2008–09 Torquay United F.C. season

Torquay United

2008–09 season
Chairman	Alex Rowe
Manager	Paul Buckle
Conference National	4th Promoted via Play-offs
FA Cup	Fourth Round
FA Trophy	Third Round
Conference League Cup	Fourth Round
Top goalscorer	League: Tim Sills (13) All: Tim Sills (17)
Highest home attendance	6,018 v Coventry City, 24 January 2009 (FA Cup)
Lowest home attendance	1,176 v Bath City, 13 December 2008 (FA Trophy)
Average home league attendance	3,278
Home colours Away colours
← 2007–08 2009–10 →

The 2008–09 Torquay United F.C. season was Torquay United's second consecutive season in the Conference National. The season runs from 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009.

Overview

Despite gaining just five points from their first seven games, which saw the Gulls languishing in 18th place in the Conference, manager Paul Buckle soon set Torquay on a run of form which saw the team achieve a club record of seventeen games unbeaten.

Torquay also enjoyed their most successful FA Cup run since 1990. After easing through a qualifying round against Chipstead, the Gulls then had to see off Evesham and Oxford to set up a Third Round clash with Championship side Blackpool. In one of the major upsets of the Third Round, the Gulls won the match 1-0 against a side placed three leagues above them. However, they were to narrowly lose their Fourth Round tie to Coventry, also of the Championship, thanks to an 87th-minute header from Elliott Ward.

The 2008-09 season was also notable for the departure of two of Torquay's longest serving players. After a brief appearance in the 2008 FA Trophy Final defeat, Torquay's all-time leading appearance maker Kevin Hill made his official departure in July. Later in the season the Gulls also said farewell to another stalwart as defender Steve Woods left the club in April after an eight-year spell encompassing 281 appearances.

The season ultimately finished in thrilling style when, after beating Conference Champions Burton Albion on the final day of the season, Torquay qualified for the Play-off Semi-finals in which they beat Histon 2-1 on aggregate over two legs. The result meant the Gulls would make their second visit to Wembley in two seasons. However, unlike the previous season, the Torquay fans were treated to a 2-0 victory over Cambridge United thanks to goals from Chris Hargreaves and leading scorer Tim Sills. The win secured Torquay United's return to the Football League after a two-year absence.

League statistics

Conference National

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Promotion or relegation
1	Burton Albion (C) (P)	46	27	7	12	81	52	+29	88	Promotion to League Two
2	Cambridge United	46	24	14	8	65	39	+26	86	Qualification to Conference National playoffs
3	Histon	46	23	14	9	78	48	+30	83
4	Torquay United (P)	46	23	14	9	72	47	+25	83
5	Stevenage Borough	46	23	12	11	73	54	+19	81
6	Kidderminster Harriers	46	23	10	13	69	48	+21	79
7	Oxford United	46	24	10	12	72	51	+21	077^*
8	Kettering Town	46	21	13	12	50	37	+13	76
9	Crawley Town	46	19	14	13	77	55	+22	070^**
10	Wrexham	46	18	12	16	64	48	+16	66
11	Rushden & Diamonds	46	16	15	15	61	49	+12	63
12	Mansfield Town	46	19	9	18	57	55	+2	062^‡
13	Eastbourne Borough	46	18	6	22	58	70	−12	60
14	Ebbsfleet United	46	16	10	20	52	60	−8	58
15	Altrincham	46	15	11	20	49	66	−17	56
16	Salisbury City	46	14	13	19	54	64	−10	55
17	York City	46	11	19	16	47	51	−4	52
18	Forest Green Rovers	46	12	16	18	70	76	−6	52
19	Grays Athletic	46	14	10	22	44	64	−20	52
20	Barrow	46	12	15	19	51	65	−14	51
21	Woking (R)	46	10	14	22	37	60	−23	44	Relegation to Conference North/Conference South
22	Northwich Victoria (R)	46	11	10	25	56	75	−19	43
23	Weymouth (R)	46	11	10	25	45	86	−41	43
24	Lewes (R)	46	6	6	34	28	89	−61	24

Source: English Football
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.

