Saturday, 29 November 2008

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.