Poor start plagues Torquay United
Gulls lose Boxing Day derby at home
Manager Gary Johnson admitted that ‘a very poor first 20 minutes’ was the key to Torquay United’s 1-0 Boxing Day defeat to Truro City at Plainmoor.
After four successive league wins, the Gulls have lost 2-0 at Chelmsford City and now at home to Truro, both times after damagingly slow starts.
Still wracked by injuries, United’s kids looked just that as Truro seized the initiative, took the lead through Ben Adelsbury’s 19th minute header and could easily have been two or three goals up.
“We lost it in the first 20 minutes – we didn’t really get going at all,” said Johnson.
“We had the last 10-15 minutes of the first half, and we probably had the whole of the second half.
“We had a lot of chances, their goalkeeper made three or four point-blank saves, and we hit the woodwork twice.
“But for all the crosses we got in, we didn’t get on the end of enough of them. For the amount of ball we had outside the box, we didn’t do enough with it.
“But when you lose 1-0 to your local rivals, supporters don’t want to hear bad luck stories or excuses.”
Johnson took new Ipswich Town loanee Osman Foyo off before half-time, just after he had been booked, and he commented: “The card was part of it, but we felt he wasn’t quite getting in the game.
“I thought he looked frustrated, and we wanted to save him and us from any sending-off – he was frustrated enough to get a red card.”
United’s injury problems deepened late in the game when Fleetwood Town loanee Theo Williams appeared to tear a hamstring – yet another of the injuries which are plaguing the club.
Johnson hinted that he may try to go back into the transfer market before United play Saturday’s return game against Truro at Plymouth’s Bolitho Park.
But he hopes that loanee Will Jenkins Davies, who was also taken off in the second half, will be fit.
Johnson explained that Plymouth Argyle asked that Jenkins Davies played only 60 minutes after returning from injury – he actually played 68 minutes, with a bandage for a head knock, before being withdrawn.