Torquay v Hartlepool 28/10/17

[Neal]

If they reach the playoffs, then this league is very very poor this year

[Modgull]

Well that's another game gifted to a poor opposition.

The first half was very encouraging - well on top with 9 attempts to their 1 but only 3 on target and no goals. At half time we had a nagging feeling that we should have been 2 up and that we would probably be hit by a sucker punch to lose the game.

It didn't take long for this to come true. We hardly had possession in the period just after the break and their full back had the freedom of our right to put a cross over which Dorel should have punched out or caught but instead their striker threw himself at the ball to score. Nothing much changed in the next few minutes with Hartlepool running the midfield and advancing threateningly at our back Line. During one of these forays a speculative shot from distance took a massive deflection and it was 2 down and game over.

In an effort to change things the management threw on Lathrope (why?) Anderson (double why?) and Dowling. Only the latter made any significant impression and we did eventually amass 4 attempts, only one of which (Lathrope in the last minute) was on target. But, be under no illusion - we had hung up the white flag well before then. A spineless second half performance has thrown yet another game away.

It is looking increasingly unlikely that we will escape relegation - nothing seems to prevent us from regularly pressing the self-destruct button.

[drummergull90]

Now to the football, Hartlepool are sh*te!!, Terrible, bloody clueless team.

We absolutely dominated the first half and missed a number of chances, their Goalie pulled off the save of the season for one of them. I thought the team looked excellent to be honest. I thought we aint gonna lose this we are too good for them and they are useless.

Roll on second half, a couple of early stoppages didn't help, and their first real chance, and its a goal. That was basically it, curtains, the end, nailed on defeat.



Report absolutely bang on. After first half I was feeling very optimistic about our team. They looked sharp, knew each other and kept a good shape. The only reason we weren’t at least 2 up was their keeper. I thought I recognised his name, Loach and thought it might be Scott Loach and then it turned out to be him! I remember him playing for Watford I think! Ridiculous to have a 29 year old keeper who has played at that level playing in our league! He kept them in the game.

I am absolutely baffled what went wrong in the first second half. I didn’t see anything specific in terms of the teams changing personnel until they scored their 2. Can anyone tell me a change? Must have been tactical by their manager!!?

[Burnhamgull]

In summary.

First Half, good with some promising signs and at least some understanding of how they should play once they advance over the half way line.
Second half - flat, pedestrian and lacking any zip. 0-1 down and the hill became a mountain. 0-2 down, I left.

[desperado]

Dont know about anybody else but I am getting totally sick of going home miserable at 5pm on a
saturday. Since Sept 10th 2016 , 14 months ago we have won one saturday 3pm home game
(Gateshead in January)
You always fear the worst when you play well first half, dominate but fail to score , a few misses and a few
bad luck. Hartlepool must have thought "we have a game on here " but whatever was said at half time the
players didnt take it on board, I hope the message wasnt 'you are playing well lads , more of the same and
the goal will come ' It should have been 'you have to move up another gear lads because Hartlepool sure
as hell are going to ' - they did, we didnt. Glaringly obvious whats needed up front but whether Owers can
get his man is another matter. We still dont attack the ball at set pieces like we mean it
I would play Dowling , more of a driving force, instead of Evans who is too much like Lathrope
Thought Dorel should have done better for the first
Unless its going to be 4 from 6 we are now 11 points behind the next team

[portugull]

We absolutely ran Hartlepool ragged in the first half. Two moments defined the game. McQuoid made room for a shot from 20 yards and Loach pulled off a magnificent one handed save low to his left. A few minutes later Higgins who saw a lot of the ball sent in a perfect cross to Keating in the middle of the 6 yard box,must be a goal, but somehow Keating headed wide of the right hand post.Terrible miss.
We moved the ball quickly and pressed Hartlepool who played a high line which kept the lino very busy. Hartlepool are another horrible defensive side with little quality but defend very well.
The start of the second half saw United lose all momentum with Ledger sustaining a facial injury.At least 4 minutes.
On 54 minutes a great cross from the left a d Oates gets his head on the ball fron 3 yards a split second before Dorel and we are behind.
The second goal was a cruel deflection.
George Dowling was excellent when he came on. A gifted player at a very young age far better than Evans.
In 18 League games we have failed to score in 7 games and scored just once in 7 more. This is our promlem.
Mike Fondop -Talom scored the winner for Guiseley who are improving under Paul Cox.
Gary has to find a striker as Murphy and McQuoid have scored just 2 goals between them. Not good enough.

[6667GULL]

Don't panic we aren't rubbish anymore according to Mr Owers.
We were ok first half but never looked like scoring.
We were awful second half.

[chunkygull]

As others have said, that first half was encouraging and we played very well, it certainly didnt look like we would lose. Possession and chances were plenty. We had a few clear cut attempts, a few off target and a few chances went begging from balls across the box with nobody to poke them home.

I kept saying we need to take one of these in a minute or else we know what will happen and lo and behold it did. We were so flat second half right from the start, its not that Hartlepool were that good, although they obviously had a kick up the ass at half time. First goal was poor and from that the doubt and jitters crept back in. Second goal was really unlucky, everyone was just settling in after a double sub and a speculative long range effort took a deflection. Game over.

