The tumultuous weather on the south coast was to foreshadow a frantic encounter between The Gulls and The Wanderers. Both teams came into the fixture in similar form, both picking up two wins in their last three.
The first opening fell to the hosts when Jordan Young teed up a volley from the edge of the box, which met the palms of Harrison Foulkes and was pushed out for a corner. Only five minutes later, The Gulls’ talisman would find himself in an even better position. Deon Moore showed off some superb hold-up play and found Young unmarked at the back post; however, their top scorer could only flash his chance wide of the post, failing to test Foulkes.
The Wanderers, on the other hand, proved more clinical in the early stages and found the breakthrough with 14 minutes on the clock. Harry Pinchard, with some lovely feet down the left-hand side, shifted away from his man and crossed the ball inch-perfectly to the head of Alfie Rutherford, allowing him to prod home the opener and net his tenth of the season. 0-1 14’
Harry Pinchard was provider once more as he drove through a pocket of space in midfield. He found Charlie Carter, who was able to play Kai Enslin, who was then able to cut inside and curl a teasing effort inches wide of the far post. Sam Pearson was also arriving at the back post but was not able to make contact and turn home.
It seemed Harry Pinchard wanted to try for goal himself as the clock ticked past the 40-minute mark. The midfielder glided past a sea of yellow shirts and let fly from the edge of the box; his effort took a deflection and hit the side netting.
Half Time: Torquay United 0-1 Dorking Wanderers
Clear-cut chances were few and far between at the beginning of the second period. Dylan Morgan and Frank Vincent both had chances for their sides respectively; however, neither tested the two keepers.
Second-half substitute for the hosts, Callum Dolan, provided the sliding doors moment the second half needed, as far as the neutrals were concerned. In the 78th minute, the Torquay number ten received the ball from Louis Dennis and found space on the edge of the area. Dolan was able to emphatically dispatch past Harrison Foulkes and into the bottom right corner from 20 yards out to bring Torquay level. 1-1 78’
Before anyone could comprehend the equaliser, The Gulls came forward again. Dennis was able to set up Young down the right flank, and he played a cross into Callum Dolan. The man, who had only been on the pitch for fifteen minutes, was able to bring the ball down in the penalty area and hammer a volley home at the back post. In a matter of moments, the game had been turned on its head. 2-1 80’
The chaos did not stop there. Two minutes after going behind, Kai Enslin was back on the attack and delivered a superb ball into the box. The ball fell at McCallum’s feet and his effort was blocked by Sam Dreyer; however, it ricocheted out to Sam Pearson, who was able to fire home from close range. The celebrations were short-lived, as the assistant referee on the far side raised his flag for offside.
The Wanderers would get their chance to celebrate following another two-minute wait for more inevitable drama. Enslin was involved again, as his threatening run allowed him the space to test Seb Stacey from the edge of the penalty area. His curling effort was heading goalwards before deflecting off Sam Dreyer, which wrong-footed the MK Dons loanee in the Torquay goal, levelling proceedings once again. 2-2 84’
If either side looked like grabbing a winner in the closing stages, it was Torquay. Callum Dolan was able to threaten the Wanderers goal yet again; this time, his ferocious effort was met by the outstretched arm of Harrison Foulkes, who did an immaculate job of tipping the ball over the bar and keeping the scoreline as it was.
It wasn’t just the goalkeepers who had to provide magical goal-line moments to keep things equal. In the dying embers of the game, Callum Dolan turned provider and sent Deon Moore racing towards goal. The late March signing was able to loft the ball over Harrison Foulkes and, as the ball was heading for the back of the net, Liam Vincent was able to hook the ball off the line in incredible fashion and prevent a heartbreaking ending for The Wanderers at Plainmoor.
Full Time: Torquay United 2-2 Dorking Wanderers
After a frantic 20 minutes of football, the referee blew the whistle for full time, and the spoils were shared on the south coast in treacherous conditions. A solid point to round off three consecutive away games, ahead of our return to Meadowbank this Saturday as we face Hemel Hempstead Town.
We look forward to seeing you there!