Injury-hit Torquay end their season with a draw
SOUTHEND UNITED ....................... 1 TORQUAY UNITED .......................... 1
SHAUN MacDonald, Dean Moxey, Asa Hall, Tom Lapslie, Armani Little. That is a list of players that would surely have started Torquay United’s final game of the National League season, at Southend United yesterday, had they not been injured.
As it was, it was one of the players who might not have played had they been available - Chiori Johnson who gave the Gulls a 1-0 lead just before half time, before the home side went down to 10 men in the second half, and then found an equaliser.
It wasn’t the most dramatic last games of the season, but with neither team playing for anything more than pride and a mid-table finish, it was the kind of game that fans might have been expecting.
Such was the extent of the injury problems that have dogged the runin for Gary Johnson, the manager was only able to name four substitutes, with two changes to the starting line-up from the 1-0 defeat at Stockport County on Wednesday: goalkeeper Mark Halstead coming in for Shaun MacDonald, and midfielder Keelan O’Connell for Armani Little.
Olaf Koszela, Alex Moyse, Opi Edwards and shot-stopper Marcin Brzozowski were the four players on the bench.
Connor Lemonheigh-Evans had a good chance in the fifth minute, but the ball was cleared off the line by Harrison Neal with the goalkeeper Steve Arnold well beaten.
In the 12th minute, Danny Wright hit the post with an uncertain shot following a good cross by Joe Felix. Arnold had to palm a dangerous cross from Ben Wynter on 24 minutes.
Dan Martin was kneed in the back and needed treatment before having to be replaced by Edwards - the Forest Green Rovers loanee who was, last week, released by his club.
Callum Powell powered past Joe Lewis but pulled his shot wide of the near post on 37 minutes. Lemonheigh-Evans was offside when he hit the bar with a chance soon after.
Halstead made a great save from a
Jason Demetriou, while Powell’s shot in the same move was blocked his own team-mate, Sam Dalby.
Johnson did really well to dispossess James Dunne in first-half injury time and took the ball forward himself, beating Arnold with a nice dink over the goalkeeper for a half-time lead.
Halstead got both hands to a Tommy Davis header early in the second half. A Jack Bridge header went wide on 53 minutes. A minute later, Powell got away from Ali Omar but his shot went over.
Demetriou was sent off for a studsup challenge on Wynter on 57 minutes. The Southend player won the ball but followed through and caught the Torquay defender. It was reckless. Having played every single minute of Torquay’s National League season, there was some relief when Wynter was able to continue after treatment.
Halstead made another good save when Dalby headed a Joe Gubbins cross at goal on 67 minutes. But Halstead was beaten by a Neal shot - the ball pinging off the top of the bar. It was a great strike by the Southend midfielder.
Southend got their equaliser in the 75th minute - Dunne striking the ball really well with his left foot to beat Halstead, who could have done little to stop the shot.
Koszela came on for O’Connell after the goal. Omar blocked a Powell chance on the line as the game entered the final 10 minutes.
Nineteen-year-old Moyse made his first-team debut with five minutes to go - with Felix, who had a good game in the middle of the park, replacing him on the bench.
Koszela had a massive chance to win it in the 87th minute after cutting inside and shooting - but Arnold threw out a strong hand to stop the young striker from scoring his first goal.
Having played most of the second half with a man advantage, it was disappointing that Torquay let Southend back into this one. The point gained meant the Gulls finished the season in 11th, after they had been in ninth place at 1-0 up.
Gary Johnson will not be happy about that - so will now turn his attention to building a squad to do much better next time around.