NICE ONE, JOHN Torquay United 1, Southend United 0
- Details
- Created on Sunday, 15 December 2013 00:00
- Last Updated on Sunday, 15 December 2013 10:54
- Published on Saturday, 14 December 2013 00:00
Torquay United boss Alan Knill praised on-loan Millwall striker John Marquis for his 50th minute winner as the Gulls ended Southend United’s seven-match unbeaten run 1-0 at Plainmoor.
Knill said: “John has scored two in the last two games and if I was a centre half I know I wouldn’t want to play against him.
“A lot of the times it looks like it’s comfortably the centre half’s ball but John gets in there, he uses his body really well and capped a great performance with a great left foot finish.”
Marquis, 21, latched on to Billy Bodin's measured lobbed through ball to send a scorching angled drive past diving Shrimpers keeper Daniel Bentley as basement side United ended a five-match league run without a win.
Torquay nearly doubled their lead in a goalmouth scramble just seconds later and from the corner on-loan Leicester City playmaker Jak McCourt bounced the ball off the bar with Bentley beaten.
The Gulls have drawn level on 18 points with second from bottom Northampton Town, a point behind third from bottom Bristol Rovers, who visit Plainmoor on Boxing Day. Southend slip from third to seventh.
Relieved Knill admitted: “We all know how important it was to get that win.
“We have changed the shape, and changed the personnel and it’s given us a great start to the month. Now we have to repeat that sort of performance again, and again.
“You have got to look forward and we have to take everything out of this game into the next game, away at Dagenham next Saturday.
“We have had a false dawn before, when we have done well and then the next performance hasn’t been of the same standard.
“For us to do anything, we have to have this type of performance every week.”
South West Sports News star John Marquis (TUFC)
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