FULL TIME - GULLS 0 KIDDY 1

Kiddy bring on Beardsley for Barnes-Homer in the 94th minute. The attendance is 2,749.
Nicko flings one last long throw into the box but Kiddy clear and that's it.

In the third minute of added time we have a pen. We think it was riley's hand.
Sills will take the kick and..............................................Bartlett dives low to his left and saves, pushing it away for a corner.

Handball. Penalty to Torquay

Benyon shoots inside the box after being found by Sills, but the ball bounces comfortably through to Bartlett.

There are two minutes left now, and Torquay are really pushing forward.
Bevan hits a giant clearance forward but it bounces through harmlessly for a goal kick.
Kiddy bring on Luke Jones for Justin Richards.
Torquay force a corner in the last minute but it's headed clear. The fourth official is showing three minutes added time.

Bartlett makes another great save, diving at Wroe's feet to deny Torquay again. The Kiddy keeper has to be a contender for Man of the Match today.
Wroe gets a booking for dissent. He wanted a corner then.
Now we have one after a deep throw from Nicko, and Wroe heads over the bar.

We're into the last 10 minutes of a game we really can't afford to lose.
Hargreaves appears to be playing on the left wing now, with Thompson in the centre of midfield.
We have another corner which Nicko again whips in. The visiting defence scrambles it clear. We are throwing everything at it now.

That was certainly against the run of play, as they say, but we haven't half missed some chances today.
Now we'll see how we measure up.
Brian Smikle is coming on for the visitors, replacing Brittain.
And we are making another change, with Tyrone Thompson replacing Danny Stevens after 79 minutes.

GOAL - GULLS 0 KIDDY 1

And from the corner the visitors take the lead. The ball breaks to Martin Riley 10 yards out and his shot flies high into the top corner of the net.

With 20 minutes to go Hargreaves has just produced a great shot on the turn after a ball in over his shoulder by Nicko.
Bartlett flings himself to his left and palms it away for a corner.
But at the other end Kiddy are still a threat and Barnes-Homer has just broken away down the left. His cross is headed behind for their first corner.

In the 66th it's the same free-kick move again, with Wroe curling the ball into the box. This time it's Danny Stevens who gets the flick header to it, but again it's straight at Bartlett.
At the other end Justin Richards curls a shot in from the right but Bevan plucks it out of the air at the far post.

In the 63rd minute Wroe cuts in from the right and shoots left-footed. Bartlett gathers again.
And in the 64th Sills glances a header just wide from a Wroe free kick.
Benyon is getting stripped now down by the dug-out, and in the 65th he comes on to replace Green.

In the 59th minute Creighton sees a yellow card for a clumsy tackle on Sills. It was a foul all right, but the card was a bit harsh.
And on the hour we have a real scare. Barnes-Homer chases a long ball down the right for Kiddy. Bevans races out but doesn't get there. The cross finds Ferrell on the edge of the box but he can't get his shot away quickly enough and Hodges snuffs out the danger.

In the 53rd minute Sills glances a header from eight yards after a Mansell cross but it's another comfortable save for Bartlett.
At the other end Bevan reaches high into the sky to grab a cross from Brittain at the far post.
We're into the 56th minute. still making chances. And Bartlett throws himself bravely at Carlisle's feet to block a shot after clever work between Sills and Green to get it rhough to him.
Great goalkeeping, that.

Five minutes gone and we have a corner on the right, to be taken by Nicko.
And it flicks off Carlisle's head and hits Woods at the far post, bouncing harmlessly behind.
Now Nicko hits a great crossfield ball which Sills steers into the box only for Creighton to get there just ahead of Carlisle.

In the first minute Danny Stevens has a shot blocked, and Wroe drives one just wide from the edge of the box.
It's a bright start and a good move to set up the chance.

We're under way at the start of the second half. There are no changes on either side.

So, the words 'Elliot' and 'Benyon' are automatically on everyone's lips this half-time, but the man himself is still out in the middle kicking a ball around with the rest of the bench.
But if we keep creating chances and chucking them away, he's got to come on, surely?

HALF TIME - GULLS 0 KIDDY 0

With five minutes of the half remaining, there's a steady stream of fans making their way off the Pop Side for a little liquid refreshment.
Wayne Carlisle has just blocked Andy Ferrell out of sight of the ref. Ferrell is raging but to no avail.
There will be just one minute of added time to play. And that's it. Not a classic by any means, but an absorbing contest. My 1-0 still looks a decent bet.

In the 37th minute Carlisle meets a Nicholson cross from the left with a firm header from about penalty spot range, but it's over the bar.
We are making plenty of chances but haven't managed to hit the target often enough. Apart from the one acrobatic stop from Sills, all Bartlett's saves have been pretty straightforward.

In the 32nd minute there's another great chance spurned by Green. Stevens puts him in in the inside left slot, with Sills running alongside him. Green turns his defender and then shoots weakly straight at Bartlett when a ball to Sills or, frankly, a decent shot, would have been the right option.

It's another corner over on our left, our fourth. Carlisle goes for the near post this time but again Kiddy deal with it comfortably. Sills lashes the loose ball high and wide, probably now bouncing down Cary Park just behind Wroe's effort.
The Gulls have no players on the glove-wearing List of Shame today, by the way. Kidderminster, which is up north, boast three - Barnes-Homer, Richards and Brittain.
And guess what, Wroe has just celebrated the arrival of the 30-minute mark with another shot way out into the road.

We're a quarter of the way through the match and it's very, very tight.
Wroe takes the prize for the most off-target shot of the day with one that may still, at the time of writing, be heading for Babbacombe Downs.

Lee Baker tries a shot from 30 yards for Kiddy but it's high and wide, getting higher and wider until it hits someone in the Family Stand.
Danny Stevens has a shot deflected behind for another corner to be taken by Wayne Carlisle. But again Kidderminster defend it well.

Kiddy are building patiently through midfield and beginning to fashion a few chances.
Bevan is quick to get off his line and grasp a through ball from Brittain.
A free kick from Brittain is cleared and Kiddy give away possession with a foul on Lee Hodges.
17 minutes gone and it's quiet, as they used to say in the Westerns........too quiet.......

Nicky Wroe tries his luck from 20 yards and the shot is deflected wide for a corner.
There are 10 minutes on the clock and we have another corner. Danny Stevens swings it in but it comes to nothing.

There are a couple of hefty tackles flying in here. Nicky Wroe perpetrates the latest one and Russell Penn goes flying. Brittain has a shot from the free-kick but it curls well wide.

Now Danny Stevens has a go in the fifth minute from similar distance. this one is on target but it's an easy gather for Adam Bartlett in the Kiddy goal.
In the sixth minute Sills hits a tremendous volley right-footed from the right of the Kiddy goal but Bartlett pulls off a great reflex save.

And after 14 seconds Matt Green is released through the centre by Hargreaves with just the keeper to beat. But he shoots early, from 20 yards, and screws the ball weakly wide. Shocker.

The teams are out, and the mascot looks as if he is about to keel over with frostbite.
Kidderminster are in red and white halved shirts with one red sleeve and one white. They have white shorts and red socks.
And we're off, kicking the way we like it, towards the Babbacombe End in the first half.

Banners in the away end include 'Forza Kiddy' and 'Championi'. There are more than 50of their fans in there shielding their eyes from the low sun as the players kick around in the middle.
DT has just reminded us that the Bevanator had a loan spell at Kidderminster, so that'll add another little edge to the game today.
And, he says: "There will be bookings today".
Game on...

Press box sweepstake predictions range from the conservative (my 1-0) to the extravagant (a 5-0 from Darryl Haggan), but we're all going for a Torquay win.
For the second home game running we start the day in second place and line up against the team in fourth. Histon were the last fourth-placed team the Gulls put to the sword, so let's hope for some more of the same.
A win and we close the gap to Burton. Anything else, and we slip into the mess of the play-off places. This would be a really good game to win.

GULLS V KIDDERMINSTER

WELCOME to a chilly Plainmoor, where the sun is shining down from a blue sky but the temperature is down in the low numbers.
There is one change in our side, with Danny Stevens in for the injured Mustapha Carayol. So we are Bevan; Mansell, Woods, Hodges, Nicholson; Carlisle, Hargreaves, Wroe, Stevens; Sills, Green. On the bench are Brough, Robertson, Benyon, Thompson and Adams.
Kidderminster also line up 4-4-2. They are Bartlett; Lowe, Creighton, Riley, Baker; Brittain, Bennett, Penn, Ferrell; Richards, Barnes-Homer. on the bench are Jones, Moore, Coleman, Smikle and Beardsley. The Moore is Stefan Moore, brother of West Brom's Luke.
Referee is Simon Beck from Essex.

FINAL SCORE - GULLS 4 HISTON 1

There will be three minutes to add.

GOAL - GULLS 4 HISTON 1

84 minutes gone and Sills makes it 4-1, netting from a yard out after Woods knocks a Nicholson corner back across goal from the far post.

Nicko hammers a shot against the bar from 16 yards after 79 minutes.

Sills is on the deck now after a foul. We think this is the first time either physio has been on the field in this helter-skelter game.
There is under 20 minutes to go now. Sills is up and OK.

Bevan makes a great save from a Wright header in the 65th minute as Histon refuse to cave in.

GOAL - GULLS 3 HISTON 1

The phrase 'a proper old-fashioned ding-dong' springs to mind now.
Histon are giving it a right go and we might need to make a change or two.
62 minutes an d it's 3-1. Nicky Wroe runs onto a throuygh ball by Tim Sills from the half-way line and keeps his composure to steer it past Naisbitt.
Carayol replaces Dsane

Keystone Kops in the Histon box after 57 minutes as Matt Green races onto a great through-ball by Carlisle.
The keeper and two defenders finally manage to crowd him out, but it's a few seconds before anyone can find the ball. It's stuck under Oyebanjo, who manages to clear it.

We can't get out of our own half here, and it's not all down to the wind.
Histon are thinking they can get something out of this and we need to steady the ship for the next 10 minutes or so.

GOAL - GULLS 2 HISTON 1

And in the 49th minute Histon are right back in it. Danny Wright beat Mansell to a ball down the Histon left, then raced in on goal to drive a low shot past Bevan left footed from 15 yards.

Sure enough, after 15 seconds Jack Midson lashes a shot from an angle out on the left and Bevan has to fling himself to his right to push it round the post.

And we're under way again, playing towards the Ministand.
No changes to either side at the break. It will be interesting to see how Histon approach these first few minutes.
If they aren't into it straight away, they could be swept aside.

HALF TIME - GULLS 2 HISTON 0

Oh to be a fly on the wall in the Histon dressing room. They are supposed to be the team in form but they have been blown away in the first half.
The Gulls could be further in front, in fact.
Over the thump of the disco beat I'm sure i can hear the tea-cups flying in the dressing rooms down below...

The board man says one minute to be added on. This half has shot past.

I've got 2-0 in the sweepstake, by the way, but I suspect there are more goals in this game yet. Roscoe has got to be a good shout to complete the hat-trick. He's got his eye in in front of goal.
Chris Hargreaves has just come close, getting up to a Mansell cross at the far post but having the ball nicked off his head by a defender.
And Ada has been booked for a foul on Green. in fact he hauled him down by the scruff of the neck and might have got a red from some refs.

