Torquay beat ten-man Exeter City in friendly

Torquay United 4-1 Exeter City

Ten-man Exeter City were blown away at wet and windy Plainmoor in this pre-season ‘friendly’ which at times was anything but.

Gary Johnson’s National League South side were two goals ahead already when City’s Pierce Sweeney saw the referee’s red card, and they never looked like getting back into the game from then on.

Torquay played a swift, crisp passing game and defended well. City boss Gary Caldwell remonstrated with the officials at some of United’s robust challenges, but the home side were convincing winners and were four up by the time the Grecians pulled a goal back from the penalty spot with almost the last kick of the game.

City had made the brightest start, but they trailed after three minutes when Lewis Collins drove a shot from the edge of the box into the City net, and they went further behind after 16 when Bradley Ash curled a beauty past City keeper Viljami Sinisalo.

City went down to 10 men moments later. The referee’s yellow card was already out of his pocket for a foul by Torquay midfielder Tom Lapslie when City’s Pierce Sweeney raced in to mete out his own justice and pushed Lapslie to the floor, leaving the ref with little option but to show him a red card.

From then on it was Torquay’s game, and they extended their lead with an exquisite curling chip from Jack Stobbs early in the second half, and made it 4-0 from the spot after Ross Marshall had his shirt pulled completely off him, again giving the ref little option but to point to the spot.

Asa Hall dispatched the kick.

City had been roared on by more than 1,100 fans in a crowd of more than 3,000, but many of them had left the terraces long before the Grecians were awarded a penalty of their own for a foul, scored by Ryan Trevitt.