United are back in action under the floodlights tomorrow, as league leaders Yeovil Town make the short trip from Somerset to Plainmoor.
With The Gulls having beaten fellow high flyers Bath City 1-0 on Saturday, Gary Johnson’s side will be in now doubt of the task facing them tomorrow, but will nevertheless be approaching this much-anticipated Westcountry derby in confident mood.
Who’s the boss?
Mark Cooper was appointed as Yeovil’s new boss following ex-Gulls manager Chris Hargreaves’s short tenure in charge, and despite being unable to maintain Town’s National League status last term, the backing of the new regime at Huish Park appears to already being paying dividends following a strong start to life in the sixth tier.
Having clocked up over 800 games as manager Cooper’s managerial career began with Tamworth, before the former Exeter and Birmingham midfielder moved on to take the reigns at Kettering.
After making his name in non-League circles, Peterborough came calling in 2009, and although his stay at London Road was a brief one, his next job at Darlington saw him mastermind their 2010 FA Trophy success, before a return to Kettering followed.
Short tenures at Telford and Notts County bookmarked a two-year stay at Swindon Town, before his longest spell, at Forest Green Rovers, would ultimately see him make history by leading them into the EFL for the first time in their history in 2017.
Barrow would be Mark’s next port of call, before the call from Somerset saw him head for the other end of the country for his latest quest.
How have they been doing?
2023/24 can hardly have gone better so far for the Huish Park-based outfit, with Mark Cooper’s men top of the table after amassing ten wins and two draws from their opening fourteen outings.
FA Cup victories over Southend and Gateshead – both in the division above see Town arrive at Plainmoor on the back of a superb eleven-match winning run, with their only reverses this season coming in the opening month of the season, at Hemel Hempstead, and surprisingly, at Havant & Waterlooville – bottom of the table, and with no further victories to name.
Played for both
Frank Nouble’s arrival at Plainmoor last spring was seen by many as a last throw of the dice in United’s battle to escape the National League drop, and although Gary Johnson’s side ended up falling just short on the final day of the season, Nouble so nearly provided the catalyst for a remarkable late survival act.
With his remarkable career seeing him represent a whole host of Clubs throughout the UK – and a brief spell in China, to boot – Frank’s experience and presence in the Torquay dressing room prompted an almost Lazarus-like turnaround in The Gulls’ fortunes, with his three goals in nine games doing little justice to his successful spell on the English Riviera.
Having spent almost the entirety of his career in the EFL, Nouble signed on for the challenge of National League South for 2023/24, but this time with The Glovers, rather than the The Gulls.
Player to watch
Another player who has turned out for both Clubs, Rhys came through the youth ranks at Wimbledon and Arsenal, with loan spells at Brentford and Preston preceding a move to Dutch side Telstar in 2012.
Dagenham & Redbridge and Oldham Athletic were Murphy’s next stops next for Murphy, with further temporary stints Crawley Town and AFC Wimbledon adding more weight to his growing CV. Upon leaving the Latics, Murphy joined Forest Green Rovers, and it was while at the Gloucester-based outfit that the striker spent time at Plainmoor, in September 2017, with a three month loan deal seeing him turn out for The Gulls eight times, scoring one goal. York City and Crawley saw further service from Rhys, before a short spell at Gillingham prompted a move to National League South level with Chelmsford City.
25 league goals in just 38 appearances alerted the attentions of Yeovil Town newly relegated from the EFL, and despite 29 goals in 59 league games, with a two-year break at troubled Southend United paving the way for a return to Huish Park in the summer.
Previous encounter
Torquay United 6 – 1 Yeovil Town | National League | Saturday 26th December 2020
It was a case of six of the best for Torquay United as they put Yeovil Town to the sword on Boxing Day 2020, following a superb 6-1 victory at Plainmoor.
4-0 up at the halfway point after goals from Armani Little, Danny Wright, a Charlie Lee own goal and Aaron Nemane, Abdi Skendi’s early second-half effort for Town was soon overshadowed, after Connor Lemonheigh-Evans and Kyle Cameron added further goals to make it 6-1.
Tickets for Tuesday’s fixture can be booked HERE, whilst live commentary of the full match will be available via TUFC Radio HERE. Supporters unable to attend the match can watch the action LIVE via NLTV – For further details, click HERE.