In the 35th minute Roscoe comes within a whisker of getting his hat-trick, stooping to head a low cross at the near post. It's on target but Naisbitt gets a hand to it and tips it round the post.

Carlisle misses a great chance in the 27th minute after a long clearance was headed on by Matt Green. Carlisle ran in on the keeper but couldn't beat him and Naisbitt batted the ball away.

GOAL - GULLS 2 HISTON 0

In the 22nd minute Dsane makes it 2-0 with a right-foot drive from 10 yards after a Nicholson throw from the left had been knocked down to him by Sills.

The game is a bit scrappy now with 18 minutes gone, and Histon are fighting their way back into it.
Gwillim looks a threat from all kinds of set pieces. His delivery of throws and free kicks is putting us under some pressure, but the Bevanator looks sound at the back today.

And there's bright sunshine here now with Torquay in full flight. The Pop Side filled up quite nicely just before kick-off and the crowd are enjoying this.

GOAL - GULLS 1 HISTON 0

In the third minute Dsane hits a snap volley from close range but it's straight at Naisbitt and the Histon keeper blocks it.
In the sixth minute Matt Green skins his full back and crosses for Carlisle, but his effort to set up Sills comes to nothing.
But from the ensuing corner the Gulls take the lead. Sills has an effort blocked from close range and Dsane lashes it into the net from about a yard out.

And seconds later Matt Green makes space for a shot 25 yards out, but drags it well wide. It looks as if Naisbitt is struggling with an injury, because he has a full back taking the kicks for him.

Inside the first minute Antonio Murray tries his luck from 25 yards for the visitors, but his shot is wide.

Good numbers on the Histon shirts today. They're in red and black with black shorts, and we shouldn't have any trouble reading the numbers on the back.
We're all in yellow, naturally, and will be playing towards the Babbacombe End with the winf at our backs.
And there are no glove wearers today, so no List of Shame.

There are 13 Histon fans here at the moment, and full marks to them for making such a long journey on a day when their other halves may have preferred them to be traipsing around a mall somewhere listening to Wizzard.

This is the fourth placed team in the BSP at home to the second placed, so it should be a good game.
John Beck is the second in command at Histon, so you can expect some up-and-at-em stuff. Having said that, you don't get to second in the league without being able to play a bit.

GULLS v HISTON

Welcome to Plainmoor on another chilly afternoon, with a weak sun poking through.
The teams are warming up in front of a sparse crowd, but there's plenty of time to go yet.
The team news for Torquay is that Matt Green will join tim Sills up frpnt, with fit-again Elliot Benyon having to make do with a place on the bench.
For Histon, Langston and Mitchel-King are both suspended, so manager Steve Fallon brings Neil Andrews into midfield and Lanre Oyebanjo into his defence.
So, the team line up as follows, both in 4-4-2 formation.
Torquay are Bevan; Mansell, Woods, Hodges, Nicholson; Carlisle, Hargreaves, Wroe, Dsane; Sills, Green. Subs: Robertson, Benyon, Thompson, Carayol, Stevens.
Histon are Naisbitt; Pope, Oyebanjo, Ada, Gwillim; Murray, Andrews, Simpson, Knight-Percival; Midson, Wright. Subs: Okay, Kennedy, Reeves, Welch, Sparkes.
Referee is Ray Lee of Essex.

FINAL SCORE - GULLS 2 BATH CITY 0

And that's that. A good job well done, and a place in monday's draw.
It wasn't a game to last long in the memory, but they were two well-taken goals and there were some good performances out there

In the 90th minute a fantastic ball through from Dsane finds Carlisle but again he shgots over the top.
There are three added minutes to play, and a Sills header brings an acrobatic save from Perrin.
The ball breaks loose to Nicko, but his shot flies in the general direction of the directors' box.

Bath force a corner and there's an outbreak of pushing and shoving in the goalmouth. Mr Barratt has a stern word with a couple of players and they get on with it. Good refereeing this afternoon, and not a card shown.
Richard Evans has a strike from the edge of the box, but Scott Bevan gathers it well.

Bath had a four against two break on there for a moment, but a decisive tackle by Mansell soons puts a stop to that.
With 82 minutes gone Bath are still giving it a go but surely the Gulls have done enough now?

And for Torquay Danny Stevens comes on after 77 minutes to replace Green.
Roscoe Dsane will go up front alongside Tim Sills, and immediately he creates a chance for the tireless Carlisle, who shoots high and wide.

Bath's last substitution is Scott Rogers coming on for Matt Coupe after 75 minutes.

72 minutes gone and Green forces a good save from Perrin with a 25-yard shot. we are beginning to play with some ease now.

GOAL - GULLS 2 BATH CITY 0

Roscoe Dsane outs the Gulls two up after 69 minutes.
Matt Green cuts in again from the right and squares for the unmarked Dsane in the centre. Roscoe steadies himself and sticks it past Perrin with what one can only describe as 'aplomb'.

66 minutes gone and we're on top without really threatening.
Wayne Carlisle has just flung himself at a Nicholson cross but his glanced header goes wide. Carlisle has been getting stuck in from the first minute today and, up to now, he would be my choice for Man of the Match.
But he takes a touch when a first-time shot might have given him a goal in the 68th minute.
There's another change for Bath. Edwards replaces Douglas.

In the 60th minute Matt Green, who has been largely anonymous up to now, bursts into the box with a great turn of pace but a defender dashes back to block his shot.
But moments later Gilroy goes close for Bath, lashing an effort across the face of goal after being put in by Evans.

There's a substitution for Bath in the 57th minute, with Dave Gilroy replacing Gethin Jones.

GOAL - GULLS 1 BATH CITY 0

LEE MANSELL puts the Gulls in front after 52 minutes.
Tim Sills fights to win the ball in midfield and sends Dsane on his way. The ball breaks to Carlisle whose shot is parried by Perrin, only for Mansell to knock the rebound in from a tight angle.

We're off, and Bath have a free kick on the edge of the box in the first minute of the half.
Hogg drives the kick into the wall and the danger is over for the moment.
And Simpson beats Nicholson down the Bath right in the 48th minute. It's a good low cross to the near post for Douglas. His flick is goal-bound but Bevan flings himself to his right and pushes it away. Good chance. good save.

Mustapha has had a change of boots now, and is warming up out in the centre in his orange pair.
That wasn't a great first half, to say the least. Chances were few and far between and we should have imposed ourselves a lot more than we have. Bath must be feeling they are in with a chance here.
The attendance is 1,176, by the way.

HALF TIME - GULLS 0 BATH CITY 0

Now Rollo is having some treatment after getting a bang on the head in a challenge with Carlisle.
The fourth official is out now, indicating two extra minutes to play at the end of the half.
Hargreaves spurns a decent chance on the edge of the box and Carlisle has an effort blocked in a frantic end to the half.

Bath have stretched us a bit now, with Hogg bursting into the box again, and Slocombe crossing for Douglas to glance a header wide in the 36th minute.
We have a corner in the 38th minute on the right but Nicko's corner doesn't get past the first defender.
Bath have us under a bit of pressure, and Jones has just fired a shot high over the bar from 30 yards. The visitors are growing in confidence, and we need a goal.

Stuart Douglas goes for the spectacular in the 27th minute, trying a bicycle kick from eight yards out after a cross by Lewis Hogg, but it bounces harmlessly away.
Best skill of the day so far goes to Bath's Gethin Jones, who does one of those step-over-stand-on-turn-around things to beat Roscoe. Nicko hauls him down to concede a free kick.
Now Bath's Adam Connolly is down after getting a bang on the head in a challenge with Hargreaves, but he's quickly up and OK after a little treatment.

In the 22nd minute Green makes room on the left to pull the ball back for Dsane, but his shot goes wide.
At the other end Rollo curls the ball in from the Bath left but it's an easy gather for Bevan.
Green and Hargreaves link up well on the edge of the box, but Green's shot is cleared.

Carlisle has just clattered into the ref in the heat of combat, but there's no harm done and they exchange friendly waves.
In the 18th minute Hargreaves stretches to reach a cross six yards out, but the ball goes high over the bar.
Bath's dreadlocked striker Stuart Douglas is getting a lecture from Mr Barratt for some backchat. Meanwhile Carlisle half-volleys over the top after a clever free kick move for Torquay. Still no goals, though.

Now it's a corner to Bath but while Jones meets it 10 yards out, his header is off target and easily dealt with.
The floodlights are on here, brightening up a gloomy afternoon.
At least the rain has stopped.

Carlisle heads for goal in the 10th minute after Bath fail to clear a corner but it's headed away by Slocombe. Then the ball breaks for Chris Hargreaves on the edge of the box but his driven shot is just over the bar.

And in the third minute Carlisle gets to a Nicholson cross from the left but his header is straight at Steve Perrin.
There are eight minutes gone now and it looks as if Carlisle is up for it, running at Slocombe down the wing.

Torquay, all in gold, play towards the Babbacombe end as we like it. Bath are in black and white striped shirts and black shorts.
It is absolutely impossible to read the red numbers on their backs, so bear with me.
Just two names on the glove-wearing list of shame this week. Roscoe Dsane for us and Chris Holland for them.
One minute gone and Wayne Carlisle curls a shot just wide from 25 yards.

Not that I have any room to talk, but Steve Perrin in the Bath goal is clearly no stranger to the pie shop.
However, if things go according to the usual form, he will now have an absolute blinder.

Five minutes to go to kick-off and the groundsman is out forking muddy patches.
The pitch looks in great condition considering the rain that's fallen. It's a credit to Mark Burd that it looks this good.

According to our Bath City sources, they will play a 4-1-4-1. So, try to keep up, it's Perrin in goal with Jones, Coupe, Holland and Slocombe across the back, skipper Jim Rollo sitting, Simpson, Hogg, Connolly and Evans across the middle and Douglas ploughing a lone furrow up front.
On the bench for Bath are Gilroy, Edwards, Rogers, Badman and Jones.
Referee is Wayne Barratt from the West Midlands.

And it has just started raining as the Gulls players come out to warm up.
Team sheets have arrived and we are, surprise, surprise, at full strength.
Bevan plays in goal with Mansell, Woods, Hodges and Nicholson across the back. It looks as if Carlisle will play on the right with Wroe and Hargreaves in the middle and Dsane - in after suspension to replace Danny Stevens - on the left. Matt Green - in for Benyon - will partner Tim Sills up front.
on the bench are Robertson, Thompson, Carayol, Stevens and Adams. Mustapha Carayol today plays in muted plain boots.

FA TROPHY - GULLS v BATH CITY

AND it's good afternoon from the Plainmoor press box, where we look out on a grey afternoon. Cold, a little damp and not many people here as yet to warm things up.
There's plenty of speculation about who will play for us today, amid fears that Elliot Benyon may not be fit. Also, will the manager rest any key players ahead of a tough game against Histon next weekend?

FULL TIME - GULLS 2 OXFORD 0

What a tremendous performance that was, in difficult conditions and with 10 men for the second half.
Benyon's finishing was deadly but there were good performances all over the pitch, notably from Bevan, Woods, Hargreaves and the double goalscorer.

We're deep in injury time, and Hutchinson has just shot over the bar for Oxford.
Matt Green is coming on to replace Benyon, who seems to have taken a bit of a knock.
What a great hour he gave us today.

There are four more minute to play. Not sure where that has come from, but we'll have to see it out.

