This Devon derby should be an exciting League Two clash, as the two rivals should both be keen to secure a win here since their last meeting two weeks ago ended in a 1-1 draw. The game was played at Torquay United’s waterlogged pitch and Exeter City should be confident of securing a better result at St James’ Park, and they are our hot favourite to taste victory here at EVS.
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Cheltenham Town put one foot in the door of the League Two play-off final with a 2-0 win over Torquay in the first leg but now they have to finish the job at Plainmoor on Thursday night (Cheltenham 6/4, Torquay 9/1 – League Two Promotion 2011/12 Outright).
Goals in each half at Whaddon Road from Jermaine McGlashan and Ben Burgess ensured the Robins head down to the south west with a two-goal cushion, but they cannot simply turn up and dream of Wembley as Torquay will be up for this game – they have to be or any hopes they have of promotion will be quickly dashed.
Torquay (21/20 to win – 90 Minutes) have been struggling for form drastically over recent weeks and the first-leg loss means they come into this must-win game without a victory in six matches – indeed their last win was on April 6 and since then it’s been three wins and three losses.
That poor run ensured Martin Ling’s side missed out on automatic promotion on the final day of the regular season and confidence must have ebbed away even further after the first leg.
Goals are going to be the order of the day for the Gulls but they have to do it without their Player of the Year and leading scorer Rene Howe, as the 14-goal striker limped out of the first leg with a hamstring injury and he will miss the Plainmoor game – and it’s also likely he will miss out on Wembley if the Gulls do pull off the improbable.
Taiwo Atieno (6/1 – First Goalscorer) was the man that replaced him in the first leg and will lead the line at Plainmoor but, with only six league goals to his name all campaign, he doesn’t offer quite the potent threat that Howe would.
Club captain Lee Mansell and Danny Stevens are second and third in the top scorers’ list with 11 and eight goals respectively for the Gulls, so they might need to add to their tally to get Torquay through.
For Cheltenham boss Mark Yates it could be decision time. The 4-4-2 they played in the first leg worked perfectly, so he must choose whether to stick with that or the 4-5-1 that has been used bu the Robins on their travels through the regular season.
However, they do not boast an impressive away record and its seven losses from their last eight away from Whaddon Road – something which must spur on Torquay and their fans.
It is three wins in a row for Cheltenham (13/5 to win, draw 12/5 – 90 Minutes) and they boast a good play-off pedigree, with two previous end-of-season campaigns seeing promotion each and every time.
The boss could select on-loan Everton star Luke Garbutt after he missed the first match while, in what could be a real boost, Burgess is fine to play after needing stitches to a head wound at the weekend.
To some degree the first leg advantage, coupled with Torquay’s recent form, means a trip Wembley is Cheltenham’s to lose. The Robins should have enough to hold on a rampaging Gulls outfit, but if the home side manage to get an early goal it will be squeaky-bum time for those away fans and Plainmoor will be rocking.
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The places for the League Two play-off final at Old Trafford are on the line on Friday night, with Stevenage and Torquay holding the upper hand after the first legs.
Accrington Stanley (0) v Stevenage (2)
Accrington finished four points ahead of Stevenage (23/10 to win the game) in the table but it is the visitors who have the upper hand as they look for a second successive promotion under Graham Westley.
John Coleman worked a minor miracle to guide Stanley to a fifth-placed finish and he has had to deal with a bug hitting his squad in the build-up to this second leg.
Despite this he is expected to name his strongest line-up, while goalkeeper Alex Cisak is fit to play after his dead leg in the first leg defeat.
The Accrington (11/10 to win the game) boss saw his side win 1-0 when the two teams met at the Crown Ground back in November, but they will need to better that result if they wish to make the final at Old Trafford.
Westley has a number of players struggling with knocks so is not expected to name his side until the last minute, but he does know he will be without key midfielder John Mousinho and defender Luke Foster as the duo are both suspended.
Accrington have been prolific at home this season, winning 15 games and scoring 53 goals during the season, which was bettered only by the champions Chesterfield (Stanley 18/1 to win the game 3-0).
Stevenage’s success has been built on organisation however, and they do not concede many goals on their travels. This means Stanley could have to throw everything and the kitchen sink at their visitors on Friday night (8/1 for 0-0) to get a result that would see them through to the final.
Shrewsbury Town (0) v Torquay United (2)
Shrewsbury only missed out on automatic promotion by one point and finished 11 points ahead of Torquay, so some might say they deserve to make the final.
The play-offs can be cruel, however, and goals from Chris Zebroski and Eunan O’Kane mean the Shrews have a mountain to climb in the second leg.
The hosts were unbeaten in five games before the first leg and will need a massive recovery, so they will look back to 2009 for inspiration when they overturned Bury’s lead in the second leg to make the play-off final (Shrewsbury Evens to win the game).
Shrewsbury (16/1 to win 3-0) could be without their captain Ian Sharps as he was forced off after 25 minutes of the first leg due to a thigh and groin problem. Graham Turner also faces being without right-back David Raven for the clash.
The statistics do not look good for the Shrews, as they have not beaten Torquay (13/5 to win the game, draw 5/2) in their last five meetings and have not scored more than once against them since 2002 – even then they lost 3-2 at their old home Gay Meadow.
Torquay have shown some excellent away form in recent months but cannot afford to rest on their laurels as the job is only half done. Play too defensive in the second leg and they could be punished but if Paul Buckle sends them out to play their usual game then they should have enough to book their place in the final.
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