Stockport 1-1 Torquay United

Greg Tansey’s wonderful 20-yard strike with 20 minutes of the contest remaining cancelled out an earlier Eunan O’Kane strike which had looked set to win the game for the Gulls.

Manager Paul Simpson opted to hand full debuts to both Tom Aldred and Yannick Salem whilst Jake Simpson replaced David Poole.

The Gulls started the game with two holding midfielders and looked more than happy to hit the Hatters on the break.

Paul Simpson’s men were given a real scare in the 18th minute however when a pin-point Kevin Nicholson cross was headed onto the post by Joe Oastler.

Adam Griffin’s long range pass picked out George Donnelly who burst into the box before cutting the ball onto his left-foot and curling the ball into the arms of Scott Bevan.

Elliot Benyon did find the net shortly into the second period but he was adjudged to have stepped offside and therefore the goal was dissallowed.

Torquay took the lead on the stroke of the hour when Ashley Hemmings left-footed drive flew past Glennon and cannonned off Glennon’s post before falling kindly to O’Kane who kept his composure to side-foot the ball past both Glennon and Aldred on the goalline.

That goal convinced manager Paul Simpson to throw on both Tom Fisher and Greg Tansey – and it was the latter who made an immediate impact.

Tansey looked set to cross the ball into the box, yet instead he unleashed a 20-yard thunderbolt which left Gulls keeper Bevan rooted to his spot.

Wesleigh Fletcher who also came on as a substitute could have won it for the Hatters but after beating Bevan to the loose ball he saw his attempt drift despairingly wide of the goal.

After the game manager Paul Simpson said:

”I was hoping to get three points from this game, but I think on reflection you have to say they are a good side and we have to pay them a lot of respect.

”I would have liked to have won the game today so we could go into the game against Port Vale with the pressure off us, but we now need to claim a victory on Tuesday night.

”We need to win as many of our home games as possible, we have drawn quite a few here at Edgeley Park now, what we need to do next is start turning those draws into wins.”