FL2: Torquay Utd v Bradford City August 21st 2010

Working ok here. Just a thought, you could try visiting the Brdford City site and log in using their player (same log in details) then switch to the Torquay commentary through that site.

Sounded like a steady win - could have been a few more but whenever the opposition is still in the game it is good to grind things out. Their keeper sounded like he has a cracking game - although had the finger pointed at him for the two goals.

I'm looking forward to reading the match reports. When do they put the highlights onto Gullsplayer?

Well another enjoyable day out from mist shrouded Ivybridge in the foothills of Dartmoor, even though it took me 75 minutes to get to Fortress Plainmoor rather than the usual 40 minutes. The offender was the lack of any traffic management system in Newton Abbot which resembled a gently vibrating car park, and despite knowing all the rat runs I just could not make any headway.

Parked easily at Plainmoor as normal and took up position on the Popside down near the Away End. Ten minutes from kick off I thought I was going to be quite lonely but then a sudden surge of people and the smell of stale beer made me stick my elbows out on the barrier which had been mine exclusively only moments before.

Before kick off I had time to notice that StuB looks exactly like his American Diner photo and Chelston isn't far off his Avatar image. Aussie also looked cool in the six yard box at the Away End and knocked an inch perfect pass to a Bradford player to get the ball away from his area of work!

If the Bradford forwards were nervous about playing a defence that just doesn't concede goals, then their nervousness must have rubbed off on their keeper McLaughlin who looked as if he was in for a hapless afternoon.

In the first seconds he shepherded the ball gently towards the line for a goal kick, only to see the ball roll the wrong side of the corner flag thus keeping Bradford pinned down in the corner.

A minute later Stevens picked the ball up on the half way line and charged at the defence. Benyon made a great run out to Stevens' right inviting a through ball and as the keeper looked to his left awaiting the inevitable through ball to Benyon little wizard Stevens smacked it from 35 yards to the keepers right.

1-0. The keeper didn't move, and looked as though he was going to shout 'I wasn't ready'.

A minute later and Stevens picked the ball up inside his own half to cries of 'shoot' from the Popsiders.

The poor old keeper was having a nightmare at that stage and his nervousness spread to his defenders who looked as though they didn't want the ball, kept playing themselves into trouble and were often afraid of the easier option of playing the ball back to the keeper. Thoughts of it could be 6-0 went through my mind.

11 minutes in and the ball was still bouncing around the Bradford goal area. Zebroski looked in on goal when a hand went out, he still managed to get a shot in and hit the outside of the post, but the ref called it back giving a penalty and sending off the handball offender Threlfall.

I knew Wroe was going to take it in his normal manner and as with that style you always miss one eventually I just knew he was going to miss. He did, the ball hitting the keeper and going for a corner.

With Bradford down to ten men the Gulls then just kept the ball, several times putting together 30+ passes backwards, sideways, and forwards, gently probing until an incisive burst into the box.

Whatever nerves keeper McLaughlin had to start with clearly disappeared with the penalty save, as he then pulled off magnificent stops from Mansell, Stevens, Nicholson, and Benyon.

A second goal was inevitable though and after a lot of great football it just had to come in comedy style with a ricochet off Zebroski bobbling into the net. They all count!

It was great to see every United player looking comfortable on the ball, wanting the ball, and as soon as having passed the ball making the angle to give options to receive the ball back. Several routines were noticed both in open play and at set pieces that have clearly been worked hard on on the training pitch.

It crossed my mind whilst looking on in admiration that this is the best Torquay United team I have seen since the 1960's. A few more performances like this and I will be convinced.

So after the trauma of Newton Abbot back via the scenic route via Totnes and Avonwick to Ivybridge which was even mistier than when I left it. Going through Avonwick it was only the flashing of the '30 Slow Down' sign that gave any indication as to where the road was!

There won't be much green about this evening as Argyle took another giant step towards swopping places with us at the end of the season, so I'm off out in my yellow and blue to give the town a bit of colour!

The first thing I need to say was how great it was to meet Longeatongull today at the match and to pass on to him Carols thanks as she was so touched by his kindness and thoughtfulness for the gift he gave to me to give to her, its such acts of kindness that make this world a much better place than it can be otherwise at times.

