Report: Fourth Red Card in Four Games Sees United Lose 4-0

Ryan Peters’ nine-man Magpies succumbed to a 4-0 defeat to Torquay United on a dismal Tuesday night at York Road. 

 

Peters made two changes to the starting XI who beat Dover 3-0 at the weekend. Finley Welch came in for Joshua Coley, while Dan Nkrumah replaced Connor Hall. 

 

The tone for the evening was set when Remy Clerima, donning the captain’s armband, received a yellow card for a tackle on Cody Cooke in the fourth minute. A few minutes later, Cooke looked to play a clever pass to Deon Moore, but Jayden Mitchell-Lawson made a great block after tracking back into the area. 

 

Just 12 minutes in, and United were once again down to ten men. Jordon Ragguette made a studs-up challenge on Caleb Roberts, prompting much of the Torquay side to swarm the referee. The left-back received his marching orders, marking the start of a long night ahead. 

 

To their credit, the ten-men Magpies valiantly kept a clean sheet for the remainder of the first half. Jordi van Stappershoef made a brilliant save to deny Dominic Bernard in the 24th minute, while Joshua Johnson’s well-timed tackle prevent Callum Morton from striking towards goal. 

 

Torquay ‘keeper Toby Savin had little to think about bar a few set pieces, but he was forced into denying Finley Welch after the summer signing fired a shot low and left towards the near post. 

 

Deon Moore had two disallowed goals in the first half, both for mistimed runs with the linesman flagging for offside on each occasion. 

 

 

Things went from bad to worse for Maidenhead as George Abbott was sent off for a second bookable offense. The defender tripped his man on the edge of the box – a foul worth only of a yellow, but mirroring a similar challenge in the first half – leaving United with nine men for the entirety of the second half. 

 

From there, the Magpies could do little to prevent the forthcoming onslaught. Cooke scored the first for the Gulls, latched onto Moore’s header from a cross. Sonny Blu Lo-Everton soon made it two before the hour mark, curling home a great effort after a defensive error. 

 

Both managers, realising that the result was not going to change even if the scoreline did, made substitutions to rotate players after an intensive start to the season. 

 

In the dying stages, Dan Hayfield scored the third for Torquay, sliding home the rebounded after Plymouth Argyle loanee Tegan Finn’s cross was deflected away. Finn, who signed on Monday for the Gulls, scored soon after, curling home a left-footed effort from the edge of the penalty area. 

 

 

Magpies: van Stappershoef, Ragguette, N'Guessan, Abbott, Johnson, Nkrumah, Mitchell-Lawson, Umerah (Pendlebury, 70’), Welch (Cochrane, 49’), Clerima (c), Onariase (Odeniran, 64’) 

 

Torquay: Savin, Bernard, Hill, Sundire, Cooke, Lo-Everton (Beaumont-Clark, 79’), Moore, Wannell (c), Olufunwa, Roberts (Finn, 46’), Morton (Capello, 46’ [Hayfield, 73’]) 

 

Attendance: 1,095