Torquay United manager Jimmy Ball has called on the Yellow Army to help make Plainmoor a source of confidence rather than anxiety as his new-look side prepares for the season ahead.
In a candid interview with the Torquay Talk podcast, Ball spoke openly about the effect the atmosphere inside Plainmoor can have on players when a match begins to turn or passes go astray.
The United manager believes supporters can have a “massive impact” by backing the team most strongly during difficult spells — not only when the Gulls are dominating and scoring goals.
“When we’re struggling, put your fan hat on and not your disappointed hat,” he said. “Double down on us. Sing louder and go the other way.
“You’ll have a massive impact on this team because playing for Torquay United is pressure. It’s expectational pressure. There are three-and-a-half thousand people at most home games, so take that pressure off by backing us when we’re struggling.”
Ball recalled experiencing Plainmoor as an opposition manager and recognising how quickly the mood could change when the visiting team enjoyed a period of possession or created an opportunity.
That, he explained, is exactly what opponents will attempt to exploit.
“That’s all I was trying to do as the opposition manager — get the crowd to turn,” he said.
“Every team coming here sees it as a one-off game. It is like a cup game for them. They are coming to the best ground in the league and they go 20 per cent more. We are playing the best of everyone.”
Ball is building a side that he wants to play positively, aggressively and with courage. That inevitably means players will sometimes surrender possession while attempting forward passes, shots or attacking runs.
“You can’t score a goal without risking the ball,” he said. “When lads make forward passes, they’re risking the ball every time, and they’re not going to get every one right.
“When we give the ball away and it might look sloppy to the fans, I’m telling them to risk the ball, try forward passes, be positive, be brave and be aggressive.”
The manager distinguishes between careless errors and what he calls “stretching mistakes” — mistakes made while attempting to affect the game positively.
“They will never get criticised by me for making a stretching mistake,” he said.
“I’m telling them: have that shot. Then, the next time you get it, have another one — and another one. It is always forward. It is never back.”
Ball stressed that his appeal should not be interpreted as an attempt to remove responsibility from the team. He knows players must perform and that expectations at Torquay United are high.
However, no side dominates every minute of every match. There will be moments when the opposition has momentum, when a chance is missed or when United fall behind against the run of play.
Those, Ball believes, are the moments when genuine support matters most.
“The word ‘support’ is what you are,” he said. “No one needs support when everything is great. You need support when it’s not great.”
