Sixteen years ago, The Gulls made their way to the new Wembley Stadium for the first time, and although their pursuit for FA Trophy glory ended in disappointment, it was to prove a memorable occasion for a true United legend.
The 2008 final of non-League football’s most prestigious knockout competition certainly captured the attention of both sets of supporters, and also the wider footballing public, with the revamped national stadium having only been opened some twelve months prior.
United’s opponents on that boiling hot May afternoon were Ebbsfleet United – quite the attraction themselves, having been purchased by 20,000 members of website MyFootballClub in November 2007. Those members certainly boosted the travelling contingent that made their way to the capital to back The Fleet, with the make-up of the total attendance of 40,186 belying the notion that the side from Kent were entering the showpiece as underdogs.
For Torquay’s part, their first – and to date only – shot at lifting the Trophy came just five days after their galling Blue Square Premier Play-Off semi-final defeat at the hands of arch-rivals Exeter City. On that day, and in front of a packed-out Plainmoor, Paul Buckle’s men had contrived to give up the lead gifted to them by Kevin Hill (more of him later), and concede four times in just over twenty minutes on their way to a 3-5 aggregate defeat, leaving The Gulls boss with the unenviable task of attempting to lift his players in double-quick time.
All the talk and noises coming out of The Gulls’ camp in the build-up to the game were the right ones, with stand-in goalkeeper Martin Rice, himself a former City trainee, highlighting that a win under the newly-crafted arch would put additional pressure on his former club to match that achievement in their upcoming Play-Off final against Cambridge at the same venue.
Buckle’s side started the match itself well enough too, with forward Roscoe Dsane one of a number of players to go close in the opening stages.
As the half wore on though, Ebbsfleet began to wrestle the match away from United’s grasp, with a former Gull at the very heart of proceedings.
Former Brighton striker Chris McPhee had been recruited by former boss Ian Atkins ahead of the 2005/06 campaign, however it was a season to forget for both club and player, as The Gulls dropped out of the Football League following a disastrous season, with McPhee managing just a solitary goal amid the chaos. After making a close-season switch to Ebbsfleet though, the rejuvenated player became a firm favourite with the Fleet faithful, with his versatility also seeing him employed in defensive and midfield roles.
At Wembley, the first-half was edging towards the closing stages as Luke Moore was upended by Rice inside the penalty area, and with few disputing the award of a penalty kick, it was McPhee who picked up the ball and placed it calmly on the spot.
Rice though, would earn himself instant redemption, guessing right to parry the ball away. But any glee felt by the Yellow Army at their former player’s misfortune was almost instantly wiped out.
With Gulls defender Chris Todd robbed by John Akinde in the right-back position, his ball across the face of goal was met perfectly by McPhee at point-blank range, with his shot rifled past the sprawling Rice and into the roof of the net to give his side a half-time advantage.
In the second half, Torquay kept plugging away, and although they were lucky to not fall further behind as Akinde smacked the woodwork just past the hour mark, they went close to levelling matters up in dying stages, as Tim Sills saw his header scooped off the line, whilst fellow striker Elliot Benyon also went close to sending the match to extra-time.
With the Yellow Army bracing themselves for a second dose of disappointment within a week, there was a brief moment to savour though, as one a Plainmoor favourite was given a fitting finale after eleven years at the Club.
After being signed by Kevin Hodges from Western League side Torrington Town in 1997 following a successful trial, few could have guessed that Kevin Hill would have gone on to become the Club’s record appearance holder all those years later. Yet, having equalled Dennis Lewis’ near-50 year appearance record against Exeter earlier that week, Buckle decided to give him a send-off cameo in the 88th minute, and although he had little time or opportunity to turn the tide in his beloved Torquay’s favour, his 475th appearance in Yellow saw him end his career at Plainmoor as the one player who had made more appearances than any other.
Ironically, his final season ended in a similar fashion to his first, with Hill’s fleeting appearance at Wembley coming a decade after his first trip there. Many Gulls fans were left to wonder if he had entered the action from the bench in United’s 1997/98 Play-Off defeat against Colchester, rather than being forced to watch on, whether The Gulls may well have salvaged an equaliser there too.
The three main characters in the 2008 FA Trophy Final would all have interesting tales to tell during the remainders of their footballing careers.
Goalkeeper Rice would depart Plainmoor for Truro after failing to dislodge Michael Poke and Scott Bevan in-between the Plainmoor sticks, however, when manager Buckle eventually departed for pastures new in the shape of Bristol Rovers in 2011, his replacement, Martin Ling, would turn back to Martin as new No.1 Bobby Olejnik’s understudy, before Rice would finally make the goalkeeper jersey his own under Alan Knill and Chris Hargreaves.
McPhee also made a return to Plainmoor under Ling, however his second spell was no more successful than his first, despite the side being in much better health this time around, as they made the 2011/12 League Two Play-Offs for the second season running. Once again though, Chris would find his home – and form – elsewehere, in the shape of successful spells at Salisbury and Weymouth.
Meanwhile, Hill, after a spell at Tiverton, would go on to enjoy a successful spell in charge of Exmouth Town, where after winning the Western League, Town continue to defy the odds as they impose themselves at Southern League level, with Hill remaining at the helm.
Of course, United would eventually find their own happy ending twelves months on from their 2007/08 neat-miss.
This time, Buckle’s men were in no mood to let their chance slip in the Play-Off final, as goals from Chris Hargreaves and Tim Sills clinched a 2-0 win over Cambridge United, and a return back to the promised land after a two-year break.
If there’s a moral to this story, it’s that tough spells may come and go, but there’s always hope of better things on the horizon. You just have to keep going.
Who knows what 2024/25 will bring?