^* Mansfield Town deducted 4 points for fielding an ineligible player.^{[1] **} Oxford United deducted 5 points for fielding an unregistered player.^{[2] ‡} Crawley Town deducted 1 point for fielding an unregistered player.^[3]

Results summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
46	23	14	9	72	47	+25	83	11	7	5	38	23	+15	12	7	4	34	24	+10

Source: Torquay United

Results by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43	44	45	46
Ground	A	H	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	A	H
Result	D	W	L	L	L	D	L	W	W	W	W	D	W	D	W	W	W	W	W	D	D	L	W	W	L	D	W	L	W	L	D	W	W	D	W	W	W	D	D	W	W	L	D	D	D	W
Position	11	5	14	17	20	18	18	18	17	15	11	11	8	8	7	5	2	2	1	3	3	4	3	2	5	3	4	6	5	6	5	5	5	5	4	3	3	3	3	3	2	3	3	4	5	4

Source: Torquay United
Ground: A = Away; H = Home. Result: D = Draw; L = Loss; W = Win; P = Postponed.

Season diary

• 1 July: Club record appearance holder Kevin Hill leaves to join Dorchester Town on a free transfer^[4]
• 14 July: Mustapha Carayol joins from Milton Keynes Dons on a two-year contract^[5]
• 18 July: Michael Poke re-joins on loan from Southampton^[6]
• 13 August: Martin Rice joins Truro City on loan until the end of the season^[7]
• 9 September: Roscoe Dsane and Michael Brough are made available for loan^[8]
• 25 September: Goalkeeper Scott Bevan joins on loan from Shrewsbury Town as cover for the injured Michael Poke (himself a loanee).^[9]
• 19 November: Torquay defender Chris Todd announces that he has been diagnosed with leukaemia^[10]
• 19 November: Torquay set a new club record number of games without defeat^[11]
• 3 December: Torquay's club record unbeaten run of 17 games ends with defeat away to Forest Green Rovers in the Conference League Cup^[12]
• 1 January: Scott Bevan joins on an 18-month contract from Shrewsbury Town^[13]
• 2 January: Tristan Plummer joins on loan from Bristol City until the end of the season^[14]
• 3 January: Torquay defeat Championship side Blackpool in the FA Cup 3rd Round^[15]
• 14 January: Striker Tim Sills signs a new contract until the end of the 2009-10 season^[16]
• 20 January: Former striker Jamie Ward moves from Chesterfield to Sheffield United for an initial fee of £330,000, triggering a 25% sell-on clause^[17]
• 24 January: Torquay exit FA Cup after 1-0 defeat at home to Coventry City^[18]
• 31 January: Tristan Plummer ends his loan spell early and returns to Bristol City^[19]
• 31 January: Torquay exit FA Trophy after 3-0 defeat Away to Southport^[20]
• 2 February: Striker Iyseden Christie joins on a free transfer from Stevenage Borough, signing a contract until the end of the season^[21]
• 2 February: Defenders Chris Todd and Michael Brough join Salisbury City on a month's loan^[22]
• 4 March: Trainee Jordan Charran leaves the club^[23]
• 20 March: Chris Todd returns to the club after his loan spell at Salisbury City^[24]
• 27 March: Swindon Town Striker Blair Sturrock joins the club on loan until the end of the season^[25]
• 2 April: Defender Steve Woods leaves Torquay United after eight years and 281 appearances^[26]
• 9 April: Michael Brough returns after his loan deal with Salisbury City ends^[27]
• 26 April: In a tense final game of the season, Torquay beat Burton Albion 2-1 to finish fourth and secure a place in the Conference National play-offs. Despite Burton losing, the result is enough to crown them the Conference champions^[28]
• 27 April: Striker Roscoe Dsane leaves the club^[29]
• 4 May: Despite a 1-0 second leg defeat to Histon, Torquay win the Conference Play-offs 2-1 on aggregate to book a place in the Conference National play-off final at Wembley against Cambridge United.^[30]
• 17 May: Torquay Utd are promoted back to the Football League after beating Cambridge United 2-0 in front of a crowd of over 35,000 at Wembley^[31]
• 21 May: United celebrate their return to the Football League with a victory parade through the streets of Torquay.^[32]
• 22 May: Defender Kevin Nicholson signs a new one-year deal with the club.^[33]
• 1 Jun: Striker Iyseden Christie is released by the club.^[34]
• 2 Jun: Goalkeeper Martin Rice signs a new one-year contract after having spent the majority of the season on loan to Truro City.^[35]
• 16 Jun: Skipper Chris Hargreaves agrees a new one-year deal in a role involving both playing and coaching.^[36]
• 23 Jun: Striker Matt Green agrees a season long loan to Oxford Utd.^[37]

Match of the season

CAMBRIDGE UNITED 0–2 TORQUAY UNITED
Conference National Play-off Final
Wembley Stadium, 17 May 2009

Torquay United's second trip to Wembley in two seasons was only made possible by the slenderest of margins. After having sneaked into the play-offs by beating Conference champions Burton Albion on the final day of the season, the Gulls only just managed to beat third placed Histon 2-1 on aggregate in the play-off semi-finals. They now faced the final hurdle preventing them from returning to the Football League after a two-year absence: a play-off final with the team who had finished second in the Conference, Cambridge United.

