How Come You're A United Fan

I thought the same, but in my opinion relegation into the BSP is the best thing that could have happened to the club in the circumstances.

I think failure to hold on to that Football League place, was the final shove that persuaded the Batesons to do a deal with the current ownership; and we all know that unless they had come in then the paring down, negativity and general decline would have continued and that one year on we could have been looking at a very different scenario.

On the whole, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of visiting plenty of different and generally vibrant clubs last season and the stark contrast with the pervading air of gloom and apathy surrounding many League 2 clubs was most noticeable.

Many of the so called "no hopers" of the BSP are thrilled to be playing at the level they currently find themselves at.......... clubs like Histon, Salisbury, Grays, and Forest Green. Whilst clubs like Kidderminster and Stevenage know how to put on a decent day's event in excellent little stadiums. The atmospheric and vibrant visits to Aldershot at the beginning of the season and Cambridge right at the end were simply memorable and a real privilege to be at for the crowd atmospheres and quality of opposition.

I don't subscribe to the theory that failure to secure immediate promotion back to the Football League was necessarily such a bad thing. I know financially such an immediate success would have been more beneficial short term, but I believe the far more important (in my opinion) structural regeneration of the club under Alex Rowe and Co is the REAL issue of the day right now what with the re-establishment of the Youth set up and the general widening of the sponsorship base, the impressive attitude towards moving
forward with the social and entertainment facilities at Plainmoor and the wholesale establishment of professional and adequate training and rehabilitation facilities for the players and management staff show that we at last have a directorate who's number one priority is running the club as a proper professional football club, rather than "a pub with a weekend football team attached to it" being run in a minimalist way and the cheapest available fashion.
I'm still to be convinced though that the people of the South Devon area in general and Torquay in particular have properly grasped the nettle of the very need to adequately support the board in their efforts and realise that there has to be a much greater awareness of the need for "self help" if they are to enjoy the benefits of having proper professional football in the area.

The gradual decline in gates as last season wore on was worrying, and I don't think anyone should need to be reminded that the general air of belt tightening and recession across the nation will result in a tougher fight than even last season to maintain what we had in terms of average attendances and that success on the field from the very first game will have a significant bearing on the numbers coming through the turnstiles.

Financially and socially we are heading for difficult times and all those with families will find it that bit harder to come up with enough disposable income to spend on their favourite football club next season, so I think it's doubly important that people recognise this and don't go off at a tangent spreading doom and gloom if the initial attendances at the start of next season don't quite come up to their personal expectations; for it is often how those that do come along "sell" the Plainmoor product to those of their acquaintances that currently do not, that can do more to raise the attendance levels than anything else.

As an old saying goes..................don't just be there bring a friend along too!

I think the actual expression/saying you are looking for is...

"BRINGALONGAFRIEND!"

;D

So when Frank O'Farrell arrived and built his successful side around so many "Wet 'Ampsters" you must have felt you'd found nirvana!

Lucky escape for me, as my first ever game was Plymouth v Sunderland!!

Thankfully, my mum knew Jim McNicholl and he got me a pass for Torquay v Scunthorpe in the 1988 playoff semi-final. My dad and I loved it so much that we agreed to start going the following season. I haven't looked back since.

Torquay United has been in my blood since that day and will stay with me to the grave. And to think I've seen my little old team from Devon at Wembley, 3 times (I was in Oz for the Colchester game). ;D ;D ;D

;D ;D ;D

I'm not going to use the spell checker again, that's for sure!!

Should obviously read Scunthorpe.

Cheers for highlighting my incompetence Merse!!

Hi its not the spell checker, the forum has a built in filter, to prevent naughty words , It is a pet hate of mine to see foul words written in a forum. If it becomes a problem we can turn it off

All the best Dave R