FL2: Torquay United v Lincoln 20th March 2010

Thought Nicho was superb today but the ref was a discrace, Mr Buckle done some superb Subs and it changed the game almost immediatly. Three goal mouth scrambles and not a goal to show from any of them, but a superb final 20 min if we continue how we finished then there should be no problem with us staying up. Wayno was there today signing autographs for the kids but didnt look happy.

I’m sure that Phil will blame today’s result on my return to the popside, but it had nothing to do with me honest and more to do with the fact you can’t give three goals away like we did and expect to get anything from the game.

I over heard two men talking as I got near the ground that the ref was travelling down from Yorkshire, well if that was true I wish his bloody car had broken down halfway and another one had to be found. I don’t moan about refs that honest but he was useless, missed so much he should have given us and allowed Lincoln to waste all the time they wanted too.

It was the most exciting last 20 minutes witnessed at Plainmoor for a very long time and for me the excitement did not end there as I had to stop two old blokes from getting into a fight in the lane that runs at the bottom of the school and comes out on Windsor Road, more about that later.

I was so pleased to see Smith back but not so sure I would have given him the man of the match award as Muzzy was our best player today and Nico was brilliant when he came on and sorry but I have to ask just why these two players have been left out in the cold for most of the season.

With no Carlisle Bucks put Zebs on the right wing and he simply was so ineffective playing there and it might well have been far better to start O’kane on the right wing with Zebs upfront with Rendell and Benyon on the bench.

After receiving so much praise last week, Benyon gave us nothing up front today and it was a performance from him that makes you understand why some really feel he is not good enough to start games and should only be used as an impact sub.

Felt a bit sorry for Mark Ellis today, he did not have that good a first half and was so often beaten in the air and his clearances often ending up into touch, but he slipped when all he had to do was put is foot through the ball for their killer third goal.

The game started off a bit slowly and we did see the odd bit of good play from our players, Zebs played a good ball to Smith who played it to Muzzy and Smith carried on running and Muzzy played it back to him and we won our first corner of the game.

Nothing came of it but on four minutes from another corner Ellis headed over the Lincoln crossbar and maybe should have done better. We needed a wake call and we sure got one and it all started with an unnecessary foul by Branston who just barged his man out of the way from behind when there was no need.

The free kick was fired straight at goal and I can only think Bevan saw the ball late as the save was not very convincing and he just got the ball out from a corner, It was send in and we had two chances to clear the ball from danger and failed and there was that man Somma to rifle the ball into the roof of the net.

We had a chance just after the goal to get level but Mansell hit a dipping volley but it was never going to come down quick enough and went high over the cross bar. Benyon then talked himself into the book, yes he was having his shirt pulled and an arm pushed into his rib and the free kick should have been awarded in his favour only the ref choose to give it the other way as Benyon grabbed the Lincoln players shirt a bit and his protests saw the yellow card being produced.

Muzzy was tearing Lincoln apart on the left hand side and was never afraid to take a shot or two and what attacking play we did muster was coming from the left with nothing at all coming down the right side.

Benyon did win us a free kick out wide on the left hand side and the free kick was sent to the back post and Ellis got his head on it and some people near me thought it was going in on its own, but Zebs jumped up to get his head on it and I think it was more a case the ball was just falling onto his head very close to the goal line and all he managed to do was head the ball over the bar.

We then got a great goal back and it all started with Wroe the scorer being to slow on the ball and losing it. He had the ball at his feet and wanted to much time on it and when he did go to pass it to Smith he had been closed down and the ball came of the Lincoln player and fell at the feet of another Lincoln player. Young Smith slid in and won the ball back and gave it back to Wroe. He played a good ball out to Muzzy who jinked his way into the box and just when you felt he was making space to get a shot of his own away, he played the ball to the edge of our box for Wroe to fire in a great shot. Some thought it hit someone’s head on its way in and it did look like Benyon was trying to claim the goal.

Muzzy got the fans singing loudly later in the half with a really great run and shot that the keeper did well to save at his near post, still can’t understand why the first song our fans sung were all about Exeter?

So that was the end of the first half and on the whole it was not to bad an half of football to watch and I felt we would come out in the second half and win the match, only I got that completely wrong.

We soon found ourselves behind again and was it just eh real class of Somma and his tight control of the ball when at his feet, or just poor defending on our part? Well he just danced around four of our players and was allowed to take the ball almost to our goal post where he played the ball and I think it was Mansell who took a swing at the ball and missed only the Lincoln player didn’t and blasted the ball into the roof of the net.