Nicky Wroe makes himself space for a shot in the last minute but it is deflected wide.
Hargreaves is everywhere now. Tackling, blocking and generally disrupting everything Oxford are trying to do.

...and there's a conga going on down the Pop Side, AND Bevan has been named the Man of the Match, which is a just reward for a performance in which he hasn't yet put a foot wrong.
Two minutes to go now.

Now Benyon is chasing every loose ball. What a great performance again from Benyon, who will probably sneak the Man of the Match title now!

GULLS 2 OXFORD 0

AND Benyon makes it 2-0 after 82 minutes. Mansell crossed from the right, Elliott took the ball on his chest, turned and volleyed it into the corner past Turley.
What a great finish again from the young striker.
The 10 men are doing all right!

And the crowd today is 2,647.
Day fires another long throw into the Torquay box. Deering shoots from distance but Bevan gathers again.
The last 8 minutes can't go quickly enough.

Oxford are upping the pressure again now. A long throw by Matt Day causes some problems but the ball is cleared.

Corner to Torquay with 20 minutes to go after a mistake at the back for Oxford.
And Mr East once again rules against Torquay after a clash in the box. He may well have been right, but the home fans are not impressed.
Stevens for Carayol should be the next change, by the way. The orance boots are not doing the trick.
Oxford are making a change, and Groves - the Torquay boy - is coming on for Clarke.

In the 67th minute a Taylor cross brings another good gather from Bevan, who must be in line for Man of the Match.
And Day is getting a booking for hoofing the ball out over the Family Stand after being judged to have fouled Benyon.
It is pouring with rain now, adding to the overall wintriness of the occasion.

Half an hour to go and it's going to be a frantic finish. Oxford are raising the tempo steadily and trying to make the extra man count for them.

Now the ref has given Torquay a free kick and booked Oxford's Clarke right on the edge of the area. Had he played the advantage Sills had the ball in the net, but Turley would probably have made more of an effort to save.
And Sills drives the kick over the wall and over the bar.
In the 61st minute Taylor is coming on to replace Haldane for Oxford.

Constable shoots wide for Oxford in the 55th minute. It's a snapshot right-footed from about 12 yards. He had hardly any space there, and did well to get a shot in.
And Odubade has just turned on another amazing burst of pace to force a corner for Oxford. We can't get out of our own half at the moment, but fortunately when the chance does come it comes to Haldane and he shoots well wide.

Matt Day of Oxford drives in a low shot from wide on the left in the 49th minute. It's on target, but Bevan gets down to gather it safely.
And Mr East has given Oxford a free kick after a bit of grappling between Clarke and Tim Sills. It's fair to say the majority of the Plainmoor crowd disagree...

And off we go for what could be a very lively second half. Mustapha now appears to be wearing a pair of orange boots, and he's coming over to the left, with Benyon on the right.

Apparently the referee is saying he sent Roscoe off for 'slapping' the goalkeeper....good grief....

Chris Todd is making the half-time draw, and has just taken the microphone to thank the supporters for their backing in his battle with leukaemia.
He's getting a tremendous reception.

HALF TIME - GULLS 1 OXFORD 0

And Roscoe Dsane has been sent off. It was all down to a kerfuffle on the line. Billy Turley has clearly done something to Roscoe, and Roscoe appears to have retaliated. Turley sees yellow, Roscoe sees red.
Now Hargreaves has collected a booking after another melee in the Oxford six-yard box.
And that's half-time, with a bad-tempered end to the first period.

That's probably against the run of play, but we'll take it. And that's what Benyon gives you - pace and awareness, and a tremendous eye for goal.
And in the 44th minute we survive a scare. Haldane cuts in from the left, beating Mansell again. His cross is headed goalwards by Chris Hargreaves and only a smart save by Bevan prevents an own goal.

GULLS 1 OXFORD 0

SUPERSUB Elliot Benyon strikes in the 4oth minutes. Nicko flings in a long throw from the right, Sills flicks on and Benyon beats Turley to it a yard out at the near post.

And Benyon is on for Thompson right now. What a shout!
There are 36 minutes gone amd Paul Buckle has seen enough.

With 33 minutes gone, we're second best but still in this. We haven't posed a threat yet, and haven't got a single ball in to Tim Sills. Our crossing is very poor.
Oxford, on the other hand, look full of ideas.
Benyon on for Thompson at the break would appear to be a good shout, but will it happen?

In the 28th minute Mansell has caught Carruthers with a badly timed tackle. Mr East wants a word. It's a strong one, and Lee is now in no doubt that he won't do that again.
The free kick is curled in from the left and Scott Bevan meets it with a strong punch.

Mustapha has now launched Haldane into the advertising boards down by the dugouts. The Oxford winger looks a little shaken up, but he's back on after a spot of treatment.
In the 24th minute we are hit on the break, with Odubade scorching down the left and crossing for Hutchinson, but his shot is pulled across the face of the goal.

In the 16th minute we force a free kick wide on the right, but Nicholson's kick curls straight into the hands of Billy Turley.
And in the 18th the pink boots of Carayol create an opening for a cross but again it's no problem for turley.
After that frantic start by Oxford the game has gone a bit quiet now.
Goal coming, then....

And in the eighth minute Bevan has to be quick off his line to deny Constable after good work by Odubade.
Oxford have started well and we have yet to put them under any pressure.
The ref is having a sharp word with Constable after the Oxford striker fouls Steve Woods.
And in the 11th minute Carruthers curls a great free kick over the Torquay wall from 30 yards and Bevan is at full stretch to push it away for a corner.

In the sixth minute Constable has a shot deflected wide for a corner after a great run down the right from Deering.
It looks as if they are going to run at us down the flanks.

Oxford are in all-blue, and we, of course, are all in yellow.
On the left for Oxford in the perma-tanned Lewis Haldane, ex of Bristol Rovers. He always plays well against us, and in the third minute slips past Mansell an d sets up a chance which Hutchinson eventually sticks just over the bar.

Hargreaves, Mansell, Sills and Green are all ex-Oxford players of course.
And we're off, playing the Babbacombe way, just as we like it.

We were preparing to compile a list of shame of the glove-wearers today, but at this no-nonsense end of the football spectrum there is only one, and it's the pink-booted Mustapha Carayol.....oh dear.

The draw for the third round, whichever of these fine teams gets through, takes place tomorrow afternoon and is on ITV at 2.15pm. According to the FA website, the winners at Plainmoor today will be Ball 56.

Oxford's number 27 today is Richard Groves, a former Torquay United youth player whose parents run a hotel in the Bay.

FA CUP - GULLS v OXFORD

Welcome to a very cold but dry Plainmoor on FA Cup Second Round Day. A big day for all football fans, and this could be a great game.
Team news shows just one change to our side, with Danny Stevens dropping to the bench and Roscoe Dsane coming in. There is no place in the starting line-up for Elliot Benyon, though.
Oxford are unchanged.
So, we are Bevan in goal; Mansell, Woods, Hodges and Nicko across the back; Dsane, Hargreaves, Wroe and Carayol across the middle and Sills and Thompson up front. Mustapha is wearing pink boots, by the way....
On the bench we have Brough, Robertson, Benyon, Green, Stevens, Adams and Ellis.
Oxford are Turley in goal; Day, Foster, Clarke and Carruthers across the back, Deering, Murray, Hutchinson and Haldane across the middle and Constable and Odubade up front. On the bench are Burnell, Willmott, Fisher, Taylor, Hinchcliffe, Groves and Sampson.
Referee is Roger East from Wiltshire, a Football League ref.

A thoroughly convincing performance that takes us to the top, equals the wins record and beats the other one.
The players are over in front of the Pop Side giving and receiving plenty of applause. Everything has gone well, and you can't escape the feeling that the players have done this one for the absent Chris Todd.

FULL TIME - GULLS 4 LEWES 1

There are four minutes added on, mainly for Tabiri's injury.
Nicholson hits a cross from wide on the right this time, and Sills just can't make contact with it at the far post.
Now Carayol makes a great run in from the right, but his cross is tipped away from Benyon's head by Banks.

Torquay have a corner in the 86th minute. Cullip clears the danger.
Wroe builds another attack with a measured run through from midfield but Roscoe can't make anything of it and the moves breaks down.
Carayol is fouled by Thomas right on the edge of the box out on the right.
There are shouts for a penalty but the linesman had a good view. Nicko curls it in but it's wide of the far post.
Into the last minute now, and my jackpot hopes are evaporating.

Thomas shoots from a long way out for Lewes in the 84th minute, but it's no problem for Bevan. At the other end Sills shoots high and wide.
The match sponsors have voted Nicky Wroe the man of the match.

Bevan comes quickly off his line to deny Fenelon as the Lewes sub sprints through on a great pass.
We're in the 81st minute now. Histon have scored again at Stevenage, but as things stand we're still good for top spot.
Another big cross from Nicko and it looks as if a Lewes arm was up and made contact with the ball, but Mr Sainsbury is having none of it.

Tabiri is down in the centre circle in need of treatment. He's up, but walking like Long John Silver over to the Pop Side. I don't think he'll be on for much longer.
And Elliott replaces him after 77 minutes.
Nicko swings in a great corner from the right. Sills meets it at the far post but he sees it late and the header goes over the bar.
Another substitution, this time for Torquay. Carayol is on for Stevens, so no hat-trick for him, then.

Elliot must fancy this, and the fans really want him to do well.
Danny Stevens pings in a shot from long range but it's an easy catch for Rikki Banks.
And Elliot slips the ball into the net after 74 minutes after a through-ball by Dsane. It's a great finish but the flag is up for offside, harshly, we think.

Come on lads, we need a couple more and I'm quids-in. It's a big jackpot tonight, a massive £1.40.
Hat tricks for Sills and Stevens would do nicely.
And here comes Elliot Benyon, replacing Thompson after 69 minutes.

Now we have a free kick on the edge of the box after a foul on Roscoe in the 63rd. Wheeler is receiving some treatment before we can take it. We fancy Wroe to have a crack at it. Wheeler is off, replaced by Fenelon.
In fact it's Nicko who curls it with his left foot, just over the bar.

And Danny shoots just wide in the b61st minute, coming in from the right after being found with a great crossfield pass by Roscoe Dsane.
Tonight's attendance is 2,118.

Now Lewes force a free kick on the edge of the area, Woods fouling Taylor. And there aren't words to describe that lash-up. Lewes run the ball straight into the defence and Torquay have the ball back.

GULLS 4 LEWES 1

As things stand we'll go top tonight. Histon are winning at Stevenage, but not by as much as we are, and that's what matters.
The players are clearly on a mission tonight.
But Taylor pulls one back for Lewes after 52 minutes. Tabiri crosses from the left, Bevan doesn't get there and Taylor bundles it in from close range.
Shocker!

GULLS 4 LEWES 0

48 MINUTES gone and it's Danny Stevens to make it 4-0. A cross from the left by Nicko helped on by Tim Sills and Danny's a man alone at the far post about 15 yards out. He hits a textbook volley low into the net. Great technique. Great finish.
Someone's going to hit a hat-trick tonight.

And we're under way in the second half.

HALF TIME - GULLS 3 LEWES 0

What a bad time to have a technical meltdown!
Tim Sills made it 3-0 in the 45th minute, heading home from close range after a great Danny Stevens cross from the right.
Sills got there ahead of his marker and lifted the ball over the keeper.
Great goal, and that 6-1 doesn't seem such a bad shout after all.