Cambridge had been defeated in the previous year's play-off final by Torquay's arch-rivals Exeter City (who had also knocked the Gulls out in the same year's semi final). As such, they were eager to make it second time lucky, although, having experienced defeat themselves in the previous year's FA Trophy Final at Wembley, the Gulls were also keen not to repeat the disappointment of the previous season. Although Cambridge began the brighter of the two sides, it was Torquay (wearing their white and blue away strip) who took the lead through captain Chris Hargreaves after 35 minutes. Cambridge had more chances in the second half, but their cause was hindered when defender Phil Bolland was sent off after a second yellow card for a tackle on Elliot Benyon in the 70th minute. Striker Tim Sills effectively sealed the victory five minutes later after he headed home a pin-point cross from winger Wayne Carlisle.

The score remained 2-0 until the final whistle, and Torquay United could finally celebrate their return to the Football League after two years in the Conference.

No. Pos. Name 1 GK Michael Poke 7 DF Lee Mansell 6 DF Chris Todd 5 DF Chris Robertson 3 DF Kevin Nicholson 15 MF Wayne Carlisle  90+4' 11 MF Nicky Wroe 14 MF Chris Hargreaves  35' 19 MF Danny Stevens  84' 9 FW Elliot Benyon  86' 8 FW Tim Sills  75' Substitutes 12 MF Tyrone Thompson  86' 16 DF Lee Hodges  84' 17 FW Matt Green 18 MF Mustapha Carayol  90+4' 23 GK Martin Rice

Poke Todd Robertson Mansell Nicholson Wroe Hargreaves Carlisle Stevens Benyon Sills

Results

Conference National

Histon v Torquay United

9 Aug 2008	Histon	1 – 1	Torquay United	Bridge Road
15:00 BST	Knight-Percival  89'	Report	Sills  55' (pen.)	Attendance: 928 Referee: Michael Naylor

Torquay United v Woking

12 Aug 2008	Torquay United	2 – 1	Woking	Plainmoor
19:45 BST	Benyon  60' Carlisle  82'	Report	Sole  35'	Attendance: 2,881 Referee: J. Farries

Torquay United v Ebbsfleet United

18 Aug 2008	Torquay United	0 – 2	Ebbsfleet United	Plainmoor
19:45 BST		Report	Moore  26' Akinde  78'	Attendance: 2,372 Referee: P. Melin

Crawley Town v Torquay United

23 Aug 2008	Crawley Town	3 – 1	Torquay United	Broadfield Stadium
15:00 BST	Pittman  9' Pinault  32' (pen.) Cook  77' (pen.)	Report	D'Sane  49'	Attendance: 1,154 Referee: Darren Sheldrake

Torquay United v Salisbury City

25 Aug 2008	Torquay United	0 – 1	Salisbury City	Plainmoor
15:00 BST		Report	Griffin  90'	Attendance: 2,001 Referee: W. Barratt

Torquay United v York City

28 Aug 2008	Torquay United	1 – 1	York City	Plainmoor
19:45 BST	Stevens  65'	Report	Sodje  87'	Attendance: 1,598 Referee: Brendan Malone

Kidderminster Harriers v Torquay United

4 Sep 2008	Kidderminster Harriers	1 – 0	Torquay United	Aggborough
19:45 BST	Barnes-Homer  44'	Report		Attendance: 1,345 Referee: R. Lewis

Torquay United v Northwich Victoria

7 Sep 2008	Torquay United	2 – 1	Northwich Victoria	Plainmoor
14:00 BST	Carlisle  10' Sills  90' (pen.)	Report	Steele  53'	Attendance: 1,752 Referee: A. Sainsbury

Cambridge United v Torquay United

13 Sep 2008	Cambridge United	0 – 1	Torquay United	Abbey Stadium
15:00 BST		Report	Carlisle  90'	Attendance: 4,041 Referee: A. Hendley

Torquay United v Eastbourne Borough

20 Sep 2008	Torquay United	2 – 0	Eastbourne Borough	Plainmoor
15:00 BST	Thompson  23' Hargreaves  73'	Report		Attendance: 1,921 Referee: Steve Rushton

