better than last season so far.

Sorry to hear about your Mother, take good care of her.

Would agree with Swanny but to add my slant....

For the first 15 minutes we completely dominated and opened them up three times to create one on one's with their keeper but all on the right and with a relatively narrow angle. Unfortunately, Chappell, Ajala and Bowman all saw their shots either saved or narrowly go wide. Also Chappell and ? just failed to get on the end of crosses with the goal at their mercy!!!!

However, Bromley then had a go and came back at us for the next quarter of an hour, picking up a number of corners and creating a few half chances! However, the pendulum swung back decisively back in our favour with Harding's deflected shot and Ajala's rebound after Cameron had set things up by going on a good run and getting the ball in to the danger area. Yes, a slice of luck but something we have been lacking recently and certainly deserved to go into the interval with a lead.

The second half, began with us having one foot in the next round but if they scored first then we were going to sweat with our recent record. Thankfully, it was us who scored first. Bowman was unlucky not to be awarded a penalty for a trip and despite being hangdog initially, quickly got onto the six yard line when Cameron surged down the line to the corner flag and his cross couldn't have been placed better giving Bowman a regulation header that flew in above the keeper from close range!

Finally, we could relax and even though Bromley didn't let their heads drop and had a few good chances, Seabright was up to the job and probably now warrents the number one jersey for the rest of the season! At the home end it turned into a bit of a turkey shoot and the only surprise was that we only added one more when the score could have been doubled! Ashley showed why he is a good finisher with a hard low shot right into the bottom right corner from the edge of the area! Maybe knocked off the ball too easily at other times though!

All in all, a very entertaining match, well worth the entry fee and bring on the next round!

Tidy performance.

No blood on the artificial grass in front of Bristow's Bench.

"Implosion" delayed.

Mellow week ahead.

I think theres a patch of astroturf where the players run out as it used to be the soggiest bit of the surround and had the most damage. It doesnt creep onto the playing surface though Swanny

An entertaining and an affordable afternoon fora change at just a tenner for the Popside. For once I can say I had real value for money.
With the right mental appraoch from the first kick we looked a class apart from Bromley and the final score could have been a few more in our favour come the final whistle.
Although this was against lesser opposition I thought Harding made a big difference in he center of the park, not perfect by any stretch but the ability to stand up and look for a pass and not wander forward out of position as CR tends to do at times leaving us exposed to the breakaway. With Ajala given what looked like a free role behind Bowman we looked a constant threat though I thought Bromley tended to sit off us more than the likes of Bristol Rovers etc did. Stand out players on the day were Ajala, Downes, and Berry with Bowman close behind. Both wingers blew hot and cold with JC over complicating things in possesion and Cameron brilliant one minute and pretty ordinary the next but both possess the ability to break down defences particularly when they run at defenders in the box.
I also liked the way we were more patient when we had the ball and passed it across the back line waiting for he right pass instead of just hoofing it in hope. On poor surface I thought we played some good football though the state of the pitch will be a telling factor in where we finish - any more substantial periods of wet weather and it will soon become a bog.
Finally a word on the ref who I thought allowed the game to flow and let a number of challenges go for both sides some of which were surprising but it did add to the enjoyment of the day to see no stupid or controversial decisions. Well done Mr Rushton, we'll have you back again anytime.