Cheltenham Town 1 Torquay United 3
The only down side to this victory was the fact that there were only 1,397 people there to witness it although at least the 175 die hard regulars following the Gulls would have gone home ecstatic after Paul Buckle's team tore Cheltenham to pieces in a first half performance that ranks alongside any that has been produced by a Torquay United team in recent seasons. United were three up at the break but it could have been four, it could have been five, six or even seven; the home side had no way of stopping wave after wave of concise, high tempo attacking from the Gulls.
Bucks made just one change from the team that started the defeat at Bradford with Chris Hargreaves taking a rest and Tyrone Thompson taking his place alongside Nicky Wroe in central midfield. The playing surface was in very good condition and the heavy downpour before kick-off only served to help the United player's slick passing.
Right from the first whistle United were a cut above their opponents and it was no surprise when they took the lead in the 5th minute; United passed their way up the pitch and eventually a quick pass across the Cheltenham area landed at the feet of Danny Stevens who took a touch before hitting a deflected shot across Brown in the home goal and inside the far post. It had been a very neat and tidy start but no-one in the ground could have predicted the onslaught that was to come.
The restart only served as a very brief respite for Cheltenham because as soon as United got the ball back they ripped the home side open down both channels and through the middle, almost at will. Kevin Nicholson took out the entire home side with a scorching 60 yard diagonal pass that dropped at the feet of Wayne Carlisle and only a low save down to his left by Brown stopped a second United goal. Nicholson gave a display of passing that befitted a far more prestigious cup tournament and the whole team were playing at a pace that was too great for their hosts.
Carlisle had another sight of goal but this time hit the ball over the crossbar from 16 yards and his frustration was clear as he thought that the target should have been hit. The next passage of play from the Gulls involved five players and if it had finished with a goal - which it very nearly did - it would have been goal of the season for any team at any level; Danny Stevens and Tyrone Thompson exchanged passes on the left side for United and this interaction continued with Nicky Wroe and Chris Robertson as United one & two touched their way across the pitch and down the right hand side. At this point Wayne Carlisle joined in and a couple of crisp wall passes later Nicky Wroe was in a position to hit a curling right foot shot that was superbly tipped over by Brown for a corner. It was United's best move of the season by far and even the home supporters were now joining in the applause.
Just after the half hour the lead was doubled when another fine passing move out on the right was complimented by Wayne Carlisle who checked back before whipping a left footed cross toward the near post and Elliot Benyon - already sensing where the ball was going - made a flashing run across the six yard box and glanced a header inside the far post. Thirty-two minutes gone and effectively it was game over.
Cheltenham did try and rally and Denton should have scored with a close range header but it was straight at the almost redundant Scott Bevan and he saved the attempt and the follow up comfortably. A third goal was the least that United's play deserved and it came on the stroke of half-time; yet another slick passing move finished with a quick switch of the ball to the left hand side and Danny Stevens needed no second invitation to jink inside two half-hearted challenges, look up, and from 15 yards slot the ball inside the right hand post leaving Brown rooted to the spot.
No report can probably do justice to United's first half display, it really needed to be seen to be believed. Whatever was said in the home dressing room was never going to be for family viewing and the least the Gulls could expect was a response of some kind from Cheltenham, unfortunately for the home side they conceded a penalty 33 seconds after the restart! Elliot Benyon made a darting run inside the area and Wroe's pass was perfectly weighted to tempt Brown off his line but the United striker got to the ball first and the assistant referee gave the decision immediately. Danny Stevens looked to be favourite to take the spot kick and complete his hat-trick but professionalism prevailed and United's regular taker, Nicky Wroe, politely moved Danny aside and stepped up to promptly have his effort saved by Brown.
Despite this blip United were still the dominant although Cheltenham did force their first corner in the 53rd minute and shortly after scored a fine goal of their own. Josh Low was alert on the edge of the Gulls' area and a loose, bouncing ball was dispatched in fine style with a right foot volley that gave Bevan no chance, a glimmer of hope for the hosts?
Not really, it was a very different second half but United did what they had to do, they changed their efforts from a passing master class to solid, competitive defending against a team that understandably was becoming more frustrated as the match wore on. Barr Hayles and Julian Alsop were both thrown on by Cheltenham boss Martin Allen and from a physical point of view it did change the game but United's defence wasn't about to let slip a two goal lead and almost seemed to relish the chance to 'front up' to a couple of experienced campaigners.
United put their foot back on the gas in the closing stages and could have scored a couple more goals; Brown made a good stop from Wroe close in and the United midfielder will be disappointed he didn't score when put through on goal but for once his first touch was a little heavy and the ball ran off for a goal kick.
It is hard to pick out a negative from this performance, conceding a goal is probably the only one and the trick for Paul and his squad is to produce something like this on a regular basis. If they can then the sky is the limit, it would be very interesting to see what kind of report the Bournemouth scout will drop onto his manager's desk this morning.
United: Bevan; Robertson, Todd, Charnock, Nicholson, Carlisle, Thompson, Wroe, Stevens (Hodges 90), Sills, Benyon (Rendell 83). Subs not used: Brough, Joyce, Yeoman.
Booked: Charnock & Wroe