Forest Green Rovers v Torquay United

23 Sep 2008	Forest Green Rovers	1 – 2	Torquay United	The New Lawn
19:45 BST	Smith  45+4'	Report	Benyon  69' Green  90+3'	Attendance: 1,022 Referee: Paul Tierney

Wrexham v Torquay United

27 Sep 2008	Wrexham	1 – 1	Torquay United	Racecourse Ground
15:00 BST	Brown  44'	Report	Sills  35'	Attendance: 2,897 Referee: G. Sutton

Torquay United v Stevenage Borough

4 Oct 2008	Torquay United	3 – 0	Stevenage Borough	Plainmoor
15:00 BST	Robertson  67' Sills  71' Wroe  87'	Report		Attendance: 2,066 Referee: N. Kinseley

Torquay United v Oxford United

9 Oct 2008	Torquay United	1 – 1	Oxford United	Plainmoor
19:45 BST	Robertson  21'	Report	Trainer  89'	Attendance: 1,955 Referee: A. Sainsbury

Rushden & Diamonds v Torquay United

12 Oct 2008	Rushden & Diamonds	1 – 3	Torquay United	Nene Park
15:00 BST	Panther  52' Smith  68'	Report	Carlisle  7' Sills  15' Wroe  51' Green  54'	Attendance: 1,649 Referee: Ian Cooper

Ebbsfleet United v Torquay United

18 Oct 2008	Ebbsfleet United	0 – 2	Torquay United	Stonebridge Road
15:00 BST		Report	Wroe  42' Carlisle  55'	Attendance: 1,781 Referee: R. Lee

Torquay United v Mansfield Town

1 Nov 2008	Torquay United	2 – 0	Mansfield Town	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT	D'Sane  54' Woods  69'	Report		Attendance: 2,267 Referee: Brendan Malone

York City v Torquay United

15 Nov 2008	York City	1 – 2	Torquay United	Bootham Crescent
15:00 GMT	Greaves  85'	Report	D'Sane  68' Ellis  90+1'	Attendance: 2,412 Referee: P. Curry

Torquay United v Lewes

18 Nov 2008	Torquay United	4 – 1	Lewes	Plainmoor
19:45 GMT	Sills  2'  45' Stevens  28'  48'	Report	Taylor  52'	Attendance: 2,118 Referee: A. Sainsbury

Woking v Torquay United

22 Nov 2008	Woking	2 – 2	Torquay United	Kingfield Stadium
15:00 GMT	Enver-Marum  6' Vernazza  22'	Report	Benyon  55' Stevens  65'	Attendance: 2,452 Referee: D. Ford

Torquay United v Cambridge United

6 Dec 2008	Torquay United	0 – 0	Cambridge United	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT		Report		Attendance: 2,310 Referee: R. Merchant

Eastbourne Borough v Torquay United

9 Dec 2008	Eastbourne Borough	4 – 2	Torquay United	Priory Lane
19:45 GMT	Barnes  8' Crabb  51'  56' Smith  71'	Report	Benyon  34'  90+1'	Attendance: 1,204 Referee: R. Whitton

Torquay United v Histon

20 Dec 2008	Torquay United	4 – 1	Histon	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT	D'Sane  7'  22' Wroe  62' Sills  85'	Report	Wright  49'	Attendance: 2,201 Referee: R. Lee

Weymouth v Torquay United

26 Dec 2008	Weymouth	0 – 1	Torquay United	Wessex Stadium
15:00 GMT		Report	Green  24'	Attendance: 2,323 Referee: Steve Creighton

Torquay United v Kidderminster Harriers

28 Dec 2008	Torquay United	0 – 1	Kidderminster Harriers	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT		Report	Riley  73'	Attendance: 2,749 Referee: Simon Beck

Torquay United v Wrexham

16 Jan 2009	Torquay United	1 – 1	Wrexham	Plainmoor
19:45 GMT	D'Sane  61'	Report	Flynn  31'	Attendance: 1,842 Referee: Darren Sheldrake

Lewes v Torquay United

27 Jan 2009	Lewes	0 – 2	Torquay United	The Dripping Pan
19:45 GMT		Report	Nicholson  44' D'Sane  84'	Attendance: 558 Referee: R. Whitton

Torquay United v Weymouth

10 Feb 2009	Torquay United	0 – 2	Weymouth	Plainmoor
19:45 GMT		Report	Williams  45+1' Beavon  88'	Attendance: 1,743 Referee: A. Hendley

Torquay United v Altrincham

14 Feb 2009	Torquay United	3 – 1	Altrincham	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT	Sills  19'  55' (pen.) Benyon  76'	Report	Doughty  87'	Attendance: 1,760 Referee: M. McLaughlin

