United are back at Plainmoor tomorrow, as Gary Johnson’s side look to follow up Saturday’s battling 1-0 win at Scunthorpe with another positive result against Eastleigh.
With The Gulls registering back-to-back wins for the first time this season, Torquay will be looking to make it three on the bounce, as they welcome Play Off chasing Eastleigh to Plainmoor this Good Friday.
Who’s the boss?
Lee Bradbury departed his role as Assistant Manager at League Two Crawley Town to take the helm at Eastleigh in February 2022, following the departure of previous boss Ben Strevens.
Bradbury is renowned locally after spending time at Portsmouth and Bournemouth as a player, prior to taking up a number of coaching roles. The 47-year-old previously spent seven years managing Havant & Waterlooville, during which he guided the Hawks to their first ever promotion to the National League at the conclusion of the 2017/18 season.
How have they been doing?
Eastleigh began the season losing just one of their opening five fixtures, with that being an opening day defeat to Wrexham, despite leading for much of that game, though a mixed batch of results followed those opening five games, with their victories all coming at home during September to mid November, including a 1-0 victory over United in October, while all their defeats came away from the Silverlake Stadium during this period.
The Spitfires first home defeat came in mid November with a 2-0 defeat to Notts County, which led to a three match run of defeats with yet another two away defeats, before another home win this time against Boreham Wood halted that mini slump. Since the turn of the year Eastleigh have won ten of their 16 league fixtures, and last time out drew 0-0 at Boreham Wood meaning they come into today’s game sitting in 7th position on 64 points, with 19 wins, seven draws and 14 defeats from their 40 games played so far this season.
Player to watch
Charlie Carter is Eastleigh’s second top goalscorer this season with eight goals from his 41 league and cup games played for the club so far, though he has yet to score in 2023 for the Spitfires having scored his last goal in a 2-1 defeat to Maidstone back in November.
The attacking midfielder came through the youth ranks at Fulham & Woking before signing his first professional contract at the Cards prior to the 2015/16 season, where Carter went on to make over 70 appearances scoring 12 goals in a three year spell. Upon his release from the Laithwaite Community Stadium, the 26 year old spent a season at Chesterfield before heading to Stevenage in 2019, where he spent the next three seasons at the Lamex Stadium. Carter signed for Eastleigh in the Summer of 2022.
Played for both
Brett Williams came through the youth ranks at Eastleigh, but spent two years at Winchester City before returning to the Spitfires in 2008 where he spent the next three years before heading to Reading. However while at the Royals he never made a first team start, which saw him loaned out to Rotherham, Northampton and Woking, where he spent the whole of the 2012/13 season. 39 goals in 89 games came next for Williams in a two year spell at Aldershot, before moves to Stevenage and Forest Green came upon his first arrival at Plainmoor for the 2016/17 season. 39 games and 11 goals in that season then saw the striker depart the English Riviera to head to Bromley, though after one season at the Ravens, Williams made a return to United for the 2018/19 season, though spent half of that season on loan to Sutton United, and upon his release from Torquay Brett found himself at Weymouth for the 2019/20 season.
Previous Encounter
United’s only victory here at Plainmoor over Eastleigh came in our fixture on 1st May 2021, as Gary Johnson’s men produced a marvellous performance to secure a 3-1 win over the Spitfires, though without the Yellow Army in attendance with Covid restrictions in place.
Billy Waters opened the scoring in style for The Gulls early on, and that lead was doubled by Asa Hall just after the break. The visitors replied through Tyrone Barnett, however Jake Andrews re-established that two-goal advantage, and that proved to be enough to seal another vital win as United pushed for promotion.
Vanarama National League | Torquay United v Eastleigh | 07/04/23 3pm KO | Tickets available for purchase HERE.