Hargreaves just fails to connect with a Nicko cross from the left in the 40th minute. He was only about six yards out, too.
In the absence of any away fans in any numbers to raise the volume, the Pop Siders are singing a very rude song about Exeter at the moment. Good lads!

But there's still some fight left in Lewes, and Wheeler cuts in from the right to shoot wide.
And in the 33rd minute Standing shoots wide from the edge of the box after good work down the left by Thomas.
At the other end Thompson has volleyed over from about 10 yards out after a cross from the left. There are definitely more goals in this game.

GULLS 2 LEWES 0

Danny Stevens makes it 2-0 after 28 minutes. Chris Hargreaves chips into the box, there's a hopeless mix-up in the visiting defence, Tim Sills sticks a foot in to help it across the face of the goal and Danny knocks it in from about a foot out.

Free kick to Torquay just inside the Lewes half. It comes to an end with a cross from Mansell which Banks grabs easily.
Now it's a corner to Lewes after another good run by Wheeler and we don't make a great job of defending it. Bevan grabs the ball at the second attempt.
You know that 6-1? Can I have another go?

Now Taylor comes up with a shot on target for Lewes in the 21st minute. Bevan palms the ball away and Mansell clears, but this is not going to be a walkover.
With the midfield close-packed, it's hard to find a way through at the moment.

Aswad Thomas is making a few decent runs down the left for Lewes. Here's some sound advice for Torquay defenders: If you see Aswad coming, don't turn around...
OK, that's tonight's weak joke out of the way.
David Wheeler, making his debut for the Sussex side, shoots wide of the Torquay goal after 16 minutes.

In the 11th minute Michael Standing lashes the ball into the Torquay net for Lewes, but he's offside, or one of his team-mates is. It's a nice finish, and a reminder not to take our foot off the gas.

That's Tim's 12th goal of the season.
There have been some ambitious predictions up here in the box. I have gone for 6-1 in honour of a similar hammering of Newport County a few years ago.
To be honest, I'll settle for 1-0.

GULLS 1 LEWES 0

And we're off, with Torquay in yellow playing towards Babbacombe. Lewes are in pale blue and white, playing towards Ministand.
We have forced two corners in the first minute, Tim Sills heading one onto the bar after 35 seconds.
And it's 1-0 after 1m 35s. Tim Sills heads in from Nicholson's cross.
The players are holding up a number 6 shirt during their celebrations. That's injured Chris Todd's number.

Now there are FOUR Lewes fans and they have bunched up a bit. They are almost within speaking distance as the teams come out. Make that five.
Lewes appear to be wearing Charles 'Charlie' Charles' enormous white shorts.
Shouldn't take the mick, though. They'll score in the first minute if we do...

Off to my right there are TWO Lewes fans standing in the away end, and they're not even standing close to each other....

A good result could mean a lot of different things tonight.
A win would equal the club record of eight in a row, set under Kevin Hodges 11 years ago. Avoiding defeat would equal the club record of 15 games unbeaten.
And, most importantly, we could go top tonight....

TORQUAY v LEWES

GREETINGS from a chilly Plainmoor, where the team-sheets have just arrived in the press box.
We show one change, with Saturday's match-winner Mark Ellis dropping to the bench and Danny Stevens coming in.
So we line up with Bevan in goal; Mansell, Woods, Hodges and Nicholson across the back; Stevens, Hargreaves, Wroe and Dsane across the middle and Sills and Thompson up front. On the bench are Benyon, Green, Carayol, Adams and Ellis.
Lewes will line up 4-5-1 we believe. They have Banks in goal (not Gordon, Rikki); Barness, Cullip, Breach and Thomas across the back; Wheeler, Standing, Keehan, Tabiri and Wallis-Tayler across the middle and Scott Taylor on his own up front. Their bench comprises Fenelon, Graves, Richards, Elliott and Bell.
Barness and Taylor used to play for Argyle, Barness also having seen service with Bolton in the Premiership.
Danny Cullip is a familiar face from his Brighton days.
Referee is Mr Andrew Sainsbury from Wiltshire, about whom we know no amusing anecdotes yet.

FINAL SCORE - GULLS 2 EVESHAM 0

Three more minutes to go in the wind and the rain.
Danny Stevens - on for Carayol - gives us a cameo run across the pitch before setting up Sills, but Tim's shot is high and wide.
It's falling in stair rods now, and that's it. Onwards to Round Two!

Into the 87th minute now and the rain is falling steadily.
Into the 88th and Evesham have used up the last of their three subs.
This has been a goodm professional performance. Tricky opposition and tricky conditions.
Into the 89th and it's nearly job done.

There are eight minutes left on the clock now, and it looks as if the wind has finally gone from Evesham's sails.
Benyon is on for Thompson.

GOAL - GULLS 2 EVESHAM 0 75M

But there's nothing Hayden can do about Torquay's second goal in the 75th minute. Sills shoots from the edge of the box. it hits Hayden, maybe on the hands, and bounces up over Vaughan and into the net.
Now that SHOULD be enough.

What a let-off that was.
It's raining now and the wind has picked up just as the forecast said it would. The wind is with Evesham.
Dsane whips a shot in from 30 yards and it takes a deflection behind.
Nicko takes it, it falls to Carayol and Michael Hayden clears it off the line.

Penalty to Evesham! Steve Luckett shot from the edge of the box after a scramble and it hit someone's hand.
Scheppel drags it wide of Bevan's right hand post.
Dsane gets a yellow card for dissent.

Simon Fitter, who strikes a lovely dead ball, drives a lovely flat corner into the Torquay box in the 68th minute, but Woods and Hodges are untroubled in there and the ball goes out of play to safety.
Substitution coming up, by the look of it.
Roscoe Dsane has the ball in the net after 62 minutes but it's ruled out for offside. It looked as if Hargreaves came back from an offside position.
Now Evesham have taken off Fitter and brought on Lennon.

Mansell drives a shot into the side netting in the 52nd minute after a great move in which Nicky Wroe released Dsane and he rolled the ball across the field into Mansell's path.

No changes for either side at the break, and no sign of the red mist yet, either.
Hay has just sliced a shot over the bar from the edge of the box and in the 49th minute Owen drives one in which Bevan does well to hold in amongst the feet.

Best line of the day so far? Photographer Paul Levie to the St John Ambulance crew while Nathan Vaughan was rolling around on the ground: "He don't need a stretcher lads, he needs a F%$&*^%$ Bafta!"

And Exeter are losing at somewhere called Curzon Ashton. Glorious!

Apart from that mad five minutes of play-acting, Evesham have played well and the game isn't beyond them yet.
Hay and Owen are doing well, and the centre backs are coping well with Sills and Dsane. We are going to need to score again.
Maybe Benyon or Green could get a run?
Expect Evesham to come out with a bit of a red mist in their eyes.

HALF TIME GULLS 1 EVESHAM 0

And Hay has just produced a wonderful left foot shot from 35 yards which Bevan has tipped round the post for a corner.
And that's half-time - 1-0

There are three minutes added on in this first half.
The crowd are booing Hay when he gets the ball, which is a shame because he's a decent player. Still, every panto needs a villain.

Now Vaughan is rolling around on the floor after a 50/50 challenge with Tyrone Thompson , for which the Torquay striker has been booked.
The Evesham keeper was clutching his face but the pain has mysteriously transferred itself to his leg. Now he's taking the goal kick, which should have been a corner.
And now Hands is rolling around in front of the Pop side.
This is really embarrassing now. Not even Drogba would have tried that one on.

Evesham are still in this, though.
Hay, who looks their best player, swings a cross in from the left in the 31st minute and only a full-stretch punch by Bevan keeps it from reaching Steve Lutz.
Steve Woods has now been booked for a foul on Hay.
Hay gives it the full Drogba with a slump to the floor, but the referee isn't particularly bothered and Hay is back on his feet again.
He's a good player, and doesn't need it.
Now Sills and Steve Hands are squaring up in the Evesham box.
The referee is having a word with the linesman and now tells Hands and Sills to pack it in.

GOAL GULLS 1 EVESHAM 0 28 MINS

Evesham break well in the 24th minute and force a free kick after our Captain's Blogger Chris Hargreaves hauls Hay down. Fitter hoists it into the box but the Robins can't make anything of it.
And at the other end Tim Sills puts us in front after 28 minutes, heading in from close range from a Nicholson corner from the right, forced after some great play from Carayol and Dsane.
That's Tim's 10th goal of the season.

There's very little FA Cup magic about this so far. We are agreed in the press box that this is our favourite day of the whole season, but there isn't much going on out there to quicken the pulse as yet.
We are in the 20th minute, and despite some Owen trickery out on the right for Evesham, they can't get into our box.
At the other end Carayol has just fired in a great left foot shot from the edge of the box which Vaughan has tipped round the post.

In the 13th minute Nicko has a Rory Delap moment, hurling a throw into the box from the left flank.
Sills gets a flick header to it, but Vaughan gathers easily.
Bevan has just launched a mighty kick downfield, and Vaughan was grateful to catch it cleanly under his crossbar.

Eight minutes gone and no score, and very little to write about.
Torquay are playing some neat football in the midfield playing towards the Babbacombe End without making any real headway. Evesham, in red and white stripes, are defending well.
They have just attacked on the break but Danny Scheppel, whose two goals put Rushden out in the last round, has fired his shot high into the seats.

And we're off

Last of the pictures for today.
Hay looks lively and has just given Mansell a scare in the opening minute, but big Scott Bevan gathers the bouncing ball safely.

Evesham have indeed brought plenty of support with them, including a bloke wearing a shirt made up of half a Torquay shirt and half a Robins top.
And in the press box we have just fined Darryl Haggan £1 as he is the first person today to use the phrase: 'Well, it's their cup final.'

As far as interesting jobs go, we think Evesham's Vaughan and Lennon are roofers, so they'll be slated of course, and their Mark Owen is almost certainly NOT the Mark Owen out of Take That.
Gary Hay is playing with his broken hand in plaster.

And we're unchanged for the fourth game running, with Scott Bevan in goal; Lee Mansell, Steve Woods, Lee Hodges and Kevin Nicholson across the back; Roscoe Dsane, Chris Hargreaves, Nicky Wroe and Mustapha Carayol across the middle and Tim Sills and Tyrone Thompson up front.
Our seven-man FA Cup bench comprises Michael Brough, Elliot Benyon, Danny Stevens, Steve Adams, Mark Ellis, Matt Green and Jordan Charran.
Evesham will line up 5-3-2 with Nathan Vaughan in goal; Simon Fitter, Anthony Watson, Steve Hands, Steve Luckett and Michael Hayden across the back; Steve Lutz, Danny Scheppel and Mark Hands in the middle and Mark Owen and Gary Hay up front.
On their bench of just six are Danny Lennon, Michael Batchelor, Allando Davis, Leon Woodley, Joe Clarke and Tom Etheridge.
Referee is Darren Sheldrake from Surrey.

GULLS V EVESHAM

CUP fever again, this time with the visit of Evesham United in the first round of the FA Cup.
Evesham have never been this far in the competition before, and the word is that they are bringing busloads of fans for a big day out. And that's what the cup is all about.
It's fine and dry at the moment, but the forecast for later on is shocking.
Live coverage starts when the team-sheets arrive in the press box. Don't be late!

