By beating Southern League side Sholing FC in the fourth qualifying round of the FA Cup on Saturday, Torquay United secured their fifth win from a possible seven in the competition since Gary Johnson was appointed as manager in September 2018.
It was against Lymington FC that the Gulls' cup adventures under Johnson began, as they beat Lymington FC of the Wessex League 7-0 in the former Yeovil Town and Bristol City manager's second game in charge. This was followed by a 3-0 win away to Brightlingsea Regent and a 4-1 home win over Winchester City in the third and fourth qualifying rounds respectively before they bowed out to Woking 1-0 in the first round proper.
United lined-up in the first round proper again in the 2019-20 season, as following a 3-2 win over fellow National League side Boreham Wood in a game that saw Jake Andrews, Jamie Reid and Ben Whitfield find the target. However, a 1-0 away defeat to Maidstone United saw the Gulls' run in the competition come to an abrupt end.
Prior to Johnson's arrival at Plainmoor you had to go back to November 2011 to find United's last win in the FA Cup, which was a 3-1 away win against Chesterfield in the first round under the managerial reign of Martin Ling. This was particularly disappointing for the Gulls, as they had reached the fourth round - the furthest stage that they had ever reached in the competition - twice between 2007 and 2011 (2008-09 and 2010-11).
With no fans allowed in stadiums due to coronavirus restrictions, the Plainmoor faithful are currently denied the chance of dreaming of an away tie to one of the fallen giants in League One such as Ipswich Town, Portsmouth or Sunderland, but the hope of progressing further in the competition remains undiminished.
Ball numbers for South West clubs:
17 Exeter City
35 Plymouth Argyle
74 Torquay Utd
77 Yeovil Town
Other key numbers to watch out for:
11. Charlton Athletic
23. Hull City
24. Ipswich Town
37. Portsmouth
44. Sunderland
48. Wigan Athletic