Kettering Town v Torquay United

21 Feb 2009	Kettering Town	2 – 1	Torquay United	Rockingham Road
15:00 GMT	Marna  9' Seddon  12' (pen.)	Report	Nicholson  45+2'	Attendance: 1,869 Referee: Jock Waugh

Torquay United v Forest Green Rovers

24 Feb 2009	Torquay United	3 – 3	Forest Green Rovers	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT	Green  18' Hargreaves  45+3' Christie  80'	Report	Mangan  28' (pen.)  36'  42'	Attendance: 1,554 Referee: Steve Creighton

Oxford United v Torquay United

28 Feb 2009	Oxford United	0 – 2	Torquay United	Kassam Stadium
19:45 GMT	Nelthorpe  33'	Report	D'Sane  59' Benyon  64'  70'	Attendance: 5,837 Referee: Simon Beck

Grays Athletic v Torquay United

3 Mar 2009	Grays Athletic	1 – 2	Torquay United	New Recreation Ground
19:45 GMT	Dinning  26'	Report	Nicholson  13' Carlisle  87'	Attendance: 510 Referee: D. Ford

Torquay United v Rushden & Diamonds

7 Mar 2009	Torquay United	1 – 1	Rushden & Diamonds	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT	Sills  41'	Report	Tomlin  65'	Attendance: 2,161 Referee: K. Johnson

Altrincham v Torquay United

10 Mar 2009	Altrincham	0 – 1	Torquay United	Moss Lane
19:45 GMT		Report	Carlisle  90+2'	Attendance: 735 Referee: J. Adcock

Torquay United v Barrow

14 Mar 2009	Torquay United	4 – 1	Barrow	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT	Wroe  4' Benyon  39' Sills  68' Green  90'	Report	Brown  12' Walker  90+2'	Attendance: 2,269 Referee: Ian Cooper

Northwich Victoria v Torquay United

21 Mar 2009	Northwich Victoria	2 – 3	Torquay United	Victoria Stadium
15:00 GMT	Perry  34' Allan  56'	Report	Todd  49' Sills  68' D'Sane  76'	Attendance: 705 Referee: Steve Rushton

Torquay United v Grays Athletic

24 Mar 2009	Torquay United	1 – 1	Grays Athletic	Plainmoor
19:45 GMT	D'Sane  48'	Report	Taylor  39'	Attendance: 1,996 Referee: Brendan Malone

Mansfield Town v Torquay United

28 Mar 2009	Mansfield Town	1 – 1	Torquay United	Field Mill
15:00 GMT	Duffy  36'	Report	Sturrock  64'	Attendance: 2,437 Referee: Paul Tierney

Torquay United v Kettering Town

4 Apr 2009	Torquay United	2 – 0	Kettering Town	Plainmoor
15:00 BST	Robertson  20' Sturrock  65'	Report		Attendance: 2,503 Referee: P. Melin

Burton Albion v Torquay United

6 Apr 2009	Burton Albion	0 – 1	Torquay United	Pirelli Stadium
19:45 BST	Pearson  36'	Report	Stevens  10'	Attendance: 4,891 Referee: Jock Waugh

Torquay United v Crawley Town

11 Apr 2009	Torquay United	0 – 2	Crawley Town	Plainmoor
15:00 BST		Report	Bulman  38' Matthews  90+2'	Attendance: 3,031 Referee: Brendan Malone

Salisbury City v Torquay United

13 Apr 2009	Salisbury City	2 – 2	Torquay United	Raymond McEnhill Stadium
15:00 BST	Griffin  45+3' Ademeno  81'	Report	Carlisle  20' Brough  84' Wroe  90+1'	Attendance: 2,039 Referee: J. Hopkins

Stevenage Borough v Torquay United

18 Apr 2009	Stevenage Borough	0 – 0	Torquay United	Broadhall Way
15:00 BST		Report	Mansell  64'	Attendance: 2,819 Referee: A. Hendley

Barrow v Torquay United

21 Apr 2009	Barrow	1 – 1	Torquay United	Holker Street
19:45 BST	Walker  12'	Report	Hargreaves  49'	Attendance: 1,918 Referee: R. West

Torquay United v Burton Albion

26 Apr 2009	Torquay United	2 – 1	Burton Albion	Plainmoor
15:00 BST	Hargreaves  13' Benyon  46'	Report	Goodfellow  8'	Attendance: 4,528 Referee: Paul Tierney