Gulls go third!

TORQUAY United's 2-0 win at home to Mansfield on Saturday afternoon lifted them into third place in the Blue Square Premier.
Goals from Roscoe Dsane and Steve Woods gave the Gulls victory on an afternoon when wind and rain made conditions tricky. Afterwards manager Paul Buckle paid tribute to the team's determined performance.
Full story, reaction, pictures and comment in Monday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk
Apologies for the lack of a live blog from this afternoon's match. Normal service will be resumed for the FA Cup tie against Evesham next weekend.

Torquay will play Evesham United in the First Round of the FA Cup at Plainmoor on November 8.
More live match blogging on Saturday November 1 when Mansfield are the visitors to Plainmoor. in the meantime, follow the latest from Plainmoor at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

The draw for the first round proper is on ITV on Sunday.

FINAL SCORE GULLS 4 CHIPSTEAD 1

And that's that. The scoreline makes it look a little more comfortable than it was.
Chipstead are going down to the Babbacombe End to applaud their fans. They're also getting a warm reception from the Pop Side. They came and gave it a go, and Coleman goes home with the distinctions of having scored the best goal of the afternoon and having picked up the strangest booking of the season.

GOAL - 88 MINS - GULLS 4 CHIPSTEAD 1

RIGHT - two carbon copy goals in two minutes for Tim Sills. Both times Carayol broke down the right and sent in low crosses, both times Sills got a touch to them at the near post and steered them past Wastell.
That's the kind of finishing that makes the difference on days like these. The scoreline now looks a bit harsh on Chipstead.
Torquay make a double substitution, with Sills and Thompson going off for Benyon and Charran.
Young Jordan is a free-scoring trainee from Barnstaple, apparently.

GOAL - 87 MINS - GULLS 3 CHIPSTEAD 1

Now Bevan misses a punch on a deep cross from the Chipstead right. The ball bounces loose but Nicholson tidies up.
With seven minutes to go Fred Fleming diverts the ball across the face of his own goal and out for a Torquay corner. They deal with that one, but almost immediately Fleming knocks a Carayol cross behind for another.
And guess what. Hargreaves whips in a cross from the left and who gets there just ahead of Sills to put it behind for a corner? Fleming.

We can only assume that Coleman was booked for Impersonating An Officer In Her Majesty's Navy, which is probably still a hanging offence...

The attendance is exactly 1,800.
That really was some strike by Coleman, good enough to grace any match.
Chris Hargreaves goes down under a challenge by Wareing. our skipper is getting wound up here by some niggling tackles.
Meanwhile Fred Fleming has gone down with cramp from our sapping turf. After all, it's their cup final....

GOAL - 69MINS - GULLS 2 CHIPSTEAD 1

Another strong run down the right by Carayol earns another corner in the 65th minute.
And there are punches flying in the Torquay penalty area as the visitors prepare to take a free kick.
The ref is talking to Hargreaves and Delaney, but there are no cards as yet. Now the linesman calls the ref over and he marches back on to book Delaney.
The free kick is finally taken and Daryl Coleman drives it into the top corner of the net from all of 30 yards. That's a wonderful goal.
Coleman rushes over to the bench, grabs an admiral's hat from someone and puts it on to celebrate.
In a stirring display of Jobsworth-ness, Mr McLaughlin duly books him for his nautical shenanigans.

Nicholson goes into the referee's book in the 63rd minute for a foul out on our left.
Oakins can't get to the curled free kick from the right, and there are loud appeals for a penalty from the Chipstead players and fans.
Nothing doing.

Nicholson drives the free kick just over from 35 yards.
Andrew Wareing is on for Nathan Campbell for Chipstead.
Thompson crosses from the right in the 60th minute, finding Dsane at the far post, but Roscoe's 'shot' is........OK, let's move on.

Thompson races onto a flick by Sills in the 53rd minute and his shot from a narrow angle is scrambled behind by Wastell.
Then in the 54th O'Shea goes close with a header for Chipstead, angling his effort back across goal after a cross from the right.
Chipstead's Reis Aslan is in the book after 55 minutes for pulling back Carayol.

In the 48th minute it's Dsane again, cutting in from the left and shooting from 18 yards. This time Wastell is down smartly and holds the ball.
Torquay force a corner in the 50th minute after a good run down the right by Carayol. It falls to Woods four yards out at the back post but he's not expecting it and it goes high over the bar.

Under way again, and in the first 25 seconds of the half Roscoe Dsane fires in a right foot shot from the edge of the box which Wastell just tips round his post.
And moments later Oakins gets his head to a Smith cross at the other end but it's an easy gather for Bevan.
Lively start to the second half.

HALF TIME - GULLS 2 CHIPSTEAD 0

It was bound to happen! The minute we start doubting, the Gulls go and score.
A good half, but they are trying to tip-tap it in a bit, instead of grabbing the game by the scruff of the neck.
Chipstead are giving it a go, but they are not a great side and the second half, with Torquay playing towards the Ministand end, should see us ease away. Shouldn't it.....?

Mansell slices wide in the 43rd minute after being put in thanks to some tidy play by Thompson and Wroe, and in the 44th Wroe brings a good save from Wastell with a low drive from the edge of the box.
This is more like it, Torquay.

GOAL - 40MINS - GULLS 2 CHIPSTEAD 0

That's more like it!
Thompson scores again from close range, firing through Wastell's legs after Woods had headed a Carayol cross back across goal.
Really poor defending from Chipstead.

Hargreaves meets a Carayol corner at the far post in the 32nd minute but can't direct it towards goal.
And in the 36th Carayol heads over from a Nicholson cross from the left.
We are very subdued here, and in danger of letting Chipstead back into the game. People who saw us give Ebbsfleet a hiding last weekend are saying this performance is the exact opposite. More urgency required, a message they will probably get in no uncertain terms from Messrs Buckle and North in a few minutes...

In the 28th minute Hodges is down with a bang on the head after an aerial clash, but he's back on his feet again after a bit of attention from Damien Davey.
Chipstead nearly equalise in the 30th minute, with Smith floating in a cross from the right, Aslan heading back across goal and only a brave block from Bevan denying O'Shea on the line.

Smith has just made a strong run through the midfield as well. Chipstead have definitely come to have a go, and Torquay are trying to do everything with clever flicks and touches. At the moment it's not really working.
What we need is a good old-fashioned slog.

In the 19th minute Chris Head gets a yellow card for a foul on Carayol.

Chipstead force a corner on the right and it's a good one, an inswinger taken by Head. Bevan catches well.
In the 15th minute Carayol cuts in from the right and his shot is deflected wide.

GOAL - 9MINS - GULLS 1 CHIPSTEAD 0

Tyrone Thompson puts Torquay a goal up after nine minutes, shooting home from six yards at the near post after a clever run and cross from the right by Carayol.
Moments later Thompson misses a great chance right in front of goal, too.

Chipstead have started brightly and will clearly be using their wide men Aslan and Josh Smith

Aslan slips past Mansell in the first minute but his curling cross from the left is an easy take for Bevan.
There are about 60 Chipstead fans behind Wastell's goal. A couple of the better-refreshed ones appear to have taken their shirts off. Brave boys.

And we're off - Torquay in all yellow playing towards the Babbacombe End and Chipstead in green and white hoops, black shorts and black socks er...playing the other way.

And the referee is Matthew McLaughlin of Bedfordshire. I have asked around about him and am told 'he looks like Shaun North and is shorter than Danny Stevens'. So there you go.
Best moment so far? Mr McLaughlin jogging past six-foot-six Scott Bevan during the warm-up, and Scott looking round to see where the voice was coming from before looking down to see the ref.

OK, Chipstead have warehouseman James Wastell in goal. He's their skipper.
Right back is Ashley Reid, centre backs Fred Fleming and university student Jake Delaney and left back Chris Head, who is a bank manager. Reis Aslan plays on the right with Daryl Coleman and Nathan Campbell in central midfield and Josh Smith on the left. Up front they have student Dominic O'Shea and scaffolder Danny Oakins, whose hat-trick against Atherstone got Chipstead to this game.
On the bench are Andrew Wareing, Liam Shirley, Mark Wardell, Neil John, Joe Gant, Lee Sidwell and Alec Brown.
Sidwell is the brother of Aston Villa's Steve Sidwell, who came through the youth ranks at Chipstead.

So, with Chris Robertson picking up an ankle injury in training and Wayne Carlisle not figuring today, we have Scott Bevan in goal; Lee Mansell, Steve Woods, Lee Hodges and Kevin Nicholson across the back; Roscoe Dsane, Nicky Wroe, Chris Hargreaves and Mustapha Carayol across the middle and Tim Sills and Tyrone Thompson up front.
The FA Cup allows seven subs on the bench, so we have youth team players Richard Westcott and Jordan Charran joining Michael Brough, Elliot Benyon, Danny Stevens, Steve Adams and Mark Ellis.

Autumnal, that's the word this afternoon.
Plainmoor is a grey and chilly place with 40 minutes to go to kick-off, but the magic of the FA Cup should light things up a bit.
Chipstead are out warming up in front of the Pop Side. Teams coming soon.

FA Cup - Gulls v Chipstead

UP for the Cup? We are, and we guessed you would be too. Follow all the action from Plainmoor on Saturday afternoon as it happens by logging on to this blog.
We'll be there in good time for kick-off with the teams and the atmosphere, then reporting throughout the match as the action unfolds.
If you can't be at Plainmoor, you'll want to be logged on here!

CAPTAIN'S BLOG

Torquay United skipper Chris Hargreaves is shouldering the blogging duties with his unique insights into life at Plainmoor. Read the latest at chargreaves.blogspot.com
Meanwhile, keep checking back to this blog for live coverage of home matches at Plainmoor.
The best daily news service from Plainmoor is in the Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

We're up to eighth place after Saturday's outstanding win over Stevenage, and if we can do the same to Oxford on Thursday night we could be up into the play-off places.
Six games unbeaten, and 16 points out of a possible 18. Who'd have thought that as we struggled to beat Northwich?
In today's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk we've got reports, pictures and reaction from the Stevenage game. No reaction from Boro boss Graham Westley, however. He emerged after 45 minutes with his players in the dressing room on Saturday with a 'no comment'.

FINAL SCORE - GULLS 3 STEVENAGE 0

What a result, and a terrific performance.
Steve Woods shades man of the match for me, but Hargreaves, Sills and Carlisle have all been right in there.
Good stuff. Bring on Oxford on Thursday night!

FINAL SCORE - GULLS 3 STEVENAGE 0

What a result, and a terrific performance.
Steve Woods shades man of the match for me, but Hargreaves, Sills and Carlisle have all been right in there.
Good stuff. Bring on Oxford on Thursday night!

There are three minutes of added time to go. We have brought on Thompson and Carayol for Dsane and Green.
Who'd have thought we'd get three AGAINST the conditions!

GOAL - GULLS 3 STEVENAGE 0

Nicky Wroe makes it 3-0 with a great volley after 87 minutes after a cross from the left by Nicko.

Stevenage are making their third and last substitution with 10 minutes to go. Have we put the game beyond them now? Let's hope so.
Morison is certainly getting frustrated and Mr Kinseley is having a word with him and Steve Woods.

