Search found 51 matches
- 18 Dec 2023, 12:21
- Forum: All things Plainmoor
- Topic: Taunton Town vTorquay United Tuesday 19 Dec KO 19.45
- Replies: 49
- Views: 7053
Taunton Town vTorquay United Tuesday 19 Dec KO 19.45
Taunton Town 1-2 Torquay United.
- 14 Dec 2023, 14:28
- Forum: Matchday Topics
- Topic: Torquay United v Hemel Hempstead Sat 16 Dec 3PM KO
- Replies: 100
- Views: 19021
Torquay United v Hemel Hempstead Sat 16 Dec 3PM KO
Score - Torquay United 3-1 Hemel Hempstead Town.
Attendance - 1,923 (37 Hemel Hempstead Town).
Attendance - 1,923 (37 Hemel Hempstead Town).
- 03 Dec 2023, 23:39
- Forum: Matchday Topics
- Topic: Torquay United v Weymouth FC Tuesday 5th Dec 19.45 KO
- Replies: 75
- Views: 17808
Torquay United v Weymouth FC Tuesday 5th Dec 19.45 KO
Score - Torquay United 3-0 Weymouth.
Attendance - 1,968 (83 Weymouth).
Attendance - 1,968 (83 Weymouth).
- 30 Nov 2023, 16:22
- Forum: Matchday Topics
- Topic: Torquay United v Tonbridge Angels, Sat 2nd Dec, 3pm
- Replies: 73
- Views: 14165
Torquay United v Tonbridge Angels, Sat 2nd Dec, 3pm
Fair enough - my knowledge of Tonbridge Angels’ away support obviously isn’t as good as yours
- 30 Nov 2023, 14:14
- Forum: Matchday Topics
- Topic: Torquay United v Tonbridge Angels, Sat 2nd Dec, 3pm
- Replies: 73
- Views: 14165
Torquay United v Tonbridge Angels, Sat 2nd Dec, 3pm
Score - Torquay United 2-1 Tonbridge Angels.
Attendance - 2,072 (48 Tonbridge Angels).
Attendance - 2,072 (48 Tonbridge Angels).
- 27 Nov 2023, 14:16
- Forum: Matchday Topics
- Topic: Eastbourne Borough v Torquay United, Tues 28th Nov, 7:45pm
- Replies: 97
- Views: 14825
Eastbourne Borough v Torquay United, Tues 28th Nov, 7:45pm
Eastbourne Borough 1-2 Torquay United.
- 24 Nov 2023, 00:58
- Forum: All things Plainmoor
- Topic: Dartford v Torquay United, 25th Nov 2023, 3pm
- Replies: 107
- Views: 14607
Dartford v Torquay United, 25th Nov 2023, 3pm
Dartford 1-1 Torquay United.
- 10 Nov 2023, 13:11
- Forum: Matchday Topics
- Topic: Havant & Waterlooville v Torquay United, Sat 11th Nov, 3pm
- Replies: 78
- Views: 15546
Havant & Waterlooville v Torquay United, Sat 11th Nov, 3pm
Havant & Waterlooville 1-3 Torquay United.
- 06 Nov 2023, 13:10
- Forum: Matchday Topics
- Topic: Torquay United v Yeovil Town, Tues 7th Nov, 7:45pm
- Replies: 99
- Views: 16890
Torquay United v Yeovil Town, Tues 7th Nov, 7:45pm
Score - Torquay United 1-3 Yeovil Town.
Attendance - 3,361 (834 Yeovil Town).
Attendance - 3,361 (834 Yeovil Town).
- 02 Nov 2023, 20:16
- Forum: All things Plainmoor
- Topic: Stadium fan ownership
- Replies: 65
- Views: 12401
Stadium fan ownership
![Star (*)](./images/smilies/star.gif)
Chester FC supporter here in peace! I saw my club’s name pop up in a previous post, so just thought I’d re-introduce myself on here having posted a few times in the past. I’m Rio, a 21-year-old (it was my birthday on Halloween, actually
I’ve always had a soft spot for Torquay United, so I often browse this forum and social media to see how you are faring, as I feel that we are both very similar clubs. Our stadiums are rather similar (they both actually hold 6,500), we have similar history having spent 80+ years in the Football League, while we both have similar fanbases too - averaging around 2,500. Chester and Torquay are popular tourist attractions as well!! I’m very sorry to hear about your troubles both off (and arguably on) the pitch, so I just thought I’d do this post, because as a Chester supporter, myself and thousands of others have seen it all over the years. While talk of you setting up a Phoenix club may be a pipe dream, it shouldn’t be ruled out if things were to go really bad for you in the future, so I thought I’d offer a bit of an insight into my club’s story, because as Admiral pointed out, we are a fan-owned club.
The old Chester FC (we only became ‘City’ in 1983) have a very historic past. They were formed in 1885 and went on to spend over 80 years in the Football League, as we often hovered between the old Division Three and Four. I’m sure many of you will recall trips to our old Sealand Road home, which hosted over 20,000 supporters when we played against Chelsea in the FA Cup in 1952. We reached the League Cup semi-final in 1975 - beating the likes of Walsall, Blackpool, Newcastle United, and the then-1st Division champions Leeds United along the way, before narrowly losing against Aston Villa over two legs. In the 1964-65 season we had FIVE strikers who all scored 20+ goals each (who are dubbed the ‘Famous Five’), and in the mid-seventies we reached the Division Three play-offs. We also played the likes of Birmingham City, Stoke City, Wolverhampton Wanderers, and West Bromwich Albion regularly in league fixtures. As recently as 2009, we were in the same division as Brentford, AFC Bournemouth, Swansea City, and Brighton & Hove Albion - look where they are now!! I can go on all day about memories of yesterday, and I’m sure you had your glory years as well.
