FC: Torquay United v Dartford 3pm 4th April 2015

Good morning campers.....and a happy Easter to you all......well am buzzing.....had a great start to Easter.....was at KFC Thursday to watch hull KR beat them black and whites. Ha ha ha......loved it......anyway to carry the theme on today.....with our beloved gulls to give dart ford a good lauding....and put some smiles back on everyone faces......ok bit late in season you might say.....lol.....would like to see the gaffer start with prynn personally....anyway fellow gulls njoy your day.....CMON you yellows........si

Oh we did si.....big style at KFC stadium.......they hate us calling there ground that......don't know if you know anything bout rugby league......there's not a lot of love between dull fc and the mighty hull KR.........but my love will always be our beloved gulls......si

Very disappointing as Dartford are a poor side offering very little and we were generally on top until we scored despite being well below par. Their goal was very soft which sums up our season unfortunately. Not sure as to why Ofori-Acheampong was left waiting over 5 minutes to come on, during which time they scored....

So we cannot even beat second from bottom Dartford in another disappointing performance. It was a game of few clear chances and both keepers were mainly redundant for the game. You assumed Torquay would win this one after taking the lead but no they could not even do that. Dartford's equaliser was out of nothing and was preventable in my opinion. Crowd 1,754, 160 from Dartford, sponsors MOTM Ives, twitter MOTM Cameron.

My first priority today was to see who was sat in the director's box. Thea is still there with her son and Kelvin was back. I was heartened to see Sturrock there which gives me a little hope that he may have some say in our future? We desperatley need someone of his calibre.

Onto the game and my first concern was that with Ajala playing up front with Briscoe, we had no striker to hold the ball up like Bowman can. Ajala and Briscoe did put in a decent shift and tried to win possession off Dartford's defenders by closing them down when they were in possession. Ajala ceated a good chance when he robbed a defender but opted to pass the ball to Briscoe instead of shooting, and guess what, his pass went astray. That summed up our first half performance, there was no end product and when we did get a move going it broke down. Dartford had a couple of half chances that they did not get on the end of a move. McQuilkin had a great chance before half-time but blasted the ball over the bar when clear in the box. It was a poor finish that lacked technique from someone who has played at a higher level.

Torquay, kicking towards the away end, had more pressure in the second half and the approach play was good at times. But clear chances were at a premium. Briscoe had a clear chance but like McQuilkin blasted the ball over. McQuilkin finally broke the deadlock and finished well keeping the ball down this time. I suppose Torquay's pressure deserved this but we still rarely worked their keeper which spoke volumes. Our new loanee, Daniel, was involved in much of our play and showed some good skill at times. But he is very raw and he also wasted possession. None of our players really stood out. Cameron made a really run cutting from the right and beat a few players and was pulled down just outside the area. The referee waved play-on which summed up his performance today. Torquay had a few corners and dangerous free-kicks but did little with them. Dartford had a rare attack and predictably scored. Rice parried a long distance shot, he looked favourite to get the rebound but the ball fell loose and Darford slotted the ball home. Our defending was suspect to say the least as our defenders just watched and did not act. Torquay never looked capable of restoring the lead and the game just petered out. Our 2 subs came on too late to make an impact and it was another shambles of an afternoon at Plainmoor. It's all so poor and loyal supporters around me just shook their heads at full-time. It's not getting ant better and only mass changes in the summer will give me any confidence it will improve next season. There's no proper leadership out there on or off the pitch and it again showed today.

Saddens me as well Mervo.
The best times are long passed that's for sure just been clinging on by my fingernails for so long now hoping for a glimpse of those wonderful times in the mid/late sixties when genuine quality and astute tactics were what we came to expect and got week in week out. Of course we have had short periods of success and some wonderful players in between but without doubt those were the best times for me.
In reality Its not a TUFC thing its a symptom of our time and the modern game in general. The Raheem Sterling fuss optimises it all for me - so much wealth at the top of the game so much debt and struggle to survive at our level. I now believe we have exhausted all our options for moving the club on . Sure there are a few who want to continue flogging that bloody dead horse but what happens when they become disillusioned by the lack of local interest, lack of funds to do anything really positive and criticism from the terraces?
Paul Sturrock is the type of back room football man we should have had in place two seasons ago and as I understand it he has health issues, Parkinsons I believe, a very debilitating illness. Is this our final throw of the dice?

Hi guys.......like many of you this season......I have been waiting for this season to materialise.into something special for us.......but alas it hasn't .......and there's a lot of angry gulls out there......most of you see hell of a lot more than I do....but I do know 1 thing.......whatever the scenario....we all know the trial and tribulations supporting our great club.....and that will never change....that's why we love our club so much.....it breaks my heart to read some of the posts......but whether I am right or wrong .....I will support our club whatever league we are.in.....and if people don't like me being positive all the time....I really don't give a toss......I will always be the same........I do know we will come back stronger....anyway enjoy your Easter everybody........si......