NLS: Torquay United v Eastbourne 3pm 13 April 2019

Indeed we have!

At the end of the day it was job done and we did what we had to do. From a purist viewpoint I thought we were well under par today with Frankie Vincent being the standout player and he was a well deserved man of the match.

Too many other players were not firing on all cylinders with Kalala seemingly only having two gears, one almost pure genius and another been being pretty pants and it was a frustrating game for him today with very little coming off for him.

It was a slow start for both teams with the only early highlight being a corner for us where Janneh was very nearly able to flick the ball into the near corner with their keeper just able to palm the ball away. Other than that the only significant incident in the first half was the goal which stemmed from a foul which the ref almost blew for but then waved advantage and the neat interchange of passing was too good and drew a clear foul in the area.

Lemonhaigh-Evans very emphatically picked the ball up in what was clearly pre-planned but his attempt was fairly easily parried although he was then able to follow through to head the bouncing ball home.

Again in the second half we were unable to pick the pace up and while there were some good moves they too easily broke down with the final touch not been good enough. Eastbourne were able to do some nice play at times but seemed to lack any real threat on goal. The second goal was scored after some good play on the left saw Davis go clear and his cross to Janneh came out to Andrews on the right where he lashed the ball into the top of the net from the corner of the six yard box.

In the end, it was very un-Torquay like with us being 2-0 up and Woking being 2-0 down with no real stress and the championship was tied up with three games to spare. There was a mini pitch invasion on the final whistle which saw all the players disappear very quickly but then shortly after were able to come back for the applause and plaudits from the crowd at the end of an amazing season with Gary Johnson engineering a turnaround that few thought possible back in September.

link - tufc match report

link - tufc tv of Johnson coming back onto the pitch

An amazing achievement winning the league in such style and today is another one of many great memories I will have of this season. I got in with my online ticket easily, the bar code reader worked at the turnstile and I will do that more often. By kick-off the Family Stand and Bristow Bench (apart from the away section) were virtually full. If I'm honest I thought the away end would be fuller but it still made some decent noise and at times the home chanting came from all 4 sides of the ground making Plainmoor sound more like Wembley.

I did not feel particularly tense watching today as we nearly had the job done. Today was all about the occasion and the achievement of winning a title. On the pitch we never really got going today. Sponsors MOTM Vincent raised our standards with really good ball control and passing in central midfield but we could not find a way through Eastbourne. Some credit has to go to Eastbourne for that and again it emphasized to me that they are well drilled and committed teams in this league that are difficult to break down. Kalala had one of those games where nothing went right for him and his touch kept deserting him. The rebound from the penalty gave us a vital lead but there was not much else to get excited about in the first half. A header from a corner that was well saved when it was still 0-0. Torquay made a right hash of a free-kick just outside the penalty box in a central position that Andrews tamely shot against the wall. Too many passes were going astray with players on different wavelengths.

The second half stayed 1-0 for a long time. Torquay upped their tempo and got into attacking positions but the final ball was typically missing. News filtered through that Woking were losing 2-0 and Plainmoor burst into celebration. Eastbourne were giving it a good go as well and MacDonald needed to make a few routine saves. It would have been a huge anti-climax if Eastbourne equalized but instead Andrews finished off a loose ball in the box and it was celebration time for all.

Winning a title was a magical feeling and it was extra special that I was there to see that moment when the referee blew the final whistle. The crowd rushed onto the pitch and the players disappeared for a few minutes. Then they all re-appeared with all of them wearing "champions" shirt, including the coaching staff. It was a great moment to savor as they did a lap of honor to the supporters celebrations. These sort of moments don't come very often being a Torquay fan! Sadly I had to dash off for another commitment but I could still hear plenty of singing and celebration as I was walking through the Plainmoor streets. What memories and what a fantastic season. Proud to be a Torquay fan again!

Well, thats the League won with three games to go. Quite an achievement considering our league position when Gary joined us. Wish now I'd put a few bob on us to win at 33 - 1, oh well.

The game was not as Adrian Gurvitz sang but thats what champions do, win ugly against an agriculture side and a quick word about their giant number 14, boy was he shite. Even arguing with the ref when he lost possession, with the ball still play.

Will be paying particular attention to the play offs, still think Woking will get that other spot.

I'm not so sure, their form has been woeful of late, five games without a win. That said the other contenders are all over the place, hard to pick a winner from that lot.