Well what a game and what a result that saw us win yet another game and by hook or by crook kept our wonderful record going. We should have had the game all wrapped up and put to bed by halftime and we didn’t because we failed to take good chances once again and because we never pressed home our advantage when we were on top and at times looked more happy just passing the ball around at the back when we should have been getting the ball forward.

But when we were good and we were doing the right things we were clearly the much better side and during spells in the game looked the top of the table team that we are. I was expecting us to come out after halftime and make the start we did in the first half, but instead Bradford looked the team who wanted it more just as they did when they had their best spell of the first half near the end of it.

It was a good game to watch even more so when we passed Bradford off the park but only having a one goal lead meant there were times in the game you feared not only for our clean sheet record but the result as well.

Danny Stevens in the first half was just simply brilliant and sure shut up those silly people who gave him such a hard time recently, at half time he would have been my man of the match but he was not in the second half as much and based on the whole match I would have given it to Zebs, but hey he always wins it these days and Danny will feel rightly chuffed to bits and so he should, what a great little man he is and power to the little people I say.

A crowd of 2941 and maybe a bit disappointing more fans did not make the effort, but all those there sung their hearts out and were very vocal the whole match and its such a joy to be standing in a Plainmoor crowd when they can get behind the team in the way they did, makes you forget the times the place has felt more like a morgue.

I suppose Bucks was always going to start Guy Branston if he was fit enough and he looked fully in control at the back as usual and he had to make up a few times for mistakes Ellis made in the game and the only down side was he gave away a needless foul that earned him a booking and so nearly cost us a goal.

The weakest links for us today were Nicky Wroe who blew hot and cold all afternoon and really should have taken the spot kick with far more conviction than he did and Elliot Benyon who worked hard enough as he always does but gave the ball away far to easily at times and failed to take some golden opportunities’ to put the game out of Bradfords reach.

Just before the kick-off I looked at every Bradford player’s size etc and felt we were in for a very hard afternoon but it was us who started the brightest and the better team and we were very soon winning the game after a Danny Stevens goal.

Danny picked the ball up in our half and looked to have poked the ball to far in front of himself with his first touch and I thought their midfield player was going to the ball first as he was clearly the favourite to do so, but Danny just got another toe on the ball to poke it past him and he then just raced straight down the middle of the pitch slightly out to the right hand side. He looked up and saw the Bradford keeper standing by his left hand post and just hit a very powerful low shot toward the other post. The keeper never moved an inch; did he think he was already beaten by the shot? Or did he think like I did it was going to go wide? Not sure myself what he was thinking and If I’m honest I was so surprised to see the ball hit the back of the net( Glad Danny read my last match report and practised getting some power into his shots) but so happy for Danny that it did.

We should have then gone two up, Wroe did play a great ball that put Zebs in the box behind the Bradford defenders and for once Zebs first touch let him down and knocked the ball to close to the advancing keeper who by now was right on top of Zebs when he got his shot away and was able to block it. The ball went near a Bradford defender who was on the floor who clearly handled the ball and he was sent off as the ref pointed to the spot.

Nicky Wroe you were just far too casual taking that spot kick and never looked like scoring it I’m afraid and the keeper made a very comfortable save when the ball should have hit the back of the net.

We were still passing the ball well on the deck and after a number of good passes Wroe played the ball to Stevens on the edge of the box who was half tackled and the ball fell at Benyons feet. He made a small bit of space and fired off a good shot from the edge of the box that may well have gone in the top corner, but a Bradford player just got a slight block on the shot and the ball went out for a corner From the resulting corner Guy got a good head on the ball but sent it over the crossbar.

There was even more magic controlled passing with the final ball finding Benyon off side as he was a number of times during the day, but how great it was to see such a great passage of play with all our players looking comfortable on the ball.

Zebs was once again having a great game out wide on the right and just went past their players in front of him with such ease and always getting the ball into their box, one such great run saw him hit a great pass from out wide to benyon on the edge of the box, he just laid the ball back to Mansell who hit a wonder drive that forced their keeper into an equally wonder save.

Kee was working hard enough but never got many chance to have a shot himself, Nico did play a great ball up to him on the edge of the box and he had is back to goal with two Bradford players behind him, but he did so well to turn and make the space for a shot that he hit well but failed to keep down and over the crossbar it sailed.