Conference National play-offs

Torquay United v Histon

1 May 2009 Semi-final 1st Leg	Torquay United	2 – 0	Histon	Plainmoor
20:00 BST	Wroe  36' Sills  74'	Report		Attendance: 3,737 Referee: Jock Waugh

Histon v Torquay United

4 May 2009 Semi-final 2nd Leg	Histon	1 – 0	Torquay United	Bridge Road
17:30 BST	Andrews  16'	Report		Attendance: 2,481 Referee: Steve Rushton

Cambridge United v Torquay United

17 May 2009 Final	Cambridge United	0 – 2	Torquay United	Wembley Stadium
16:00 BST	Bolland  70'	Report	Hargreaves  35' Sills  75'	Attendance: 35,089 Referee: Gary Sutton

FA Cup

Torquay United v Chipstead

25 Oct 2008 Fourth Round Qualifying	Torquay United	4 – 1	Chipstead	Plainmoor
15:00 BST	Thompson  9'  40' Sills  87'  88'	Report	Coleman  68'	Attendance: 1,800

Torquay United v Evesham United

8 Nov 2008 First Round	Torquay United	2 – 0	Evesham United	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT	Sills  28'  75'	Report		Attendance: 2,275 Referee: Darren Sheldrake

Torquay United v Oxford United

29 Nov 2008 Second Round	Torquay United	2 – 0	Oxford United	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT	Benyon  41'  83' D'Sane  45+1'	Report		Attendance: 2,647 Referee: R. East

Torquay United v Blackpool

3 Jan 2009 Third Round	Torquay United	1 – 0	Blackpool	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT	Green  32'	Report		Attendance: 3,654 Referee: Andy Penn

Torquay United v Coventry City

24 Jan 2009 Fourth Round	Torquay United	0 – 1	Coventry City	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT		Report	Ward  87'	Attendance: 6,018 Referee: K. Friend

FA Trophy

Torquay United v Bath City

13 Dec 2008 First Round	Torquay United	2 – 0	Bath City	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT	Mansell D'Sane	Report		Attendance: 1,176

Torquay United v Rushden & Diamonds

10 Jan 2009 Second Round	Torquay United	1 – 0	Rushden & Diamonds	Plainmoor
15:00 GMT	Hargreaves	Report		Attendance: 1,728

Southport v Torquay United

31 Jan 2009 Third Round	Southport	3 – 0	Torquay United	Haig Avenue
15:00 GMT	Daly  13'  75' Lee  81'	Report		Attendance: 980 Referee: R. West

Conference League Cup

Weymouth v Torquay United

4 Nov 2008 Third Round	Weymouth	0 – 3	Torquay United	Wessex Stadium
19:45 GMT			Sills Benyon	Attendance: 621

Forest Green Rovers v Torquay United

2 Dec 2008 Fourth Round	Forest Green Rovers	1 – 0	Torquay United	The New Lawn
19:45 GMT	Symonds	Report		Attendance: 421

Friendlies

Newton Abbot v Torquay United

15 Jul 2008	Newton Abbot	0 – 7	Torquay United	Coach Road
		Report

Torquay United v Bristol Rovers

19 Jul 2008	Torquay United	1 – 1	Bristol Rovers	Plainmoor
15:00 BST

Torquay United v Chelsea

26 Jul 2008	Torquay United	0 – 1	Chelsea	Plainmoor
15:00 BST		Report	Stoch  37'	Attendance: 1,963

South West Challenge Cup

Bideford v Torquay United

22 Jul 2008	Bideford	0 – 2	Torquay United	Bideford Sports Ground
19:00 BST		Report	Carayol Thompson	Attendance: 550

Eastleigh v Torquay United

24 Jul 2008	Eastleigh	0 – 0 (3 – 2 p)	Torquay United	Bideford Sports Ground
19:00 BST		Report

Yeovil Town v Torquay United

26 Jul 2008 Semi-final	Yeovil Town	1 – 1 (3 – 5 p)	Torquay United	Mill Road, Barnstaple
20:00 BST	Schofield	Report	Benyon
		Penalties
	Murtagh Schofield Owusu Wagenaar		D'Sane Adams Nicholson Robertson Rice

Torquay United v Eastleigh

28 Jul 2008 Final	Torquay United	2 – 2 (2 – 3 p)	Eastleigh	Bideford Sports Ground
20:00 BST	Yeoman  83' Carayol  84'	Report	Adeniyi  39' (pen.) Harris  70'

Devon St Luke's Bowl

Cullompton Rangers v Torquay United

25 Feb 2009 Second Round	Cullompton Rangers	0 – 2	Torquay United	Speed's Meadow
19:45 GMT		Report	Stevens  39'  88'	Referee: Marc Whaley