In the 1990s, however, things really started to go badly for us. In 1989 we left our Sealand Road home and had to groundshare with Macclesfield FC for two seasons. During that time we played against Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal in the League Cup!! We then moved to our current Deva Stadium home in 1992, which costed just £2.5 million and was built in just half a year. It was meant to mirror St Johnstone’s McDiarmid Park ground, but Morrison Shand, the company that built the Deva, screwed us over. The Deva is a nice, tidy ground that has hosted League One football, but it’s on the arse end of an industrial estate so access to it is quite poor. We had a series of rogue owners between 1990 and 2010, which gradually killed our club. Terry Smith (we call him the mad Yank) was an utter loony, who even appointed himself as Manager for a bit. We played Manchester City in the FA Cup in 1999, and he infamously sacked himself half an hour after full-time. There’s a documentary on YouTube based on him, so if you have any spare time then feel free to give it a watch
We got relegated out of the Football League for the first time in that 1999-00 season, before winning the Conference in 2003-04. We beat the old Scarborough FC at home to win it in front of over 6,000, and there were hundreds of Chester fans locked out of the ground as it was a full house
We won three promotions in a row - averaging 3,000+, which saw us soar up to the National League. We consolidated in that league for five seasons, and in 2014-15 we reached the FA Cup 2nd Round - taking Barnsley to a replay. However, we almost went out of business again in January 2018, but our fans rallied around to raise £150,000, which saved our club. I remember us getting relegated with yourselves that year, and my god it’s so depressing watching us in a regional league for the fifth consecutive campaign. From playing the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal, and Man United to travelling to dives such as Farsley Celtic, Peterborough Sports, and Rushall Olympic is a hard one to swallow. Our club is on the up though, because we have over 1,800 season ticket holders, over 1,600 ‘’owners’’ of our club, and we’ve had 25 consecutive 2,000+ attendances. We have a thriving young Manager called Calum McIntyre, who’s gone from supporting us on the terraces, to coaching our youth team, to managing his boyhood club. Last season we lost just one away league game, and we’ve won six on the spin at this moment in time, so hopefully we’ll finally get out of this awful league. We also have a successful academy, as we’ve produced six players who’ve gone on to have a career in the EFL (a certain Will Goodwin is one of them)!!
Fan-ownership has its benefits, because not many people can say that they ‘’own’’ their beloved club, while the connection between players, staff, and supporters is unshakeable. We’re also a debt free club, however as we’ve found out in regional football, and with what’s going on globally, you need money to get promotion, which is what we’ve struggled with since 2018. Our club often rely on generous donations from supporters, so you’ve got to be really committed, etc.
Having read this forum, from what I can gather is that Clarke Osborne is a shady character who doesn’t communicate at all - just one statement since your play-off final defeat is alarming. With what went on with Swindon Speedway, and the ongoing saga regarding a new stadium, would leave me very concerned if I supported you. I’ve always liked Gary Johnson as a Manager (I even wanted him at Chester at one point
- 02 Nov 2023, 19:06
- Forum: Matchday Topics
- Topic: Torquay United v Bath City, Sat 4th Nov. 3pm
- Replies: 103
- Views: 18636
Torquay United v Bath City, Sat 14th Nov. 3pm
Score - Torquay United 1-2 Bath City.
Attendance - 2,186 (248 Bath City).
Attendance - 2,186 (248 Bath City).
- 26 Oct 2023, 14:06
- Forum: Matchday Topics
- Topic: Hampton + Richmond v Torquay United Sat 28/10/23 3PM
- Replies: 197
- Views: 23984
Hampton + Richmond v Torquay United Sat 28/10/23 3PM
Hampton & Richmond Borough 2-2 Torquay United.
- 23 Oct 2023, 08:34
- Forum: Matchday Topics
- Topic: Torquay Utd v Weston super Mare 25/10/23 Ko 19:45
- Replies: 139
- Views: 18717
Torquay Utd v Weston super Mare 25/10/23 Ko 19:45
Weston-super-Mare 1-3 Torquay United.
- 18 Oct 2023, 10:41
- Forum: Matchday Topics
- Topic: Torquay Utd v Welling Utd 21/10/2023 15:00
- Replies: 85
- Views: 15797
Torquay Utd v Welling Utd 21/10/2023 15:00
Torquay United 2-0 Welling United.
Attendance - 2,172 (36 Welling United).
Attendance - 2,172 (36 Welling United).
- 05 Oct 2023, 11:22
- Forum: Matchday Topics
- Topic: Torquay United v Maidstone United, Saturday 7th October, 3pm
- Replies: 104
- Views: 36290
Torquay United v Maidstone United, Saturday 7th October, 3pm
Score - Torquay United 2-1 Maidstone United.
Attendance - 2,438 (131 Maidstone United).
Attendance - 2,438 (131 Maidstone United).