Ebbsfleet on Saturday

[Yorkieandy]

McDonald is worth more now because he was at Barnsley when Hull bought him and now he is at Hull.

For heaven's sake he was a non league player who had dropped out of the fully pro' game at Reading and had struggled for a fair time afterwards when we sold him.

You really haven' got a clue as to the reality of it all.

Does this change the fact that Exeter are now a stable and progressive league 2 club whilst Torquay are soon to go out of existence? No, so whether i have a clue or not doesn't matter really does it?

[SenorDingDong]

But it's not benevolence is it!

Cup draws all down to luck, but you make your own luck and you 'have to be in it' as they say. When were we last 'in it' beyond the obscurity of the first attempt?

Let's be honest here Merse, as much as I admire Exeter, they were lucky in a way we weren't, reading the stats it's almost ridiculous:

Torquay 2008-2018:

2x R4 - teams faced R3 and after - Blackpool, Coventry, Carlisle, Crawley (would have had Man U if we'd won).
1 X R3 - teams faced R3 and after - Brighton

(plus 2x R3 in '06 and '07 neither of which we landed a plum draw - we went 332434 over six seasons, there was some ridiculous stat that only Portsmouth and Chelsea had won more FA Cup matches over a five year than us leading up to the Crawley match)

Exeter: 2008-2018:

1x R3 (this season) - Liverpool

Plus they got Man U in '05.

One R3 in that period and they get Liverpool! We had three R3 draws and two R4 draws and got no one of note. Plus two R3 draws immediately before this decade where we also got nothing of note. If we'd got one of Exeter's lucky draws we might not have had to slash Ling's budget in his second season and all that followed might not have happened.

[Yorkieandy]

Two things here.

Torquay would have played Man Utd IF they had beaten Crawley which they couldn't do. They got the luck just like Exeter did but couldn't take advantage.

Secondly. Considering that those who frittered away Thea's multi millions were in charge, what does anyone think they would have done with even more money from a cup run? Certainly not secured the clubs immediate future that's for sure.

Anyway a third thing.

Torquay HAD the money even without a cup run and it was wasted. Yet fans are whining about Exeter being lucky! It's embarrassing. No, they just used the money properly and good luck to them.

[tomogull]

Fleetfanwest - the Cary Park, Babbacombe, area is your best bet - about 5 mins walk to the ground. I'm sure you know it's a 12.30 kick off. As others have posted, you shouldn't have any problems finding a space. Be prepared for entering the Plainmoor Morgue on Saturday. You shouldn't have any troubles in consolidating your place in the Play Off places.

Daring to enter the Grecians debate, I believe their success is built around their very good Youth set-up. Players like Matt Grimes going to Swansea for £millions and they are complaining - justly in my opinion - that the Tribunal has only awarded £2 million for the lad who has gone to Chelsea. There have been others like the striker whose name I forget who went to Brentford (?) last year and those who have come through to the first team like Christy Pimm and Moore-Taylor, and I understand that there are others on the fringe of first team football. Plus they have consistency in the longest serving league manager (now that Wenger is on his way) - the very astute Paul Tisdale. As for favourable F.A. Cup Draws - they make their own luck They actually reach the third round !!!

[Plainmoor78]

Two things here.

Torquay would have played Man Utd IF they had beaten Crawley which they couldn't do. They got the luck just like Exeter did but couldn't take advantage.

Secondly. Considering that those who frittered away Thea's multi millions were in charge, what does anyone think they would have done with even more money from a cup run? Certainly not secured the clubs immediate future that's for sure.

Anyway a third thing.

Torquay HAD the money even without a cup run and it was wasted. Yet fans are whining about Exeter being lucky! It's embarrassing. No, they just used the money properly and good luck to them.

[gateman49]

Hi Fleetfanwest,

Just turn up when you like and we’ll open up the gates for you.

By the way were you in spaghetti westerns way back as your name seems familiar?

[gullintwoplaces]

Two things here.

Torquay would have played Man Utd IF they had beaten Crawley which they couldn't do. They got the luck just like Exeter did but couldn't take advantage.

Secondly. Considering that those who frittered away Thea's multi millions were in charge, what does anyone think they would have done with even more money from a cup run? Certainly not secured the clubs immediate future that's for sure.

Anyway a third thing.

Torquay HAD the money even without a cup run and it was wasted. Yet fans are whining about Exeter being lucky! It's embarrassing. No, they just used the money properly and good luck to them.

I agree with all of that. Two things from me:

1 Learning. Torquay Utd seems incapable of learning. I have learned that teams who get in the face of the ref, whose manager berates the fourth official and the Assistant Referees for 90 minutes, who rely on gutsy hard men, tend to do well. I remember the Crawley game as if it was yesterday, the Crawley side dived, shouted, berated the ref again and again and again, kicked the shit out of Torquay but played the innocent, conned the ref into giving penalties. Encouraged by the fat freak that managed them, a man who understands what you have to do to win. We have never managed this, our managers have been all far too nice, far too sporting, far too fricking gullible.

2 Frittered away money? Absolutely right. There are a handful of people, largely responsible for the shite we are in now, who should be ashamed to show their faces at Plainmoor ever again, people who took the piss out of Thea Bristow's naivety until her family stepped in. They know who they are. Bastards.

[Yorkieandy]

Can't argue with any of that GITP.

[MellowYellow]

Fleetfanwest: just turn the lights out when you leave Plainmoor, there's a good fellow.

[Southampton Gull]

Two things here.

Torquay would have played Man Utd IF they had beaten Crawley which they couldn't do. They got the luck just like Exeter did but couldn't take advantage.

Secondly. Considering that those who frittered away Thea's multi millions were in charge, what does anyone think they would have done with even more money from a cup run? Certainly not secured the clubs immediate future that's for sure.

Anyway a third thing.

Torquay HAD the money even without a cup run and it was wasted. Yet fans are whining about Exeter being lucky! It's embarrassing. No, they just used the money properly and good luck to them.

You need to read up on their history before you start making noises like that. They fleeced their creditors, went into administration and have had luck with draws despite your counter argument and considering they have had to go cap in hand to the PFA for loans just to pay their players they can hardly be described as a well run club. They have departments that excel, those and the luck have kept them afloat so don't even think about labelling me as embarrassing for pointing to undoubted luck as the reason they still exist.

[Yorkieandy]

Didn't fans dipping into their pockets and setting up a trust when push came to shove keep them afloat then? The fans had nothing to do with how the club was run previously. I will read up also as i don't know the full story enough .

[fleetfanwest]

Fleetfanwest here thanks for the info and love some of the comic remarks,you guys are going to need a sense of humour over at least the coming season.

Visiting shit holes like Whitehawk etc (that's if they haven't gone down) in which case a lucky escape.

Does anyone know if it's segregated on Saturday ? what end would I have to go in?

[stefano]

Fleetfanwest here thanks for the info and love some of the comic remarks,you guys are going to need a sense of humour over at least the coming season.

Visiting shit holes like Whitehawk etc (that's if they haven't gone down) in which case a lucky escape.

Does anyone know if it's segregated on Saturday ? what end would I have to go in?

The Babbacombe End is the away end (nearest the sea and also nearest end to Cary Park where you should park). Perhaps you could give the Torquay supporter a lift home after if you are going his way!

[merse btpir]

Perhaps you could give the Torquay supporter a lift home after if you are going his way!

Does he live in Kent then?

[gateman49]

Hi Merse, I think the clue is in his name, he’s an exile like you.