NL: Torquay United v Aldershot 7:45pm 1st Nov 2022

Smith sacrificed.

All four geriatrics start. How many will finish?

Hope it is 4-4-2. but could be De Silva left-wing-back and Wearne more central.

Flippin 'eck. 2-0 up after 20 minutes. Put out the bunting!

Hall and Jarvis again. 5-0
.Didn't expect this!

What a difference a day makes as the saying goes.
6-1 a sensational result who expected that?
Everything that's been missing up until now is suddenly confined to history after some decent experienced additions and a few tweaks....Its a very thin line between success and failure.
So pleased for the management team, players and supporters who have stayed faithful in very difficult times.
Chuffed for Aaron Jarvis. Can't recall the last player to hit a hat trick.
Still bottom and it's something to build on but the players can glean some genuine belief from this performance and result especially with some proper defenders now in the back line.

Funny old game, bottom of the league and only just won our first home game three months into the season yet we’ve scored 10 goals in our last two home games!. Certainly deserved the win tonight with a superb team performance where everyone seemed to be at it. Virtually new defensive lineup seemed to do the trick of tightening things up with Ellis a rock at the back with Moxey and Donollan doing well either side of the central pairing.

Having two skilful wingers able to create space and get behind the opposition back line was a big part of our attacking potency today and we started off on the right foot with the ball coming out to Hall whose left footed curling shot seemed to be going in all the way until it hit their right hand upright with the keeper literally just watching and well beaten.

It didn’t take long to get on the scoring sheet with a cross from the right wing well held up by Jarvis and an acrobatic overhead kick from just outside the 6 yard box into the net. He almost had a second very quickly with another cross at the far post which was met by him but the same upright that denied Hall also blocked his tap in from a tight angle. Nevertheless, we had a second after some really good interplay by Låpslie and Jarvis saw the former fire home from well inside the area - my favourite goal of the night. Goodwin then beat the offside trap to join the party and unbelievably we were 3 goals to the good just before the half hour mark despite hitting the woodwork two times. Halstead still had a couple of regulation saves to make but we got to half-time without conceding.

I joked to my sister during the interval that another couple of quick goals at the start of the second half would enable Johnson to substitute Hall and Moxey which was what exactly happened. A Corner was won straight from the kickoff which found the head of Jarvis to score what seemed to be a regulation goal you would see in the training ground. A few minutes later a cross to the far post was met by Hall to head in our fifth goal just before the 50 minute mark to promptly earn himself a rest on the bench but without any complaint this time.

Johnson must have been feeling confident by the stage, (well only TUFC fans wouldn’t) as Omar was brought on just before the hour mark to directly replace Moxey. While generally played well, picking out some good passes he could have done better defending for the consolation goal that Aldershot got but then cleared off the line a bit later on to make amends. Jarvis was able to get his hat-trick late on after Goodwin squared the ball for him to fire home which was no less than he deserved to notch up the second TUFC hat trick this year after CLE got that one against Notts County back in April.

Having slept on it the cup half empty cynic in me says that last night was a false dawn as they weren't playing for the team or the manager, just trying to look good for the Derby team sheet.

The cup half full side of me says......

.........at last a gutsy team performance for the faithful (who turned up in fairly good numbers on a foul night)!