GOAL - GULLS 2 STEVENAGE 0

On 70 minutes Tim Sills makes it 2-0. Carlisle crosses from the right and Sills meets it with his head, then gets a second header to it to steer it over Day from eight yards.
Great stuff!

GOAL - GULLS 1 STEVENAGE 0

67 minutes gone and Chris Robertson puts us in front. Nicko floats a corner from the left to the far post, Hargreaves heads it back across goal and Robertson heads it in powerfully from eight yards.
It's all going on here, and Roscoe has a shot cleared off the line moments later.

The weather is getting worse if anything, and Wroe has just fired a decent chance over the top after some clever approach play by Roscoe and Wayne Carlisle.
There are 65 minutes gone now, and while we're using the conditions well, we're susceptible on the break when the ball goes over the top.

This is really lively now. Matt Green bursts through into the box in the 57th minute but Albrighton throws everything at it and gets a brave block in.
And Woodsy has just cleared off the line after Morison steers a shot past Bevan.

Morison has missed a great chance for Borough in the 48th minute, shooting wide with just Bevan to beat after being put through by Cole.
And Bevan has saved well from Vincenti down low to his left.
Hargreaves has headed a great chance wide from six yards after a cross from the left by Roscoe. Maybe he saw it late, but it was there for the scoring...

Torquay have a corner in the first 30 seconds of the half, and they have another immediately afterwards as Albrighton chests the ball behind.
But we can't make anything of it.
Now we concede a corner after Sills loses possession and puts us on the back foot.
Fortunately nothing comes of that either.
It's a lively first three or four minutes.

So, can we win this game against the conditions? Stevenage will be pleased to have got through that 45 minutes with their goal intact, and there's not much doubt that Chris Day is the man of the match up to now.
It doesn't look as if there are going to be any half-time subs, as both teams have all five replacements kicking around out on the pitch.
Kenny Veysey is putting Big Scott Bevan through his paces down at the Babbacombe End, making him kick into the wind and rain.

HALF TIME - GULLS 0 STEVENAGE 0

Morison has just summed up Borough's first half by passing a free-kick gently over the goal-line when it should have gone to Cole. it probably worked a treat on the training ground, but it just brought hoots of derision today.
Scott Laird is down in injury time after getting a whack in the face, but he's OK and back on the field with a bloody nose.
And that's the break.

In the 37th minute Green has another great chance in front of goal, but his shot on the turn is an easy gather for the keeper.
On one of their rare forays up to the Ministand end, Stevenage force a corner, but they still can't manage to give Big Scott Bevan any meaningful work to do.
Steve Woods is having a great game at the back for us. Whenever Morison and Cole do get through, they're coming up against a Woodsy on top form.

Stevenage are struggling to get out of their own half at the moment, but much of that may be down to the conditions.
Big Scott Bevan may have a little more to do after the break.
In the 32nd minute Roscoe drives one just wide of the left-hand post after a clever header from Sills.

Day is keeping Stevenage in the game at the moment. In the 27th minute he saves from Green, palming the ball away in his top left corner.
Now he is racing out of his box to head the ball clear. Roscoe spots him off his line, sets himself, takes aim, and chips the ball into the advertising boards.....

Chris Robertson makes Day save in the 20th minute with a drive from the edge of the box.
Nicko drives a free kick into the wall and Sills has a shot charged down by Albrighton. And Day makes a great reflex save from Green as the Torquay striker spins and hits a loose ball eight yards out.
We're right on top now.

Wayne Carlisle looks to be right on his game today. He has just left the Boro left back on his backside before crossing for Matt Green to head wide.
That's 15 minutes on the clock and no score.

In the fifth minute Carlisle pings in a great cross from the right but Roscoe can't quite meet it at the near post.
The rain is blowing in clouds down the pitch behind the Gulls, who are attacking the Babbacombe End.
Carlisle tries his luck from 25 yards but it's an easy save for Chris Day.
And Roscoe fires one in from the left in the 10th minute, but again Day hangs on.

And it is a 4-3-3 for us, when we're going forward at least. Dsane will play on the left.
Stevenage force a corner in the third minute, but it comes to nothing and Albrighton is caught offside.

There's a minute's silence before the game today to remember both former director Tony Cavanna and the legend Tommy Northcott, both of whom died recently.

And the team sheets have thrown us a bit of a curve.
Roscue Dsane comes in for the injured Elliot Benyon for us, and Wayne Carlisle is back from injury, relegating Lee Hodges to the bench.
But does that mean a 4-3-3 for us, with Roscoe joining Matt Green and tim Sills up front?
Anyway, we have Scott Bevan making his home debut in goal; Lee Mansell, Steve Woods, Chris Robertson and Kevin Nicholson across the back; Carlisle, Nicky Wroe, Chris Hargreaves and, maybe, Roscoe across the middle, with Sills and Green up front. On the bench are Thompson, Hodges, carayol, Stevens and Adams.
Stevenage are Day; Wilson, Oliver, Albrighton and ex-Gull Scott Laird at the back; probably Martin, Bostwick, Henry and Vincenti across the middle and Cole and Morison up front. Morison, with eight goals, is the BSP's top marksman this season.
On the bench for the visitors are ex-Gulls keeper Ashley Bayes, Anaclet, Mills, Willock and Anderson.
Referee is Nick Kinseley from Essex. All we know about him is that he booked Danny Stevens for over-celebrating at Aldershot last season, and he likes to make his presence felt.

GULLS v STEVENAGE LIVE

Half an hour to go to kick-off, and it's a gloomy autumnal Plainmoor, weather-wise. Light rain, a blustery wind and no chance of a glimpse of Haytor over the roof of the Pop Side today.
The team sheets are a little late, so we're watching the Gulls warm up while we wait. They have just done a strange kind of high-fives routine, and Mustapha Carayol has just put a shot into the directors box from 10 yards in the warm-up. Get it over with before kick-off, eh?

Elliot Benyon is likely to miss the visit of Stevenage on Saturday with a hamstring injury, according to the manager today.
Chris Todd and Mark Ellis are also still sidelined, but Chris Robertson and Wayne Carlisle are likely to be fit.
There's a full preview in Friday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk.

Meanwhile, don't forget you can follow the Stevenage match as it happens on this blog throughout Saturday afternoon.

How will the credit crunch hit Torquay United?
Chairman Alex Rowe answers this and a few other tough financial questions in Wednesday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the BSP Northwich have given manager Dino Maamria permission to go home and do a bit of gardening while certain club matters are resolved.
Nice weather for it, Dino...

TRIBUTES are pouring in after the death of Plainmoor hero Tommy Northcott.
A full obituary by David Thomas, with contributions from Robin Stubbs, John Benson and others, appears in Tuesday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk
And on our back page today there is one of those great football pictures, taken in front of the Pop Side in 1966 with Tommy in full flight. You can almost smell the Bovril and the Woodbines...

WREXHAM 1 GULLS 1

ANOTHER great result on the current run, and there's plenty to say about it in Monday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk
We have reports, pictures and reaction, plus news that loaned keeper Martin Rice, curently plying his trade down at Truro, is likely to be our number one choice for cup matches this year. That means Truro won't be able to play him in their cup campaigns.
And there's some sad news today, with the death of Gulls legend Tommy Northcott. Tommy, who played more than 400 games for us, was 76 years old.

Injuries could play a big part in team selection for the trip to Wrexham.
Scott Bevan will play in goal up at the Racecourse Ground, but beyond that it's all a bit vague.
Chris Todd, Wayne Carlisle, Mark Ellis and Chris Robertson have all joined Michael Poke on the treatment tables. Ellis won't be fit for the game, but the other three are possibles.
Full match preview in Friday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

The Gulls have signed Shrewsbury keeper Scott Bevan on a month-long loan as cover for the injured Michael Poke.
Bevan's appearances have been limited with the Shrews this season after undergoing knee surgery himself in the summer.
Full story in Friday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

