Torquay Utd 1 – 2 Wealdstone

Torquay United

National League

1 - 2

Wealdstone

KO: 15:00 | Sat 11th Mar ’23

Another win means Wealdstone go three unbeaten, collecting the full nine available points and jumping to 8th in the table, just one spot outside the play-off position.

Stuart Maynard’s men in blue made one change from the starting lineup that saw success against Maidstone United, with Dom Hutchinson returning in place of Sonny Lo-Everton.

A fiery start from both sides was quickly interrupted by a high tackle from the home side, which saw Tom Lapslie make an early exit after being shown a straight red in the 7th minute of play. The tackle against Kretzschmar foreshadowed what was to come.

Ten men Torquay sat back and soaked up the pressure, in hopes of catching the Stones on the break. After a few early opportunities, it would not be until the 41st minute that Max Kretzschmar would break the deadlock for the visitors.

Hutchinson utilised his speed down the left wing and drove into the box before using his right foot to cut back towards the net and fire a powerful shot away. Mark Halstead, unable to push the ball away could not react fast enough to block Kretzschmar’s rebound.

Contrary to what the Torquay commentators felt, the Stones dominated the chances in the first half, and Kretzschmar was clearly onside for the goal.

A mere minute into the second half, an attempt from Sam Howes to rush out and clear the ball was unsuccessful, and Jack Cook found himself just outside the 18-yard box trying to prevent Torquay’s Kieron Evans shot into an empty net for 1-1. The game again level.

After a few minutes of pressure from the home side, it returned to a fairly evenly fought match as the Stones didn’t capitalise on the numerical advantage.

Within a five-minute period, Wealdstone’s three substitutes (Tarrelle Whittaker, Olufela Olomola and Lo-Everton) had come on, and undoubtedly changed the momentum of the match. A few near misses provided the confidence to dig deep in the final minutes.

In the first of six additional minutes, Olomola found in form Micah Obiero who effortlessly slotted the ball through Halstead’s leg sending the Stones back into the lead.

The home side pushing to get a point out of the match, put some last-minute pressure on the Stones with two late corners resulting in a last-second scramble in front of Howes’s goal which saw Ali Omar’s header cleared on the goal line.

The final whistle blew only moments later to create epic scenes with the Stones players, staff and travelling faithful that made the trip down to Devon in miserable conditions.

Wealdstone return to action Tuesday night at The Vale against Chesterfield in a 7:45pm Kick Off.

WEALDSTONE: Howes, Barker, Cook (c), Habergham, Ilunga, Charles, Dyer, Kretzschmar (Whittaker 66), Hutchinson (Lo-Everton 71), Obiero, Andrews (Olomola 71). Subs not used: Barrett, Ferguson.

Report by Chloe Atkins

Jon Taffel Match pics HERE