JPT: Cheltenham v Torquay Utd 30 August 2011

Please, please, please, please, please can we get knocked out of this competition tomorrow night! If there was a Pot-of-Gold at the end rather than A-Crock-of-Shit I wouldn't mind, but there isn't! A good time to try out a few things and give players like Leadbitter (if he's fit that is) and Macklin a run out!

Right on Rob, I think there are quite a few of the fringe players both able to do a job and IMO one or two are perhaps unlucky not to have yet got a start. I doubt if Cheltenham will forego the opportunity to rest a player or two either.

Edit: Having read dot com, looks like Lingy thinks the same way although Spear and Yeoman may end up going out on loan to get that all important experience.

I think it’s rather a shame these days that this cup is now only seem by many fans as some tin pot trophy and not really worth progressing to far in. No its not the FA cup and lets be honest we are never ever going to find ourselves in the FA cup final or even reach the semi-finals.

I’m not sure when this competition came into place, but I do remember when it was the Sherpa Van Trophy, it was not viewed in the same negative way it is today and it did give our club its first ever appearance at the Old Wembley Stadium. Those of us who were supporting the club back then, sure felt it was something special to see our team walk out onto that Wembley turf and while I can’t remember how many people went and supported the team in that match, I do believe it was maybe the highest number of fans watch Torquay United play?

I may be wrong, but back then the lower league clubs felt it was a trophy well worth winning and I’m sure it was not used to give fringe players a competitive game and managers put out their strongest team.

It’s hard to know why this cup that was brought in to give lower league clubs a chance to win a trophy and with the chance to play in a final at Wembley, has ended up with fans and even lower league clubs, feeling it maybe a competition best not to progress to far in. I do wonder if the changes made that saw the bottom clubs of league two get relegated opposed to having to seek re-election has played any part in this.

Or is it just the fact that clubs now have smaller squads and therefore don’t want any more fixtures to have to play than they have too, I suppose the most important thing for our club and its fans is staying in the football league because if it ever found itself in the conference league again, it might never come back ever again.

At the end of the day on offer is a piece of silverware and a chance to play in a cup final that is winnable, that fact alone in my view, should mean we go out and do all we can to win it. How many cups can be found in the trophy room at Plainmoor? Do we even have a trophy cabinet?

Dave - there are some rules to prevent teams from fielding too much of an understrength side. In the paper today Ling is going to persist with the Ellis / Saah combination and try Bodin up front with Howe. Rice and LRT may also get a start but otherwise as you were.

No-one ever looks forward to the early rounds, but the comp. represents the chance to give fringe players a run out and it doesn't take a massive run of results to get to the semi-final stage.

At least it's not the Setanta Shield!

Does anyone know if this game is on Radio Debn ?