Elmore v Torquay United

21 Apr 2009 Quarter Final	Elmore	1 – 0	Torquay United	Horsdon Park
19:45 BST		[ Report]		Referee: Andrew Rodda

Club statistics

First team appearances

No.	Pos.	Name	Conference National		Conference National play-offs		FA Cup		FA Trophy		Conference League Cup		Total ^[4]		Discipline
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	Michael Poke	12 (1)	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	15 (1)	0	0	0
2	DF	Michael Brough	2 (1)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	2 (1)	0	2	1
3	DF	Kevin Nicholson	38 (2)	3	3	0	5	0	3	0	2	0	48 (2)	3	0	0
4	DF	Steve Woods	27	1	0	0	5	0	3	0	1	0	34	1	2	0
5	DF	Chris Robertson	27 (3)	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	30 (3)	3	2	0
6	DF	Chris Todd	16	1	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	20	1	0	0
7	MF	Lee Mansell	41 (1)	0	3	0	5	0	3	1	2	0	51 (1)	1	4	1
8	FW	Tim Sills	43 (2)	13	3	2	5	4	2	0	1	2	52 (2)	17	8	0
9	FW	Elliot Benyon	17 (17)	10	1 (1)	0	0 (5)	2	0 (2)	0	1 (1)	1	18 (24)	12	3	0
10	FW	Roscoe D'Sane	22 (5)	9	0	0	5	0	3	1	1	0	29 (5)	10	2	2
11	MF	Nicky Wroe	40	6	3	1	5	0	3	0	1 (1)	0	50	7	6	0
12	MF	Tyrone Thompson	17 (6)	1	0 (1)	0	3 (1)	2	1 (1)	0	1 (1)	0	20 (9)	1	4	0
14	MF	Chris Hargreaves	44	4	3	1	5	0	3	1	1	0	54	6	10	0
15	MF	Wayne Carlisle	34 (3)	8	3	0	5	0	2	0	0	0	44 (3)	8	2	0
16	DF	Lee Hodges	31 (4)	0	0 (2)	0	5	0	3	0	1	0	38 (6)	0	1	0
17	FW	Matt Green	15 (14)	4	0	0	2 (1)	1	2 (1)	0	1 (1)	0	20 (17)	5	2	1
18	MF	Mustapha Carayol	14 (16)	0	0 (1)	0	3 (1)	0	0 (1)	0	2	0	16 (19)	0	1	0
19	MF	Danny Stevens	15 (14)	5	3	0	0 (2)	0	0 (2)	0	1 (1)	0	18 (18)	5	1	0
20	GK	Scott Bevan	34	0	0	0	5	0	3	0	1	0	41	0	0	0
21	FW	Iyseden Christie	2 (4)	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2 (4)	1	0	0
22	FW	Ashley Yeoman	0 (1)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0 (1)	0	0	0
23	GK	Martin Rice	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
24	MF	Steve Adams	1 (2)	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	2 (2)	0	0	0
25	DF	Mark Ellis	8 (1)	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	8 (1)	1	2	0
28	FW	Jordan Charran	0 (1)	0	0	0	0 (1)	0	0	0	0 (1)	0	0 (1)	0	0	0
32	FW	Tristan Plummer	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
33	FW	Blair Sturrock	6 (1)	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	8 (1)	2	1	0

Source: Torquay United, soccerbase
Substitute appearances in brackets.
⁴ Total excludes FA Cup Qualifying Round and Conference League Cup.

Transfers

In

Date	Pos.	Name	From	Fee
14 July 2008	MF	Mustapha Carayol	Milton Keynes Dons	Undisclosed
1 January 2009	GK	Scott Bevan	Shrewsbury Town	Free
2 February 2009	FW	Iyseden Christie	Stevenage Borough	Free

Out

Date	Pos.	Name	To	Fee
1 July 2009	MF	Kevin Hill	Dorchester Town	Free
4 March 2009	FW	Jordan Charran	Released	Free
2 April 2009	DF	Steve Woods	Stalybridge Celtic	Free
27 April 2009	FW	Roscoe D'Sane	Released	Free
1 June 2009	FW	Iyseden Christie	Tamworth	Free

Loans In

Date	Pos.	Name	From	Expiry date
18 July 2008	GK	Michael Poke	Southampton	May 2009
25 September 2008	GK	Scott Bevan	Shrewsbury Town	1 January 2009
2 January 2009	FW	Tristan Plummer	Bristol City	31 January 2009
27 March 2009	FW	Blair Sturrock	Swindon Town	May 2009

