BANK HOLIDAY BONANZA AS UNITED’S LONG STANDING UNWANTED RECORDS ARE SMASHED TO KEEP THE GULLS NUMBER ONE
Over the weekend the Daily Mail reported that figures from TripAdvisor confirmed that the English Riviera is all the rage once more as they show searches for Torquay leaping ahead of all UK rivals.
Yellow Army fans could be forgiven if they thought this referred to the football club, which it could easily have done bearing in mind its scintillating form, but of course it rightly means Torbay is seen as an attractive holiday destination as businesses start to re-open. Surely a successful football team and its town should go hand-in-hand.
MayDay magic - what a sensational Bank Holiday weekend as Torquay secured six important points scoring some outstanding goals - particularly two cracking left foot thunderbolts from often under-rated Billy Waters - to retain top spot in the National League. If anyone deserved these it was Waters for his relentless running and harrying of defenders.
MayDay voodoo - records? Records are there to be broken and two were smashed over this Bank Holiday weekend. Before Saturday’s match United’s record against Eastleigh for the last nine fixtures between the two sides was lost eight, drawn one. Could the Gulls surpass this and break another unenviable record at Chesterfield on Monday? For in twenty one League visits to Derbyshire over a 50 year period, the Gulls had never won - well not until this week.
Gary Johnson’s experience and player management is there to be seen match after match, and it’s no fluke that his team, his players have edged Torquay closer to a hopeful return to the promised land of the EFL, helped by a wonderful run of eight wins and one draw from the last nine.
Credit where credit is due, Saturday’s emphatic 3-1 win over Eastleigh was a great all-round performance from every player from start to finish. But the way United play comes from the manager who sets the positive tone. It’s not just the winning but the manner in which these three points are achieved.
And, still without a number of key players and following a long, overnight journey, the Gulls played on the front foot from the off at Chesterfield on Monday. Their rewards? Well, besides staying top, close rivals Hartlepool lost at this Saturday’s opponents Bromley but the really big boost was Sutton slipping to a late defeat at Notts County thanks to ex-Gull Mark Ellis winning a stoppage time penalty.
United’s destiny is now in its own hands.
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In a recent meeting with a club official TUST asked if there are any plans to continue live streaming after this season, as it has been such a success notably for exiles, but it appears there are none at the moment.
So news coming out of Home Park last week was of interest as Plymouth Argyle announced they are to introduce their own streaming service for the Green Army for next season. Currently, the majority of EFL clubs use iFollow but Argyle are to produce “a cutting edge website.”
Live streaming for all football clubs promises to be an important source of income for clubs in the future, even after Covid-19. Head of Argyle marketing Jamie Yablsey said, “This is a really exciting development for the club as this project allows us to produce our own digital solution, controlled by us, designed specifically for Argyle supporters.”
Sounds an exciting concept and one the Yellow Army would love to see at Plainmoor next season.
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Last week Trust Oldham - Oldham Athletic’s supporters’ trust - became the latest trust to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with their football club. MoUs help to formalise the relationship between a fan group and their club, setting out key terms of reference for how the club engages with its supporters on a formal basis. The MoU, particularly in these fragile times with a fan-led review taking evidence following the Government’s recent terms of reference, could be seen as a method of ensuring there’s a regular dialogue between a club and its fanbase.
As a reminder, TUST, following meetings and discussions at the time, presented the club with a legally drawn up draft MoU on June 27 2018.
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Four cup finals to go but thankfully none of those are on Tuesday nights, just four Saturdays with the prospect of fans being inside Plainmoor on Saturday May 22. The final League match on May 29 at Altincham, like all the other NL fixtures, kicks-off at 12.30pm.
Who’s your likely candidate for POTS? Responses from last week vary between Asa Hall, Sam Sherring and Adam Randell- to name the three most popular.
So who would you vote for? Send your name to: fanszone.tu@gmail.com or Twitter: @FanszoneT
These are exciting times for the Yellow Army, stay safe, and, when offered, get your vaccination.
COYY - ‘Gary Johnson’s Yellow Army’.
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COMING SOON - OUR NEXT MEMBERS' ZOOM EVENING Tuesday 1st June at 6.30pm Your opportunity to discuss the review and other matters affecting our club and the wider footballing world. Details to follow - save the date!