FGR 1 GULLS 2

SUBSTITUTE Matt Green’s searing drive, in the third minute of stoppage time, hauled Torquay United – with striker Tim Sills in goal! – back for a never-say-die victory in a remarkable Westcountry derby against Forest Green Rovers at the New Lawn last night.
Their equaliser was also a brilliant effort, a show-stopping volley by Elliot Benyon, also a sub, in the 69th minute.
United had to weather all sorts of problems, starting with the loss of goalkeeper Michael Poke to a thigh injury after only 17 minutes.
With no keeper on the bench, Sills went into goal, and what a heroic performance he put on – saving, catching and punching as if his life depended on it.
United also lost centre-half Chris Todd, to a groin injury, in the 39th minute.
It seemed a long way back when Rovers took the lead on the stroke of half-time through Jonathan Smith.
But United would not accept defeat and roared back in a memorable second half.
Benyon and Green supplied the finishing touches, but along the way Rovers missed a penalty through Adriano Rigoglioso and also hit the bar through Darren Jones.
Nothing, though, could deny Paul Buckle’s Gulls a fourth successive victory.
United had to make one change because leading scorer Wayne Carlisle had picked up a hamstring injury, so Buckle recalled loan transfer-listed Dsane on the right wing.
Rovers boss Jim Harvey took action after the 3-0 home defeat to Stevenage at the weekend, making three changes.
Out went Lee Molyneaux, the injured Simon Clist and striker Michael Symons, and in came Curtis McDonald, Les Afful and Andy Mangan in attack.
Playing towards their own supporters in the first half, United were intent on taking no risks in the early stages, Lee Hodges trying to turn the Rovers defence as a first priority.
Sills won a couple of early headers without finding enough support, but in the ninth minute it was a flick-on by Tyrone Thompson which forced Rovers goalie Ryan Robinson to race out of his area to clear from Sills.
But three minutes later Rovers set up the first real opening, Jon Smith whipping the ball out to Mohamed on the left.
Mohamed cut in past Lee Mansell and let fly with a 20-yard right-foot shot which flew just over Poke’s bar.
Within moments it was clear that Poke was struggling badly with his right thigh.
It looked as if he would have to go off and, after treatment from physio Damian Davey, the on-loan Southampton goalie did just that.
Referee Paul Tierney gave United plenty of time to sort out the problem, but eventually it was Sills going into goal.
And striker Matt Green was sent on to take Sills’ place in attack in the 17th minute.
It was immediately obvious that Sills’ kicking would be suspect, but his first catch of the ball, admittedly one which ran through to him on the ground, was secure enough.
Rovers thought they had taken the lead in the 19th minute when Andy Mangan lobbed Sills from long range, but the goal was disallowed for a push by Mangan on Steve Woods.
Sills was smartly off his line to catch a loose through-ball after 25 minutes, and he followed with a thumping clearance which any keeper would have been proud of.
United nearly got in on it too, Dsane almost getting round the back past McDonald.
The most important thing was to keep the ball away from Sills as much as possible, but in the 31st minute Dsane, looking sharp on his recall, beat McDonald and forced a corner.
Hodges’ inswinging flag-kick was only cleared with great difficult by Rovers, after Hargreaves and Todd both had efforts to force the ball home.
In the 38th minute Sills came up trumps with a half-save from Mohamed, who had been slipped through on Rovers’ left by Adriano Rigoglioso.
The ball was bouncing towards the empty goal when Hodges completed the rescue with a hooked clearance off the line.
But only a minute later United’s injury problems worsened when Todd had to go off.
This time Buckle sent on Nicholson at left-back and switched Hodges inside to centre-back alongside Woods.
Dsane, with a left-foot volley from 20 yards, and Carayol with a cross-shot just over the bar, both went close for United, roared on by fans behind Robinson’s goal.
But just as the fourth official indicated four minutes of stoppage time, things got even worse on the injury front.
Hargreaves appeared to twist his right knee after winning a header, but he was able to continue after treatment from Davey.
United desperately needed to get through to the interval on terms, but in stoppage time Rovers took the lead.
Rigoglioso forced a corner on their right and, although he failed to beat the first defender with his first flag-kick, his second attempt was deeper.
The ball bobbled around a packed goalmouth before it fell for Smith at the far post and he stabbed it home from point-blank range . . . 1-0 to FGR.
United barely had time to restart before referee Tierney blew for half-time.
Goalkeeping coach Kenny Veysey spent the whole interval putting Sills through his paces, with substitutes Danny Stevens and Elliot Benyon supplying the crosses.
But the first goal under pressure was Rovers’, Green having a shot on the turn deflected behind from a long throw by Nicholson.
From the corner Woods had a goalbound header, but it never had enough power to bother Robinson.
Then United went close twice more, Hargreaves with a diving header at the far post from a Nicholson corner and then, from the half clearance, Nicholson with a fierce drive which Robinson did well to parry.
Despite their manpower problems, United continued to carry the battle to the home side.
Thompson was fouled wide on the left, Nicholson’s free-kick was on the money and Hargreaves headed over.
Then Green dashed away on the right wing, laid the ball back to Dsane and his shot flew off defender Mark Preece and behind for a corner.
Rovers’ attack was having little impact, so Jim Harvey sent on Symons for Mangan in the 56th minute.
Two minutes later Buckle responded with his last change – Benyon for Thompson in attack.
Sills drew a huge roar from United’s fans when he came off his line in a crowded area to cut out a free-kick by Stonehouse.
Wroe was starting to have a bigger say in midfield, working hard and threatening to hit the pass which might unlock the Rovers defence.
But in the 69th minute it was a move up the right wing, started by Mansell to Green, which set up the equaliser.
Dsane joined in, chesting the ball down to Benyon who crunched a brilliant right-foot volley over Robinson from the edge of the area . . . 1-1.
Rovers immediately took off former Gulls loanee Mohamed and sent on Conal Platt in attack.
Symons did beat United’s offside trap on a through-ball, but his attempt to control the ball only took it wide of goal with Sills off his line.
But that was only punctuation in United’s almost constant pressure, cranked up by the introduction of the lively Benyon.
Sills drew another loud cheer when he launched himself off his line to punch a Platt corner off the heads of several Rovers forwards.
But eight minutes from time United’s emergency goalie had to face the ultimate test.
Stretched by Afful on the left, United could not stop the winger’s clever ball inside the area, McDonald went down over Woods’ challenge and Mr Tierney pointed to the spot.
It looked a harsh decision, for Woods had checked his move and McDonald was looking for the foul.
Anyway, after a long delay, Rigoglioso stepped to take the penalty . . . and pulled his shot wide of the left-hand post. Sills had guessed the right way!
Moments later United had another major escape.
Sills dived to his right to push a Stonehouse 25-yarder wide – another excellent stop – and from Afful’s corner Jones smacked a far-post header against the bar and away.
Rovers finally mounted some pressure in the closing stages, the first time they had managed it in the second half.
But in the second minute of stoppage time Dsane nearly won it with a snapshot which Robinson tipped wide.
And in the 93rd minute Green did!
Dsane slipped him through on the left, Green cut back when it seemed better to run on, but he knew what he was doing, beating Jones on the turn before belting a right-foot shot past Robinson from the edge of the area . . . 2-1 to the Gulls.
It was no more than they deserved.

IT looks like more of the same at FGR tonight after the success of Bucks' 4-4-1-1 in the last couple of games.
Thompson will play 'in the hole' behind Sills again.
FGR have ex-Gulls Alex Lawless, Simon Clist and Les Awful to call on if they so wish, while Nicko and Michael Brough are ex-FGR players in our ranks.
Man to watch, according to DT, is Adriano Rigoglioso. We reckoned he only escaped a booking when we played up there last year because the ref could't spell it....
All the previews in Tuesday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

Gulls v Eastbourne in pictures

Everything you could need to know about the Eastbourne game is in Monday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk.
We have reports, stats, pictures and reaction, plus Mustapha Carayol turning down the chance to play for his country in World Cup qualifiers to stick with the Gulls.

FINAL SCORE - GULLS 2 EASTBOURNE 0

That's a big three points for the Gulls and a massive sweepstake win for me!
The players are getting a great reception from the fans.
Torquay did what had to be done this afternoon, and did it well.
Now for FGR on Tuesday night.
That's it from sunny Plainmoor. Thanks for blogging.

Chris Hargreaves has won the sponsors' man of the match award and you can't fault their choice. Nicky Wroe has done his chances of a run in the side no harm at all this afternoon with a good, solid performance and Tyrone Thompson has worked hard.
Wayne Carlisle has had an awful afternoon. Everything he has touched has gone wrong. It's just one of those days, Wayne.

The crowd is 1,921, and in the 84th minute Hook does really well to save a header from Sills after a great cross from the right by Wroe.

Eastbourne are really on the ropes now with 10 minutes to go.
I've got 2-0 in the sweepstake but I think we might be able to go on and get another.

GOAL - GULLS 2 EASTBOURNE 0

Chris Hargreaves makes it 2-0 after 73 minutes, getting up in the middle of the box to meet a Lee Mansell cross from the right and guide it perfectly inside the post to Hook's right.
That's a great finish.
Can we make it three wins on the trot?

And lo, Stevens appears from the dugout. He's on after 69 minutes, replacing Carayol, which is a surprise.

That's 65 minutes gone now, and we are no closer to killing this game off. And no closer to making any changes. Stevens for Carlisle would be the crowd's change of choice. Carlisle is not having a great day and we could do with some pace up front.

On the hour Hook gets up brilliantly to tip a Hargreaves header over the bar, and moments later he's sprinting off his line to welly the ball clear as Sills closes in. He's busy but he's on top of his game.
Wroe makes ground on the edge of the box again but Carayol's cross lands out in the car park.

Carayol has just skinned the full-back down the left again, but we haven't made it count.
There are 55 minutes on the clock and there's more Keystone Koppery on the edge of our box as we fail to clear the ball properly.
I don't mean to go on, but we really need a second goal....

No changes at half-time for either side, by the look of it.
And we're off, playing towards the Ministand in brilliant sunshine.
We have a corner 15 seconds into the half but Wayne Carlisle fouls the keeper and it's a free kick to the Sports

HALF TIME - GULLS 1 EASTBOURNE 0

Good half for the Gulls, even if we have failed to kill off a poor team again.
One goal isn't going to be enough, and we'll need another before the hour, I reckon.
But if we hang on by our fingernails to claim another 1-0 win, I am NOT going to complain.
This is a whole lot better than the football we were seeing a couple of weeks ago.

We can see 38 Eastbourne fans behind the goal, by the way. None of them seems to want to retrieve another wayward Thompson shot which is pinging up and down on the concrete steps.
Now Pullan clears off the line to give Torquay another corner, their fourth of the half so far.

35 minutes gone now, and Eastbourne are trying to play a bit of football although the home defence are coping well so far.
Down at the other end in front of the few Eastbourne fans who have made the trip, Thompson fires in another shot but it's an easy save for Hook.

The Sports have taken off the injured Harkin and replaced him with the similar-sounding Harding.
And there have been bookings for Chris Hargreaves and the Sports' Alan Tait, both for fouls.

GOAL - GULLS 1 EASTBOURNE 0

Tyrone Thompson puts us in front after 23 minutes. Sills got up well to meet a Steve Woods free kick and direct it back across the box.
Thompson had time to control it before lashing it in from six yards.
Good goal.

A real let-off for the Gulls in the 18th minute as Neil Jenkins lets fly with a left-foot volley from 30 yards.
Poke is beaten and it looks like a stunner, but the ball hits the bar and comes back.

Mr Rushton is wearing a pair of boots with red and white go-faster stripes on them. We're thinking £4.99 from Lidls in the press box but we may be wrong.
Eastbourne are called the Sports by the way, because they grew from a club called Langney Sports.
It's all gone a bit quiet for a moment, which gives us a chance to bring you top quality trivia.

Six minutes gone and this game has a touch of the Keystone Kops about it, with balls going astray everywhere. Expect it to end 4-3 or 5-4, which probably means it'll be 0-0.
Tyrone Thompson bangs a shot into Lee Hook's midriff from the edge of the box.

Great chance for Eastbourne after 15 seconds, but Crabb's backheel from a Jay Lovett cross goes straight at Michael Poke in front of the family stand.
At the other end Darren Baker denies Tim Sills.
This is a lively start.

Half an hour to kick-off and it's another sun-drenched summer afternoon at Plainmoor, with the distant peaks of Haytor just visible through the haze over the top of the Pop Side.
We are unchanged, and that means another go at the 4-4-1-1 formation. Poke is in goal; Mansell, Woods, Todd and Hodges across the back; Carlisle, Wroe, Hargreaves and Carayol across the middle, Sills up front and Thompson, er, in the hole...
On the bench nicko comes in for Robertson, and his bench-mates today are Benyon, Stevens, Adams and the midweek hat-trick man for the reserves, Matt green.
Eastbourne, who we have never played before, are 4-4-2 with Hook in goal; Austin, Baker, Pullen and Jenkins across the back; Lovett, Smart, Armstrong and Harkin across the middle and Tait and Nathan Crabb up front.
their bench is Harding, Atkin, Matt Crabb, Wormull and Budd.
Ref is Steve Rushton from Staffordshire.

LIVE MATCH COVERAGE

Live match blogging here tomorrow. Get to the game and cheer the lads if you can, but if you're otherwise engaged - on a desert island with just enough power for an hour and a half of laptop, for instance - just click here.

The countdown to the Eastbourne game begins in Friday's Herald Express with Paul Buckle pondering the shape of his team and DT giving a run-down on the opposition, including a tribute to the man who has played for the Sports for the last 16 years!
Make sure of your copy, and click on www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk
The match will be live on this blog tomorrow afternoon.

