Tonbridge Angels v Torquay Utd - FA Trophy 3rd - 18th December

Sunshine Gull · Post by **Sunshine Gull** » 18 Dec 2021, 17:29

I was chatting a lot with the home supporters who were very friendly and insisting that their team were playing way above their usual standards. Tonbridge were solid and then energetic in the second half when at which time with our fitness we should have imposed.

HOWEVER. The keeper selection. Unfortunately Halstead did not have much to do but what he had to do he flapped and fumbled. When a keeper does not impose and gifts goals it gives the opposition confidence and deflates our own team which is what happened today. The result on paper reflects badly on the team but from watching our outfield players did not play too bad.

As an outing highly unfortunate that our best keeper was not chosen and our keeper who was dropped for leaking league goals.....was choosen. Mac was more agile and motivated from the touch line collecting the balls to keep in circulation as the minutes ticked down than our number 1 The outfield players did not play awful but they could not raise their game in the second half to a second sucker punch.

Hopefully this will not effect our league form as effort was still there to be seen. The Halstead contract needs to be settled and Long Live The Mac!!

desperado · Post by **desperado** » 18 Dec 2021, 17:32

If he's leaving in January why the hell play him today

Sunshine Gull · Post by **Sunshine Gull** » 18 Dec 2021, 17:37

Exactly Desperado. Playing him made zero sense. Bedding in the Polish Keeper would have been the sensible choice as he was originally signed as back up.

Moving on. Today was what it was let's not go too over the top. Gary made a mistake in keeper selection. We forgive and move on.

desperado · Post by **desperado** » 18 Dec 2021, 17:43

Even allowing for the keeper errors the fact remains that according to an eye witness and from listening on the radio, we looked vulnerable and couldn't defend crosses and couldn't create openings or test the keeper of a team 4th bottom in the league below.
Sorry, really not good enough.

Brewers boy · Post by **Brewers boy** » 18 Dec 2021, 18:13

Tin pot cup anyway.

culmstockgull · Post by **culmstockgull** » 18 Dec 2021, 18:23

I agree with the sentiments of many , this is a tin pot cup and winning monies may have just covered our overnight and travelling expenses, the radio commentary seemed to indicate we were not up for this today and Halstead confirmed that we need another experienced keeper as cover, Johnsons very terse post match summed it up well, they had more quality and deserved to win, I dont think he minded too much losing it was just the manner of the loss that bugged him.

Ottery gull · Post by **Ottery gull** » 18 Dec 2021, 18:51

Ok. Bad day at the office. Were the team ever going to be up for this game when they have the league to conventrate on. Plus a rather half hearted section which in itself spoke volumes and must have imparted itself in the minds of the players. No captain, no first choice goalkeeper.
We got what perhaps we deserved.

Ottery gull · Post by **Ottery gull** » 18 Dec 2021, 18:52

Ok. Bad day at the office. Were the team ever going to be up for this game when they have the league to concentrate on. Plus a rather half hearted selection which in itself spoke volumes and must have imparted itself in the minds of the players. No captain, no first choice goalkeeper.
We got what perhaps we deserved.

standupsitdown · Post by **standupsitdown** » 18 Dec 2021, 18:57

We were poor but probably wouldn’t have lost if Macdonald had been in goal. Poor decision to change the keeper.

grockle · Post by **grockle** » 18 Dec 2021, 19:10

Did we send the wrong goalkeeper to Gloucester? After his performance today, I hope I don't see another. My 1st chance to see us since Sutton (a), before lockdown. How good to be able to pay cash, not be forced to wear a mask, and not have any rigmarole about testing.

wbw · Post by **wbw** » 18 Dec 2021, 19:22

If Halstead is leaving in January, then the person who made the decision to play him today should be leaving as well.
Dropped from the first team because of a tendency to chuck goals away, guess what's going to happen today!!
Better to have forfeited the game than just give it away.

desperado · Post by **desperado** » 18 Dec 2021, 19:55

Tin pot cup ?
£98,250 alone for winning this competition.
with any add ons (gate receipts etc)
£4500 for winning today.

United62 · Post by **United62** » 18 Dec 2021, 20:11

What a surreal day. The Angels score...normally when at Longmead I'd be cheering with the rest of the home contingent...today was weird with one of my favourite players in an Angels shirt netting against the team I have supported for well over 50 years. Then David (sic) Wright gets the equaliser and all I could manage was a wry smile and a hand clap. Half time came... do I swap ends? No, I didn't to start with as it didn't feel quite right attending Longmead and not standing behind the goal the Angels were attacking. A very odd feeling. Eventually my heart overruled my head and made our way to the North Stand to join the Yellow Army behind John Henlys goal in the hope that we could see a Torquay winner ... but, of course, this is Torquay United and of course the goal comes in front of the jubilant Blue & White Army to send The Angels in to round 4.

The only thing I enjoyed about today was the final whistle.

I hope that this never comes round again.

Quiz time: Did anyone spot the mistake on the cover of the match programme? ...just hope it's not an omen!

knightmaregull · Post by **knightmaregull** » 18 Dec 2021, 21:13

desperado wrote: ↑18 Dec 2021, 17:29 Well that's got to be our worst and most embarrassing defeat in our history hasn't it?
Losing to a team 4th from bottom of National League South , who have won 3 of 16 games and 1 of 9 home games all season. My contact at the game said it was an extremely poor and disappointing second half. Come on Gary get to the bottom of this , it's got to be an attitude/mentality/ lack of personal ambition / drive
problem if they can't compete and raise their game to overcome Tonbridge bloody Angels.
Not once but 3 times this season we've been outfought and been 2nd best to Conference South teams and not even the top half of that league. It's the only thing we had left this season , this really is a season to forget.

I suspect we could start a whole new thread on worse defeats and still be going at the end of the season!

I'll give you a starter for ten - Hinckley away, and that's without even giving it any thought!

As an aside, pleased to see National Obsession delete their tweet about Halstead. We all know that sometimes players just dont work out, to turn bad performances into personal attacks about character, motive or intent is totally unnecessary and flys against everything a lot of us older folk have learnt about mental health and depression in recent years. Doesn't look like it will work out for him here but let's not kick a man whilst he's down.

wbw · Post by **wbw** » 18 Dec 2021, 21:28

Last season we had what was generally thought to be the biggest budget in the league on a "shit or bust" effort to get back in the football league.
Having failed, this season was always going to be different and we have to accept that we are stuck in this dross of a league for the foreseeable future.
Surely we cannot just throw away decent prize money like we seem to have done today.
How long the owner puts up with thiscrap I don't know, but it can't be long before he just gets fed up.

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