Torquay v Hartlepool 28 October ko 3pm

Oh dear, a familiar outcome after a really decent first half performance. I remember saying in pre-season who will score the goals and we still have that problem. The sad thing is that in the first half we were a revelation, the best I've seen us play this season by some distance. The shape of the team, the fitness, the passing and movement was unrecognizable from previous home games. We looked solid at the back and was carving out clear chances. Keating missed the best, a clear header from around the 6 yard box in a central position. Crowd 1,987 with just under 200 from Hartlepool, sponsors MOTM going to Luke Young as usual.

Torquay were mainly in charge during the first half and had a spell when decent chances fell to them. Reid carried our main threat and laid an accurate cross for Keating who just needed to connect from close range to score but his header drifted wide. McQuoid made a great jinking run past defenders and his powerful shot was well parried by their keeper. There were other occasions when the ball whisked across the goal but was not finished off. It was good stuff to watch on the pitch and sitting in Bristows bench today made you appreciate the good coaching being done by our coaches from the dug-out. On any break in play, Owers typically called over a player e.g. Efete to give advice. You felt all the players knew their specific roles and we were in the driving seat. The very least we looked like getting was a draw. Dorel was hardly called into action and when he did he caught a cross very confidently. Were we watching a new successful Torquay?

The answer was given in the second half and was an emphatic NO! Hartlepool broke down their left, crossed in and headed in at close range. A familiar tale, we concede so many goals from crosses and headers. You still feel that our team have not got enough good players who are good at headers. Sure enough uncertainty crept into our game and you then wonder where our leaders are? Torquay lost their first half shape and momentum and made a double substitution to try and salvage something. It was a bit sad to see that we had no strikers on the bench. Dowling and Lathrope came on. Almost immediately a Hartlepool strike from outside the box got a wicked deflection and curled over Dorel into the net. Just like against Dover the other week you knew it was game over as Torquay never seriously looked like scoring until added time when it was too late.

Dowling made some great runs from midfield and Reid was still conjuring up the odd chance with his skill and vision. But once the ball got near their penalty box we seldom threatened to score and quite frankly we did not seem to have the nous to do so. We don't have that prolific striker like we had with Keiffer Moore or Williams last season and as stated earlier we don't have the players with heading ability to score from set pieces. For all our recent improvement we are still lacking in that most vital area - sticking the ball in the net!

Your right Jon, Owers was trying anything to change things including taking off a tiring Young and pushing Dowling further forward.
I see nothing wrong in that we were struggling to make progress in that area and Dowling has ability enough to open up a defence.
For me he is a "must start" additionally the same old problem of no proper buffer up front.
We also struggled down the flanks I thought not really getting behind defenders though I thought Myrie Wiliams did ok.
Its up top where the priorities now lie I believe but goal poachers/ proper center forwards as we used to call them don't grow on trees but that is the one signing that will either see us continue to struggle or dig ourselves out of the mire.
Very disappointing second half and thalthough the first was good and showed plenty of progress has been made it also demonstrated how short of the required standard we still are.

Now that the Owers bubble had burst how long do you think it will be before the knives are out! Has he been the revelation that some claimed or is he no better than Kev? Is the problem in the building and is the solution in the building? One man is to blame for calling the shots yet its the managers that get the dogs abuse!

Highlights...

www.thenationalleague.org.uk/match-info/match-centre/1-2849620/videos/118250