Torquay United Fans Forum

[quote="Mr Tea808" post_id=271742 time=1689529245 user_id=24861]
Listen folks, I've got zero issues with none of yous!, We are all entitled to our views, I'm bloody frustrated with 22/23, it was shocking, but I'll stay loyal and get behind the team, nobody's got the golden answer, and we all think our own views are right (otherwise we wouldn't post them), I'll try and be more positive, I do stand by my views, esp about next season being tough, Dartford under Dowson will be decent, Maidstone and Havant, and of course Yeovil, I'll throw it out there that the suprise outfit could to Truro, decent manager, great team unity and they play decent football, a high press, great work ethic style...out of the loanees I'm not sure why or what went on with Ricky Aguair, I see Swindon have kept him on and he looked half decent, We really struggled with so many personnel changes, and with formation and tactics, but come the start of season we need to try and be positive, I'm just very frustrated with how things are, that's all.
[/quote]

this is entirely fair.

I'd hope that the number of fans who genuinely expect us to walk the league is in single figures. I'll make jokes on twitter ("fire up HMS PissTheLeague, we've beating Reading U21s 5-0!!) but my real expectations for the season are to be challenging as we get into the late february/early march. I think the first XI we'll be able to put out will be more than a match for pretty much every team in the division, but like others I'm a bit concerned about the squad when - as is inevitable - we lose 3 key players all at once.

Yeovil have been spending pretty big but with the sheer number of new players it will probably take them some time to gel, and in those first 6-10 games our more settled side should give us an advantage. There are other sides, of course, who will hope to make hay but we should have enough to be better than at least 18/19 of these sides, if only because we are full time. While I get the need for a certain amount of caution, I still think it's worth acting like the 'bigger' club we aspire to be, if only because accepting NLS fate seems a sure way of ensuring it.

Expectation is the mother of all frustration. Always good to remember that success is not always built on success. It's often built on failure and frustration. Take Luton as a point in case - from non-League to Premier League (2014–present).

Listen folks, I've got zero issues with none of yous!, We are all entitled to our views, I'm bloody frustrated with 22/23, it was shocking, but I'll stay loyal and get behind the team, nobody's got the golden answer, and we all think our own views are right (otherwise we wouldn't post them), I'll try and be more positive, I do stand by my views, esp about next season being tough, Dartford under Dowson will be decent, Maidstone and Havant, and of course Yeovil, I'll throw it out there that the suprise outfit could to Truro, decent manager, great team unity and they play decent football, a high press, great work ethic style...out of the loanees I'm not sure why or what went on with Ricky Aguair, I see Swindon have kept him on and he looked half decent, We really struggled with so many personnel changes, and with formation and tactics, but come the start of season we need to try and be positive, I'm just very frustrated with how things are, that's all.

[quote=GullsUnited post_id=271700 time=1689405892 user_id=24832]
Loanee youths more miss than his?

Goodwin
Wearne [color=#FF0000]hit first time around, miss on second spell[/color]
Da Silva [color=#FF0000]at best 50/50, had some good games, some not so good[/color]
Nico Lawrence
Collins Stobbs

There were a couple of misses but it was certainly more hits than misses
[/quote]

But also we could talk about;
Hughes
Smith
Okoli
Thompson
Aguiar
Crole

These are just some loanees we've over the last two season, I'm sure there's others I could add, who were a complete waste of time.

All opinions are valid, however, when we say; 'yawn' 'move on' 'don't look back' etc, etc, that is in a way, to deny history, when we pretend everything is ok, when we pretend it'll just be alright, that is also to deny history, we all know, when we deny history we fail to learn from history.

When we fail to see where we collectively have got things wrong, where we could do better, then we just compound everything that's not right, so whilst we now have to look at the fast approaching new season, it's vital, we keep pushing forward our opinions on what we perceive to be wrong, then hopefully, lessons will be learned.

When [color=#FF0000]Mr Tea808[/color] says[color=#FF0000] '.I think next season maybe a real wake up call to everyone'[/color] I think there's some truth in this statement, we're not the only full time team, this time around, Yeovil will have more than a big say in where the title ends up, they're now ahead of us in the recruitment curve, and signed a young Bristol City starlet on loan yesterday, something we've talked about but not yet actually done.

Dartford managed by Alan Dowson, we know him, we know his teams are big, strong, physical, never scared to turn any match into a battle finished second last season, maybe unlucky not to have gone up via play-offs.

Havant, NLS champions themselves the season prior to us winning it, always strong along with Chelmsford, and like Oxford City last season, there's always the unknown surprise package.

I'd expect to see us in the top 4 and challenging for promotion, anything less would be an absolute disaster, but fair warning to at least 50% of our entire fan base already to preparing for the trophy presentation, it will not be as easy, as last time around.

With the new season kicking off on 5th August its probably time to start looking forwards rather than backwards. We've got a decent enough team (although not sure about squad depth) and it'll be good to get back to seeing some home wins. I'm looking forward to a competitive season ahead, hopefully a promotion and a springboard to carry that momentum into a play off push in the NL.

[quote=SuperNickyWroe post_id=271728 time=1689459127 user_id=54]
I think you'll find, that if you look back, SG - like many others - just stated that at the time, GJ was the best man for the job...
[/quote]

When as proved he clearly wasn’t ….FACT

[quote=Cheddargull post_id=271721 time=1689439794 user_id=24856]
Southampton Gull also said GJ would save us from relegation.
[/quote]

So I didn't then.....

[quote="Southampton Gull" post_id=271726 time=1689458648 user_id=60]
Err no I didn't but don't let facts get in the way of your little whine :whistle:
[/quote]
From the 'Gary Johnson, Stick or Twist' thread. 27th November 2022, Southampton Gull said "I'm standing behind an experienced manager to add a couple of players to see us ease up the table to safety with a few games to go".

[quote=Cheddargull post_id=271721 time=1689439794 user_id=24856]
Southampton Gull also said GJ would save us from relegation.
[/quote]

I think you'll find, that if you look back, SG - like many others - just stated that at the time, GJ was the best man for the job...

As much as things do change, a few things do remain constant - yawn!

[quote=Cheddargull post_id=271721 time=1689439794 user_id=24856]
Southampton Gull also said GJ would save us from relegation.
[/quote]

Err no I didn't but don't let facts get in the way of your little whine :whistle:

Yawn

[quote=Cheddargull post_id=271721 time=1689439794 user_id=24856]
Southampton Gull also said GJ would save us from relegation.
[/quote]

You beat me to making that comment. 🤔
But in fairness so did many others. How wrong they were.

Next season will be one we want to forget whatever happens. If we stay in the NLS, it'll be hard to see us getting out soon, win promotion and we're still back in a league we don't want to be in. But I'd take that in 12 months.

I'll enjoy the fact we still have a club, hopefully the high scoring games I'll see and the chance to build. Is it embarrassing to be playing Weston etc, yes of course, no disrespect meant as we are in this division because we deserve to be, and all these sides will raise their games against us.

Games against Exeter etc now seem a long long way off, maybe never to be repeated. Who's to blame? Johnson, the owners, the smallish crowds and so income we recieve, our geological position, our lack of producing and selling on players, not tying our better players to longer contracts?

I'd suggest all.

Would another manager have done better? What's the point in even going there, we'll never know. He's given us highs and lows, I'm still (just) in the opinion he's our best chance to only stay in NLS for one season. Hopefully we start strongly otherwise the pressure will crank up on players and management.
All we can hope is to win promotion and then build a stronger side for NL around a core of players we have contracted to us.

Either then with Johnson in charge or without.

Without him, we start all over again and that means more time to get a team together.