Trouble is in the second half the team reverted to type and went back to the pedestrian, one dimensional, lump it up there style. The only player who looked sharp and tried something different was Dowling who now must surely start the next few games. I dont care who he replaces, even if its golden boy Luke Young who aside from his corners was poor and anonymous today. How he got man of the match is beyond me. It must just be a default pick when we have been poor or lost.

Finding a goalscorer is going to be hard but we just need a forward willing to gamble, take risks and throw themselves at the ball. All 3 forwards we have showed flashes today but neither are out and out strikers, they are all more support/deeper playing forwards.

Still optimistic, still believe, we arent playing woefully, we arent being outplayed, but goals win games and we just cant put our chances away.

[gateman49]

Yes, 6667Gull,

We weren't rubbish for at least four days.

[DWB]

Chunkygull says:

As others have said, that first half was encouraging and we played very well, it certainly didnt look like we would lose. Possession and chances were plenty. We had a few clear cut attempts, a few off target and a few chances went begging from balls across the box with nobody to poke them home.

I kept saying we need to take one of these in a minute or else we know what will happen and lo and behold it did. We were so flat second half right from the start, its not that Hartlepool were that good, although they obviously had a kick up the ass at half time. First goal was poor and from that the doubt and jitters crept back in. Second goal was really unlucky, everyone was just settling in after a double sub and a speculative long range effort took a deflection. Game over.

Trouble is in the second half the team reverted to type and went back to the pedestrian, one dimensional, lump it up there style. The only player who looked sharp and tried something different was Dowling who now must surely start the next few games. I dont care who he replaces, even if its golden boy Luke Young who aside from his corners was poor and anonymous today. How he got man of the match is beyond me. It must just be a default pick when we have been poor or lost.

Finding a goalscorer is going to be hard but we just need a forward willing to gamble, take risks and throw themselves at the ball. All 3 forwards we have showed flashes today but neither are out and out strikers, they are all more support/deeper playing forwards.

Still optimistic, still believe, we arent playing woefully, we arent being outplayed, but goals win games and we just cant put our chances away.


Good posting. Don’t think booing was justified at the end.

Yes we lost but I still feel the team are moving forward. I do think the biggest miss today was Liam Davis as with Myrie-Williams at left wing back we looked ‘unbalanced’. He didn’t even want to take the throw ins so he was obviously uncomfortable in the role? And yes,of course,we need that proven goalscorer which is easier said than done!

[Dazza]

Striker- 'Easier said than done' ! We have had since last Christmas to get anything approaching a striker- three managers- and not one of them has made a serious effort to find a proper striker. It undoubtedly cost us yet again today. Chance after chance and then Hartlepool show they possess someone prepared to step up and put themselves where it hurts and where it counts. There is one clear reason we are in the shit- it's embarrassing obvious.

[brucie]

Am I right in thinking we were without Davis and Murphy today - no denying it was a massive setback and undid all the good work of the two away wins which is a crying shame.

In Owers after match interview he seemed to make somewhat of a veiled threat to Keating and Higgins.

Massively disappointing that we have failed to convert at home gain.

[Dazza]

No need for veiled threats. Keating I 'm afraid is simply not good enough this year - he is lacking the basic skills for this level I'm afraid. Higgins had a good first half but they scored on the second cross he failed to prevent within minutes of the second half. If you are a wing back preventing those sort of crosses coming in is your responsibility.

[Southampton Gull]

..............

In an effort to change things the management threw on Lathrope (why?) Anderson (double why?) and Dowling...............

Because they know how to set a team up, assess the game and react to given situations and out think the opposition management, at least that's what I'm told by an ex-ref. Personally, I think such a manager or head coach would have been operating a little higher than the lower end of National League South but apparently he's the real deal. Just a blip


In all seriousness the efforts of the last few games have probably taken their toll and the coach just rested a few weary legs and paid the price.

[Soupdragon]

In all seriousness the efforts of the last few games have probably taken their toll and the coach just rested a few weary legs and paid the price.

I'm assuming there was a tongue firmly in cheek there ...

... because they're all going to have to have pull their collective fingers out of their jacksies - management included - and put in a huge amount of effort to get us out of this mess.

8 points out of 24 is not a decent return for Mr Osborne and the amount of money he has clearly put into on and off-pitch operations. If the team is returning to its old slack ways after just 45 minutes on the pitch, then something is not being done properly in training. It shouldn't be too difficult for these young, committed, PAID athletes to be able to follow instructions for a whole hour and a half.

I didn't hold with the dog's abuse that Nicholson took. He may have been green, but you couldn't fault the effort he put in. I don't hold, either, with the view that Mr Owers may not be criticised; that it's 'early days'; that we've got however many points and/or games to turn this around ... the simple fact is that we are not turning it around. Two swallows don't make a summer, and two wins out of eight (one of which was gifted anyway) don't make a competitive team. I'm sorry, Mr Owers, but we ARE still rubbish.

This is a results-based business. You lot fawn all you like; I remain unconvinced.