Loans out

Date	Pos.	Name	To	Expiry date
13 August 2008	GK	Martin Rice	Truro City	May 2009
2 February 2009	DF	Chris Todd	Salisbury City	20 March 2009
2 February 2009	DF	Michael Brough	Salisbury City	9 April 2009
23 June 2009	FW	Matt Green	Oxford United	May 2010

References

1. "Mansfield hit by points deduction". BBC Sport. 2008-10-06. Retrieved 2012-03-08.
2. "Five-point deduction for Oxford". BBC Sport. 2009-01-12. Retrieved 2012-03-08.
3. "Crawley win FA appeal over points". BBC Sport. 2009-02-27. Retrieved 2012-03-08.
4. "Torquay legend Hill leaves Gulls". BBC Sport. 2008-06-18. Retrieved 2009-01-06.
5. "Torquay sign midfielder Carayol". BBC Sport. 2008-07-14. Retrieved 2009-01-06.
6. "Torquay sign Saints keeper Poke". BBC Sport. 2008-07-22. Retrieved 2009-01-06.
7. "Keeper Rice joins Truro on loan". BBC Sport. 2008-08-13. Retrieved 2009-01-06.
8. "D'Sane & Brough offered for loan". BBC Sport. 2008-09-09. Retrieved 2009-01-06.
9. "Bevan agrees Torquay loan switch". BBC Sport. 2008-09-25. Retrieved 2009-01-06.
10. "Todd reveals leukaemia diagnosis". BBC Sport. 2008-11-19. Retrieved 2009-01-06.
11. "Buckle hails new Gull's record". BBC Sport. 2008-11-19. Retrieved 2009-01-06.
12. "Late winner ends Torquay record". BBC Sport. 2008-12-03. Retrieved 2009-01-06.
13. "Bevan agrees 18-month Gulls deal". BBC Sport. 2008-12-30. Retrieved 2009-01-06.
14. "Gulls sign Bristol City youngster". BBC Sport. 2009-01-02. Retrieved 2009-01-06.
15. "Torquay 1-0 Blackpool". BBC Sport. 2009-01-03. Retrieved 2009-01-06.
16. "Sills signs new Torquay contract". BBC Sport. 2009-01-14. Retrieved 2009-01-14.
17. "Ward deal nets Torquay thousands". BBC Sport. 2009-01-20. Retrieved 2009-01-22.
18. "Torquay 0-1 Coventry". BBC Sport. 2009-01-24. Retrieved 2009-01-24.
19. "Plummer ends loan spell". The Herald Express. 2009-01-31. Retrieved 2009-02-01.
20. "FA Trophy third round results". BBC Sport. 2009-01-31. Retrieved 2009-02-01.
21. "Torquay capture striker Christie". BBC Sport. 2009-02-02. Retrieved 2009-02-02.
22. "Three in for City". Non-LeagueDaily. 2009-02-02. Retrieved 2009-02-03.
23. "Gull's snapshots". Herald Express. 2009-03-05. Retrieved 2009-03-05.
24. "Chris Todd column". BBC Sport. 2009-03-20. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
25. "Torquay sign Swindon's Sturrock". BBC Sport. 2009-03-27. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
26. "Woods accepts a settlement offer". Herald Express. 2009-04-02. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
27. "Brough's back for United". Herald Express. 2009-04-09. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
28. "Torquay 2-1 Burton". BBC Sport. 2009-04-26. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
29. "United let Dsane go". Herald Express. 2009-04-27. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
30. "Histon 1-0 Torquay: Gutsy Gulls hang on for Wembley". Herald Express. 2009-05-05. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
31. "Torquay United 2-0 Cambridge United (FINAL SCORE from Wembley)". Herald Express. 2009-05-17. Retrieved 2009-05-17.
32. "The boys are back in town!". Herald Express. 2009-05-22. Retrieved 2009-05-24.
33. "Nicholson signs new Torquay deal". BBC Sport. 2009-05-22. Retrieved 2009-05-24.
34. "Strike pair released by Torquay". BBC Sport. 2009-06-01. Retrieved 2009-07-02.
35. "Rice agrees new Torquay contract". BBC Sport. 2009-06-02. Retrieved 2009-07-02.
36. "Hargreaves signs new Torquay deal". BBC Sport. 2009-06-16. Retrieved 2009-07-02.
37. "STRIKER GREEN TO MAKE OXFORD 'U-TURN'". Herald Express. 2009-06-23. Retrieved 2009-07-02.