So the end of the first half and you felt Bucks would have been happy enough but might have told the players to get the ball forward more and much quicker and not play it backwards as often as we did during the first half.

But Bradford started the half better and we seemed far to content at times to let them have the ball when we should have been closing them down more quickly as we had the extra man and Mark Ellis was guilty as he has been in recent games of letting the ball go over his head and then discovering a forward had run in behind him into our box and thankfully Guy was able to read the situation and just got to the ball first and put it out for a throw-in.

Bradford then made a very sloppy pass in midfield and Wroe picked up the ball and played in up to benyon just in the right hand side of the Bradford box, he hit a left foot shot much like the one he did near the end of the Reading game that hit the post and stayed out and with the keeper beaten he put the shot just past the post this time.

Kee got fouled just out side the box and today we were always looking to take the quick free kick, too quick sometimes mind you but this time it was knocked to Nico who hit one of his left foot specials that the Bradford keeper did so well to just get over the crossbar.

Off when Kee and on came Carlisle to the most wonderful reception he has ever received at Plainmoor and he was soon showing why Bucks had a big mistake saying we were not going to sign him even if he did get fit as he is such a class player to have even if Bucks only sees him as a back up player.

Wayne showed his class when he played Robertson in who had run beyond Wayne close the the corner flag, Robertson ran along the line beating one man on the way and laid the ball on a plate for Benyon who only managed to find the keeper with his shot.

We got a good slice of luck for our second goal and I’m not sure my description of the goal is going to be correct. It looked to me the keeper was just getting to the ball first to clear it only Zebs kept running toward the keeper who kicked it against Zebs and then the ball went up into the air and so often when that happens the ball ends up going wide of the goal, but this time it found its way into the net.

Ellis could have made it three nil when Nico took a corner over on the right and Ellis got a good powerful header on the ball that just went over the bar.

It was after this that Guy gave away a needless foul by just getting far to close to his man who was always looking for the contact so he could go down and win the free kick. Guy got booked and said nothing to the ref and just went and took his place in the wall. The ball was floated over the wall and a Bradford forward found himself in space and place a good header to the left of Scott and as soon as it left his head it had goal written all over it and I was then thinking well the records gone but at least we should still win the game. What a save our Scott made, somehow getting his left hand on the ball just as it looked like it was crossing the line.

Bradford did create one more good chance and the ball was played across our box close to the goal post and Scott did well to get something on the ball, it went across our box and would have only needed a tap in, but thankfully no Bradford player was in sight.

Good game on the whole and more importantly a great result.

Well what an amazing performance again by our lads in yellow,I really like Buckles new empahasis on passing and passing... and if the move isnt on then pass again.

We were superb all game at retaining passession of the ball and Bradford were dire at keeping it when they got the chance.

All the players put in 100% at harrying the Bradford lads when not in possession,Nico and Danny overlapping to great effect on the left Mansell and Wroe outstanding in midfield, Zebs was beating his men in attack Ellis Branston and Robbo all superb at winning headers and challenges
when needed.Benyon was hardworking as ever but it never really fell for him.

My only worry was Billy Kee, the players kept trying to put him in with balls to his feet but he was to easily shrugged off by the Bradford boys and when not shrugged off he seemed to need more time to set himself, I saw him pre-season and was really lookin forward to some tasty stuff from him, I'm sure it will come and cant wait for his first goal ..hope its a screamer as he can connect with the the football for sure.

Unbeaten again clean sheet again top of the league again,these are heady days indeed

ps Please can Nico take over Penalty duty from now on

Many thanks harboursidegull, you will always find our matchday threads in this room so we can keep them altogether and on order.

Dave

Wot a fun day that was. Traffic form bristol was cack but no sooner had I settleed in my seat that the game started and whoosh one nil from a shot which all in the Grandstand thought was merely bobbling past the post !!!

Ok, the reports previously cover the game and for my part thought Nico was outstanding with the acres of space in front of him, and boy was he blowing at the end !!! Other noteworthy performances well the back 4 as a unit, Manse was effective, Zeb had them worried and Danny was well little Danny.

Must say that I thought Wroe was poor and seems to lack confidence, Elliot wasn't clinical enough and Kee was an Ok sort of forward and needs a goal

In the words of a well know Bristolian comic "GOOD TIMES"