I was then just thinking we came back once and could do again when the time wasting Lincoln keeper kicked the ball down the middle, Ellis slipped and was on the floor on his bun, Bevan did his best to get to the edge of the box to try and get to the ball first, only it was pushed past him and rolled toward the goal and was tapped in from a few yards out. But just before their first goal there was one of many goal mouth scrambles in the Lincoln box that saw the keeper make a save he knew very little about and the ball ended up at Muzzys feet and all he could do was blast the ball over the bar.

Ellis was soon taken off after he had slipped along with the ineffective Benyon and I have to say that Macklyn who had looked a poor player the only time I saw him play in the first half of a recent home game, looked sharp, up for it and did more in the time he was on that Benyon managed.

We got a second goal that set up a grandstand finish to the game; Zebs just found himself in so much space just inside their box and coolly fired the ball under the Lincoln keeper’s body, why was he not started up front to begin with?

Nico showed what I have always said about him he is a class act on the ball and its only his pace that some feel is a problem but not for me because what he has to offer far out weights the pace he lacks.

He send in great throw-ins, great balls from corners and was feeding Muzzy down the left with good balls, What a screamer he hit and how did the keeper stop it going into the top left hand corner and right at the death he fired in another shot this time from the right hand side the keeper did well to push over his bar.

With results not going our way elsewhere this really was a bad day at the office, but I can’t really blame the players or the effort they put into the game especially in the last 20 minutes. But its clear we do need urgently a good striker and Lincoln must be over the moon they were able to loan such a good striker as Somma, boy do I wish we could have got him.

I thought things were starting to look a bit better for us and now this result makes even me start to worry a little. Think I will go and have a coffee now and tell you about the near fight a bit later on.

However exciting the last 20 minutes were that was just dire and would leave everyone but the serial loveys on here seething with anger.
Pathetic defending, no fight for most of the game and getting beat by the worst team that we will play between now and the end of the season. Its just too much to take. I told you Grimsby would most probably win and they did.
Buckle might as well be standing on the deck of the titanic tonight.

doom and gloom, I have studied the remaining fixtures and it ain´t looking good! There is not one remaining fixture where I can say the points are already in the bag. I predict that we will stay up by the skin of our teeth due to or goal average.

By the way, anybody heard how Bayern münchen got on today?

Nicho was truly awesome when he came on today and the way he played just showed how criminal his omission over the last 4 months has been. Aside from his quality delivery, he really played with such passion and commitment when he came on, which given the way he been treated, shows what tremendous strength of character he has. He is just the sort of player we need for a relegation dogfight.

Any perceived defensive shortcomings, which I believe have been greatly exaggerated, are far outweighed by the quality he shows going forward. It is time for Mr Buckle to eat some humble pie and reinstate him for the rest of the season. However, we all know he is too stubborn to do that.

I thought Scott Rendell was very poor today and didn't put himself about like a centre forward should. He needs to realise how important doing the ugly side of the game well is and get stuck in. We badly need some more muscle and firepower up front.

Carayol was excellent today and worked hard as well being a constant danger going forward. I hope he can maintain this for what is looking a tough run-in.

Merse you can listen and believe what Paul Buckle said on the radio, or you can read all the match reports on here and ask if we got it all wrong and we are wrong to believe he should have been played in far more games that he has.

So to finish off where I left off on my match report. It was good to be back on the popside standing next to mrswills and other member timbo who has had problems getting on the forum today.

Those who's IP provider is SKY do have problems I'm afraid and there are other sites they can't get on.

Proboards have come up with a temporary fix for now to get around the problems that are to do with sky and not proboards. If you do know anyone who has such problems they can get around them by adding the part in red after .com


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It was great to chat with Jon and see my old mates Chelstongull and stuarb and not forgetting tucf01, I also gave forevertufc a big hug as he deserved one

It was so good to hear our fans stick with the team until the final whistle and that is what we are going to need if we are to beat the drop and I still feel we will do that.

So I left the ground disappointed that we did not win but not feeling to down beat about it as its not over yet and we still have things very much in our own hands.

I walked past the club shop and headed for the lane that leads into Windsor road. I just got in the lane and had taken five paces when I noticed a car( large blue Rover?) coming at me a little to fast for my liking and worse still so close over my side I feared I would be squashed against the wall.

The driver was old( well looked so much older than me) and just at the last second he turned slightly to the right as he had just spotted me and I heard a thump noise.

He had only driven in to one of our fans with the side of his car and thankfully it was only the mirror that had hit the fan on the other side of the car, but it sure hurt him and he was soon shouting at the driver who had not stopped his car.

Instead of saying sorry he was shouting to the man he had hit about the fact his mirror had been knocked around(like they do )This got the other man mad who then opened the passenger door and I thought he was going to reach in and hit the driver.

I was soon beside him to calm him down and thankfully I was successful and he then walked away still rubbing his elbow.