Torquay United tick the boxes with second win of the week

Three points move the Gulls another place up the league

Torquay United ticked all the boxes with a workmanlike performance to beat Tonbridge Angels 2-1 and lift themselves another place closer to the top of National League South.

The Gulls were the better team and scored two good goals. Even when they let the visitors back into the game briefly in the second half and lost three players with injuries, they dug in and overcame the Angels on a bitter afternoon at Plainmoor.

United manager Gary Johnson brought Dillon De Silva back into the starting XI to replace Callum Dolan after the loanee’s return to parent club Fleetwood, and the Sri Lanka international quickly made his mark.

Tonbridge started brightly and kept Torquay pinned in their own half, but after 10 minutes the home side took the lead with a sweeping move. Lewis Collins raced clear on the left, beating the Angels’ offside trap by a fraction, and delivered a pinpoint cross which De Silva finished with a superb first-time effort beyond the reach of visiting keeper Jonathan Henly.

The visitors stayed well in touch, and before the break they had hit the bar and forced a great save from home keeper Mark Halstead.

And on the hour they were level when Francis Mampolo raced into the Torquay box and curled a fine shot past Halstead and into the corner of the net.

But what could have been a nervous spell for United turned to celebration again moments later when Jack Stobbs crossed low into the Angels box from the right and Brad Ash tucked the ball neatly into the net for his eighth goal of the season.

Torquay saw out the game without any further alarms, but with another home game against Weymouth coming up on Tuesday they will have to hope some of their injured players can be coaxed back into action.

They lost Collins, De Silva and Ross Marshall in quick succession, to add to an already-lengthy list of casualties already out of the picture.

Fans frustrated at a lack of communication with the club's owners staged a 15-minute protest after the final whistle, staying in their places and chanting 'Talk to us'.