Matt Green's hat trick for the reserves yesterday has increased the competition for places up front ahead of the visit of Eastbourne on Saturday.
Green enjoyed his day in the sunshine yesterday, scoring a 'perfect' hat trick. That's one with the left, one with the right and one with the head.
There's a full report in Thursday's Herald Express, along with DT's Plainmoor Diary which includes the latest on Boots & Laces and a bit of nonsense from Lee McEvilly.
Grab a copy now, or click www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

Gulls Reserves 5 Team Bath 1

Matt Green scored a hat-trick as the Gulls reserves beat Team Bath 5-1. Other goals came from Elliott Benyon and Roscoe Dsane.
Our man at Plainmoor with a cup of tea and a bag of Big D nuts reports a decent game and a good outing for some of our fringe players.
According to Darryl Haggan's rather excellent Torquay United website we lined up with Martin Rice in goal, a back four of Pryce, Kelly, Brough and Nicholson; a midfield of Dsane, Adams, Yeoman and Stevens, and Benyon and Green up front.
Warming the bench for us this afternoon were Gwinnett, Westcott, Hemming, Beattie, Palmer and Fisher.
Full details in Thursday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

It seems Mark Ellis could be out for a month after tearing calf muscles at Cambridge, and the 19-year-old defender is due to have a scan today.
Also today, there will be a chance for players on the fringe of the first team to impress during a friendly against team Bath at Plainmoor, kicking off at 1pm.
Expect to see the likes of Kevin Nicholson, Elliot Benyon, Matt Green, Danny Stevens and Steve Adams as well as loan-listed Michael Brough and Roscoe Dsane.
It's all in Wednesday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

Steve Woods is ready to return from his groin injury for the visit of Eastbourne on Saturday, but Mark Ellis will be out for a fortnight after picking up a calf injury at Cambridge.
There's a chance to see the reserves - and maybe Woodsy - in action at Plainmoor on Wednesday afternoon when Conference South side Team Bath visit for a friendly.
Kick-off is at 1pm and admission is free.
Everything you need to know is in Tuesday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

UNITED WE STAND!

THE Herald Express Monday football supplement is back, and what a week to relaunch it!
Wayne Carlisle's 90th minute goal brought victory at Cambridge on Saturday and came after a sound performance which brought glowing praise from the manager.
Read all about it in Monday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

Mark Beesley - remember the name.
The Cambridge striker stuck four past us last season - two for FGR and two for Cambridge - and will be trying his luck again tomorrow.
Another familiar face at the Abbey Stadium will be Cambridge boss Gary Brabin, who was sent off twice in seven games during a loan spell with us in 2002. He's a real character, to say the least.
This is going to be our toughest test yet but Bucks is confident, and we all know that over the years the Gulls have come up with big performances just when the cynics expect them to take a hiding.

Blog prediction - Cambridge 2 Gulls 2

Full stories in Friday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

More good news on the injury front, with Steve Adams fit again after his hamstring injury. And although Woodsy missed training yesterday after his groin injury on Sunday, he isn't being ruled out for the trip to Cambridge either.
Also in Thursday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk is DT's Thursday Plainmoor notebook, including news on the Forest Green tickets, and why anyone who booed Northwich striker Lee Steele for trying to waste time with a late injury on Sunday actually owes him an apology.....

...and a Happy Birthday to Tim Sills!

Chris Todd is ready to step into the side at Cambridge if Steve Woods doesn't make it back from injury.
Meanwhile the youth team have made it through to the next round of the FA Youth Cup after beating Bristol side Bitton in a penalty shootout. The Gulls youngsters travel to Bridgwater in the next round.
And today's reserves friendly against Team Bath at Plainmoor is off due to a waterlogged pitch.
All the details in Wednesday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

NEWSFLASH - DUO ON LOAN LIST

TORQUAY United have put striker Roscoe Dsane and midfielder Michael Brough on the emergency loan list.
Although the arrangement means the duo are still part of manager Paul Buckle's squad, they are both now available to go out on loan to other clubs.
Dsane has played five times for the Gulls this season and has scored one goal. Brough, who was signed from Forest Green Rovers in the summer, has played just once.
Full story in Tuesday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk

Gulls v Northwich slideshow

TIM'S EXPRESSION SAYS IT ALL!

Check all the fall-out from yesterday's game in Monday's Herald Express and at www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk.
Among other things, Tim Sills confesses that the penalty was a miskick, Shaun North analyses the game, Dino Maamria rages, Dutch Gull Rob Kiggen gives his views and, of course, DT describes the action. Paul Levie's pictures are pretty good, too.
Go and get a copy now.

FULL TIME – GULLS 2 NORTHWICH 1
How close was that, for that matter? A truly clueless performance in the second half, and Northwich might feel more than a little hard done by. But we’ve got away with murder there. Sills came on and saved the day, and maybe took some of the pressure off the manager.

GOAL – GULLS 2 NORTHWICH 1
PENALTY FOR GULLS IN THE 95TH MINUTE.
Welch fouls Benyon and gets a booking for his troubles. Dino Maamria storms off down the touchline after an angry exchange with the fourth official. Tim Sills waits as cool as you like, and chips the ball into the top corner. How cool was that?

Carlisle puts a free kick over the bar from 25 yards in the 93rd minute.

The fourth official has signalled five minutes of added time. Can we possibly nick this? Lee Steele is replaced by Phil Marsh in the visiting team.

There are three minutes left, and Mark Roberts denies Benyon with a great tackle. Wayne Carlisle has just failed to clear the first defender with a free kick from the right with the penalty area packed with Gulls players and that, ladies and gents, just about sums up the kind of schoolboy errors we are making today.

We are making elementary mistakes all over the pitch here. Tyrone Thompson has just transformed an attacking move into desperate defence. Both teams have scored from their only efforts on target and on this form the bottom end of the BSP is the right place for both of them.

Mr Sainsbury is over by the bench asking the Northwich boss to calm down, but the tensions are running high here. Both teams, and let’s face it both managers, need this win very badly indeed.

In the 78th minute Carlisle races in on a Sills through ball but Tynan is out again to deny him.We’re making our third and last change, with Danny Stevens on for Carayol in the 79th minute.

And Paul Barratt heads over for Northwich from another Mullan cross.

What a chance. Carlisle puts Sills away in the 74th minute, he squares for Benyon but Welch just gets a toe in before Benyon can get there. The ball runs away for a corner.

The attendance here is 1,758.

Darryn Stamp hobbles off for Northwich to be replaced by Paul Barratt. Jonny Allen will play up alongside Steele now, and Northwich must be thinking they can go on and win this.

Sills lashes one over the top in the 67th minute after a good run by Carlisle. Sills has already given us more in 10 minutes than Matt Green did in the previous 57. Robertson is booked for pulling Mullan’s shirt.

Hodges curls a free kick just wide after 63 minutes. If we don’t win this, things are even worse than we thought…

Mullan has really livened things up for Northwich, and he’s giving Lee Hodges some headaches down the wing.

Sills is on for the lacklustre Green after 57 minutes, and he wins his first challenge in the air. Sills/Benyon has to be the best combination up front, and with an hour of this gone, at last we have it. Now will it work?

Northwich just had a great shout for a penalty turned down. Robertson just felled Stamp as the Northwich player closed in on the ball eight yards out. Mr Sainsbury says no, and Northwich boss Dino Maamria is livid. I would be, too.

GOAL – GULLS 1 NORTHWICH 1
And in the 53rd minute Lee Steele equalises with a crisp left foot finish from 10 yards after being put in by Stamp. A player of his pedigree was never going to miss the target from there, and the keeper couldn’t get to it. The 50 or so Northwich fans behind Poke’s goal go nuts, and so they should.

Crowell has just missed a tremendous chance for Northwich in the 51st minute. He was 10 yards out and volleyed over with just Poke to beat, after Stamp had chested a cross down to him. That was a great chance.

THE SECOND HALF STARTS HERE:
A substitution on each side, with Tyrone Thompson replacing Steve Woods, who seemed to have twanged something painful while clearing the ball. Sure enough, the pale and wan boy is off for Northwich, and Jamie Mullan has come on.
Thompson seems to have gone to right back, with Robertson dropping inside.

There’s a bloke out on the pitch singing ‘Uncle Tom Cobley’ for reasons which have not been made clear. No-one seems to be joining in. We think it’s something to do with BBC Radio Devon.

HALF TIME – GULLS 1 NORTHWICH 0
That’s a satisfactory half for us, although we would all be happier if we were another goal or two up. We have to kill this game off inside the hour or we could be in for some late trouble again. Matt Green has been curiously ineffective up front for us, but maybe he’ll play himself into form in the second half. For them, we have never seen a more pale and wan footballer than Mark King. The Northwich midfielder looks as if he turned up for work experience at Northwich and was asked to bring his boots.

There’s a minute to go until the break, and Darryn Stamp heads over for Northwich as a cross finds him at the far post.

Tynan’s on the move again in the 40th minute, sprinting out to deny Benyon again.

A great cross from the left by Carayol in the 30th minute, but Green can’t quite meet it. Mustapha seems to have the freedom of that side of the ground. Aspin, the Northwich full-back, can’t get near him.

Hargreaves puts Benyon in in the 27th minute but again Tynan is swift off his line with a brave block. Benyon is down and needs treatment but he’s on his feet quickly and back on the field.

Benyon finds Carlisle wide on the right and Carlisle’s cross is a beauty. Northwich clear, but our passing and movement is streets ahead of anything we’ve seen here for the past couple of games.

A bad mistake from Grand at the back for the visitors and Green is in on the keeper again, but the keeper gets there first and clears. Northwich have a corner which Stamp meets with a firm header. Mark Roberts just fails to connect. If he had, it would have been 1-1.

There are 20 minutes gone and two balls on the field. Mr Sainsbury decides to have a bounce-up and it’s contested. I love that.There aren’t enough contested bounce-ups in the modern game.

There’s a little bit of Northwich pressure and Crowell blasts a free kick against Mansell in the Torquay wall.

14 minutes and Matt Green chases down a through-ball. He has the beating of Northwich centre-back Welch but Tynan races off his line and clears.

GOAL – GULLS 1 NORTHWICH 0
Wayne Carlisle puts the Gulls in front on 10 minutes. A Steve Woods free-kick from the left finds him at the far post. For a moment the ball is stuck under his feet, but he stabs it in from six yards or so. A great start!

Nine minutes, and Matty Crowell of Northwich is in the book for kicking the ball away. A silly yellow card, and the kind that gets the managerial hairdryer going at half time.

Three minutes gone, and Green heads a Carayol corner just wide. Green is looking busy, and forces another corner in the fifth. Nothing comes of it, but once again this is a positive start. Stamp has a turn and shot inside our box but it is blocked by Mark Ellis.

And we’re off, playing in all yellow towards the Babbacombe End. Northwich are in green shorts with white sleeves and white shorts and socks.
Some ambitious scores have been chosen in the press box sweepstake today, so there are clearly people expecting this to be the day it all comes good for the Gulls.

GULLS V NORTHWICH – LIVE BLOG
Apologies for the late start to the blog. Our IT chaps say it was something to do with a firewall, but we’re up and running now.
Welcome to sunny Plainmoor once again, where the big news is that Elliot Benyon is in the starting line-up, with Matt Green alongside him. That means Tim Sills drops to the bench and Roscoe Dsane drops out altogether.
Mustapha Carayol also gets a start and Lee Hodges comes in for Kevin Nicholson.
So we line up with Poke in goal; Robertson, Woods, Ellis and Hodges across the back; Carlisle, Hargreaves, Mansell and Carayol across the middle and Benyon and Green up front.
On the bench we have Sills, Wroe, Thompson, Stevens and Yeoman, who will be the third youngest Gull ever if he gets on. David Byng and Lee Sharpe will remain the youngest, but it will be a big day for16-year-old Ashley if he does get on.
Rock-bottom Northwich, without a win yet, line up 5-3-2 with Tynan in goal; Aspin, Welch, Roberts, Grand and Allan across the back; King, Crowell and Flynn across the middle and Steele and Stamp up front.
On the bench for the visitors are Mullan, Barratt, Jones, Bailey and Marsh.
Referee is Andrew Sainsbury from Wiltshire.

.