Torquay United crush Exeter City at a wet Plainmoor

Excitement is growing rapidly at Plainmoor, as Torquay United followed up their commendable draw with Plymouth Argyle by overpowering Exeter City in a full-blooded pre-season friendly.

A sublime volley from Lewis Collins gave the Gulls an early lead, which they doubled when Brad Ash smashed in a second. Exeter’s day got even worse with the dismissal of Pierce Sweeney for violent conduct.

Collins’ second and an Asa Hall penalty made it 4-0 to United before Ryan Trevitt grabbed a consolation for the Grecians.

“It’s good that we’re getting so close to the start of the season with consistency,” said manager Gary Johnson. “We’ve played well against teams from leagues higher than us and I’m really pleased with the performances.

“I’m pleased out supporters have seen us playing good football. We’ve found three or four good players to add to our team from last season and I don’t think any of them have disappointed.

“You get the feeling these lads enjoy playing together but we won’t rest on our laurels. If you put in the effort, the ability will come out, the tactics will come out, but we can’t get over the top because we don’t want a drop in enthusiasm.

“We were 2-0 up when their lad got sent off but we controlled the game for the most part. In the opening 20 minutes, we played some great stuff. They are a League One team but that game is over and we need to assess where we are now.

“I’m proud of the two results [against Plymouth and Exeter] and there is one more friendly against Southampton B on Saturday. They will be lively and we know they will be able to keep the ball, so it might be a different competition for us.”

United: 1. Mark Halstead, 4. Tom Lapslie (18. Will Jenkins Davies, 55′), 8. Asa Hall, 9. Aaron Jarvis (6. Ross Marshall, 69′), 10. Lewis Collins, 11. Brad Ash (7. Ryan Hanson, 79′), 14. Brett McGavin, 15. Finley Craske (24. Calum Thomas, 89′), 16. Shaun Donnellan (2. Dylan Crowe, 69′), 23. Ollie Tomlinson, 27. Jack Stobbs (3. Dan Martin, 55′).

Attendance: 3,014 (1,110 away)