A new era gets underway for Eastbourne Borough on Saturday when Adam Murray takes charge for the first time.
And he couldn’t have got a tougher start as the Sports make the long journey west to take on Torquay United.
Both teams will be looking for a return to winning ways after defeats in recent weeks, and in Murray’s first game Borough will be looking for a response.
Last Time Out
The Sports are out to bounce back after a poor showing kicked off 2024 – a 4-0 defeat at home to Worthing costing Mark Beard his job.
Ollie Pearce’s first half penalty put the visitors ahead at the break, before goals from Nick Wheeler, Ricky Aguiar and Joan Luque made it a miserable start to the new year for Borough supporters.
But with a change of manager comes a renewed optimism, with Murray coming in days before the trip to Devon.
He would have had two training sessions to get his ideas across to the team ahead of what promises to be a challenging game at Plainmoor.
The Opposition
Torquay United sit seventh in the National League South – three points off third place with a game in hand – but will be hoping to rediscover their winning ways.
A run of seven wins in eight games – including a 4-1 win at Priory Lane on November 28 – was halted at Chelmsford City before Christmas.
Luke Jenkins and Finley Barbrook got the goals either side of half-time to give the hosts a 2-0 win in Essex.
And there was no festive cheer for the Gulls as they slipped to a surprise loss at home to Truro City on Boxing Day. Ben Adelsbury got the only goal of the game at Plainmoor to give Truro a 1-0 win.
Gary Johnson’s side were without a game last weekend due to Taunton Town’s pitch being unplayable, so they will be looking to start 2024 by bouncing back.
Head-to-Head
The Sports have just one win over Torquay in the five meetings they have had. That includes two 2-0 defeats at Plainmoor back in 2008 and 2019.
Borough’s sole win came in December 2008 when the pair faced off in the Blue Square Premier.
Matt Crabb scored twice for Garry Wilson’s side, with a certain Ashley Barnes also on target. Dan Smith added a fourth for the Sports all in the first half. Elliot Benyon and Tim Sills goals for Torquay proved to be in vein at Priory Lane.
Torquay would go on to finish fourth and win promotion to the Football League via a play-off final win over Cambridge United.
How to Follow
For those not making the trip to Devon, you can follow The Sports’ progress across our social media channels – including live match commentary on our X (formerly Twitter) Channel – @EBFC_Official.
The match is also broadcast live on National League TV, and supporters can buy a match pass for £9.50 via NationalLeagueTV.com.
