Match Reaction: Numbers paint a sorry picture for Torquay United

The stats do not make pleasant reading for Torquay United after a depressing 1-0 defeat at Braintree Town condemned the Gulls to a fifth straight defeat in the National League South.

United have dropped to 12th in the division, five points outside the play-off with 14 games to go, and they have now lost more games (15) than they have won this season (14).

The latest setback came despite Braintree losing Alfie Pavey to a red card on 25 minutes, with Tom Blackwell scoring the only goal early in the second period, and United manager Gary Johnson could not mask his disappointment with the display.

“It was a very poor performance, we were a damp squib,” he said. “We had 62% possession but we didn’t create enough chances, and they went down to ten men. We were a bit powder puff going forward, which I am disappointed about.

“We defended ok when it was 11 v 11, they broke on us a couple of times and didn’t really have chances second half, other than the corner routine that came up trumps for them. After that, they were very clever with ten men.

“We were giving the ball away and weren’t creating anything. There wasn’t anybody that came out of the game with any real credit. We tried to change things, use different personnel and put on our three subs, but not one of them came out with any credit on the day.

“Some of them have not produced for a little while now and they looked bereft of confidence today.”

The only group who did come out with credit from a long trip to Braintree were the long-suffering Yellow Army and Johnson was grateful for the support shown to the team.

“I thank the supporters today for being patient,” he said. “They’ve come a long way and we were all disappointed. There were one or two screaming out, but they came to support the team and, first and foremost, we appreciate that.”

If there was a positive to take from Braintree, it was the return from injury for Kevin Dawson, who replaced Tom Lapslie midway through the second.

Lapslie is another nursing his way back to full fitness and a rough day was given a bizarre twist when United’s combative midfielder was sent from the dug-out after clashing with the home bench.

“We get one [Dawson] but then have to bring off Lapslie because he wasn’t fully fit,” said Johnson. “We’re game-managing him because, although he is fit, it’s not for the full 90 minutes.

“Tom’s a competitor and their dug-out seemed to be in charge of the spare balls. They were taking a bit of time in getting the ball back on, one of their coaches had the ball and Laps came off the bench to retrieve it.

“The referee decided to book their assistant manager and send off Lapslie. We shouldn’t have to fight for the ball in the technical area, we should be fighting for it on the pitch. It was typical of the way the day went.”