We fired some questions in the direction of Torquay United fan John and he was kind enough to answer.
Well, 13th in the Conference meant it was statistically our lowest ever finish, so you can probably imagine how I felt it went. It was a season that promised much when we went ten games unbeaten at the start, but as results and performances dipped, we slipped down the league - at one point going eight games without a Conference win and losing 5-1 at home to Braintree - and eventually into mid-table obscurity. Manager Chris Hargreaves, a former player who captained the club back into the League the first time we came down, paid for the slump in form with his job, when he was placed on gardening leave by a new consortium who bought the club in the off-season.
HAVE YOU BEEN IMPRESSED WITH THE ADDITIONS MADE DURING THE SUMMER BREAK?
The key addition has really been Paul Cox, our new manager. Chris Hargreaves no doubt tried his best, but it was first managerial job, and he had neither the tactical nous or contacts to cope with non-league football. In Cox, we have someone in charge who not only spent the majority of his playing career in non-league football, but has also coached extensively throughout it, taking Eastwood Town to the Conference North with successive promotions, before taking over at Mansfield Town and getting them back into League Two in only his second season, as champions. Cox has made some shrewd signings with little or no money available (despite a takeover this summer, the club's finances were in a perilous state and will take some time to recover). A large amount are young, hungry lower league players with a point to prove, such as defenders James Hurst and Dan Butler from Hednesford and Portsmouth respectively, strikers Tyrone Marsh from Ebbsfleet, Wade Fairhurst from Macclesfield and Alex Fisher from Mansfield, goalkeeper Fabian Spiess from Notts County and the exciting Bayan Fenwick, a midfielder from Cardiff City. He's also signed the splendidly named Exodus Geohaghon, who is both a highly experienced defender and a high score in Scrabble. They're an unproven bunch, but I'm quietly quite excited.
ARE THERE ANY AREAS YOU FEEL STILL NEED STRENGTHENING?
At the time of writing, the squad still feels short of a few bodies in all outfield departments, but I particularly worry about our strikers. With the departures of Ryan Bowman and Toby Ajala this summer, we've lost our main source of goals from last season. Despite having four out and out strikers on the books, we've still seemed a bit short on goals throughout pre-season. Let's hope Wade Fairhurst can bag a few against his old side Macclesfield, our first opponents of the season, to get us underway.
ARE THERE ANY FIXTURES THAT YOU'RE PARTICULARLY LOOKING FORWARD TO?
Unfortunately, our relegation means we've lost our local derbies with Exeter City and Plymouth Argyle, which were always the first games to look out for in the fixture list. Games with Bristol Rovers are always a spicy affair, with both sets of fans always bringing a healthy contingent, but they've gone and got themselves promoted. I always enjoy our encounters with Cheltenham, so there's that to look forward to again, and there were a few grounds which I strangely enjoyed visiting last year (Welling, Dover and Woking spring to mind) which will be good to go to again.
WHICH OPPOSITION TEAM DO YOU HAVE HIGH HOPES FOR THIS SEASON?
Everyone will be marking out Tranmere as the team to beat, but I have a feeling Grimsby will be the team to look out for this year. Forest Green and Eastleigh will probably be up there again, but I wouldn't mind betting that the likes of Chester and Gateshead have decent seasons and end up in the running as well.
WHICH PLAYERS AMONG YOUR SQUAD SHOULD WE BE LOOKING OUT FOR THIS TERM?
Luke Young, our central midfielder and last year's captain, is the best midfielder in the Conference on his day. He's that good, and just makes the opposition look silly at times. He stands out in a winning team, but can go missing in a struggling one, and his form dipped as badly as anyone in the second half of last season. Hopefully Paul Cox can get the best out of him. Our left back Dan Butler has really impressed in pre-season, as has midfielder Bayan Fenwick, so those would be the three to look out for.
WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'LL END UP AT THE END OF THE SEASON?
I think we'll end up just sneaking into the top half, which, with our financial clout or lack-of, would be a very good result. I think if you looked at the finances, you'd probably say anything other than relegation, but I'm backing Paul Cox to get the best out of a young and hungry squad and improve upon last year, and set the foundations to get us out of this league again. 10th.
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