One night in Devon, one night in Devon...

By Gary Moss.

Some Premier League fans think they are a cut above the rest.

Their players might be, but there’s nothing to brag about watching Manchester United win the title on your sofa in Kent, claiming you’re a Liverpool fan because your father was even though you’ve never been to Anfield, or missing Tottenham against Arsenal because you’re out shopping with the missus.

The thought of such an existence would be met with repulsion from the hardy 176 Stevenage fans who made the 470-mile round trip form the Lamex Stadium to Plainmoor.

It takes some commitment, bearing in mind the current over-inflated price of petrol, to make this marathon of a trip for a 2-0 defeat.

And you’d be right to presume every one of the Stevenage followers sparsely spread along the terrace were do-or-die Boro boys.

But little did the hardcore know, that among them were two Spurs season ticket holders, who just dropped in for a slice of the action to punctuate a booze-fuelled birthday trip to the English Riviera.

While the birthday boy is no stranger to being among the Stevenage faithful, following them as a second team to his beloved Tottenham, for myself, this was new territory. My first Stevenage game of the season in fact.

But I wasn’t completely out of my depth. Three years studying in Lincoln and writing about the Imps in the local press alongside editing a Notts County fanzine website, meant this was a welcome return to the hotbed that is League Two football.

I never shyed away from trips to arenas such as Sincil Bank, Meadow Lane, Field Mill, Millmoor and Saltergate before, so be damned if I was to snub the home of the Gulls now – even if my feet did feel like ice blocks.

While it’s nice to watch your team playing Champions League football, there’s something you can’t beat about action in League Two, and it was just as I remember it.

A pudding of a pitch, not an inch given in the tackle, a PA system with plenty left to desire, and the kind of player-crowd interaction that brings it all to life.

While many of my neighbours at White Hart Lane would probably dismiss this game as utter garbage, I’ve got to say I enjoyed it.

Beneath the spells of long-ball tactics, mis-timed and late challenges, scrambles in the box and sliced clearances, there was a great game of football. One that only people with a true love of football could appreciate.

True passion.

Torquay were worthy 2-0 winners on the day, and at times, strung together the kind of attractive passing football, that suggest they could be in with a late shout of making of the play-offs.

Stevenage may be Football League debutants, but level-on points with United before this tie, they’re certainly not out of their depth. They played their part in this game too, matching the home side physically throughout.

What cost them was team selection.

Leaving out a striker (Byron Harrison), who has scored seven goals in nine games since arriving at the club, in favour of playing a defensive looking 4-5-1 formation mythed me as much as the fans who watch them every week.

Fans like to think they know best about their team, and as soon as the teamsheet was read out, a couple of fans shrieked in disbelief. They were proved right. The system Stevenage played meant they failed to muster many chances.

That didn’t mean it was a ‘sing when you’re winning’ mentality from the Boro fans. They’d come all this way and they were going to sing their hearts out until the final whistle. The drums were banging and the party atmosphere never wained.

It might easily have come down a notch or two in the Premier Legue when Danny Stevens hit a thunderbolt just seconds into the second half to put the hosts ahead. But no, not this lot. It’s not about success at this level. Fickleness doesn’t feature. It’s all about the experience.

Even when their skipper saw red with the score at 1-0, you could hear the Hertfordshire crowd loud and clear. Chris Zebroski hit the crossbar from the resulting penalty, but Jake Robinson did add a second not long after.

At that point Torquay were comfortable and worthy leaders. It’s one of Stevenage’s worst days in the Football League.

Did the Stevenage fans have a moan? Of course they did. But will they be back? Of course they will.

That’s football. That’s real football fans. What a great day out.

Cheer: A hearty cup of chicken soup at the break helped battle through the cold weather.

Tears: A pathetic take on the crossbar challenge at half-time.

Faceless owners must be unmasked

THE inevitable has happened and League One Plymouth Argyle have entered administration, and now the very existence of the club is threatened.

It is an extremely worrying time for fans of the Pilgrims, who were flying high in the Championship just two seasons ago, and were candidates to be a home venue if England won the rights to be World Cup hosts.

Now they have slipped to the bottom of the table, following the mandatory 10-point reduction for entering administration. Staff, including the players, reportedly haven't been paid for six weeks and relegation to League Two looms.

Argyle's administrators want a buyer in place by March 17 in a bid to save the club, and help to pay the £300,000 owed to HMRC to stave off a winding-up order - just a month after clearing a £760,000 tax debt. Total debts are said to be at a staggering £10 million.

But it begs the question as to how they, and other clubs in the past, get into such dire straits.

Many clubs have faced financial troubles in the past, particularly in recent seasons. Chester City went out of existence, and that fate very nearly befell the likes of Notts County, Portsmouth and Bournemouth.

The Magpies' situation was particularly curious. Taken over by mystery consortium Munto Finance, fans were promised millions of pounds in investment, and Premiership football at Meadow Lane. Former England manager Sven Goran Eriksson was appointed director of football, and Three Lions defender Sol Campbell was the showpiece signing.

But nobody knew who Munto was, and the Football League rightly questioned this resulting in weeks of speculation before the faceless benefactors pulled out of the club. It was later revealed they put absolutely nothing into it, but left it with £7 million of debt. 

Notts faced HMRC hearings of their own, and were set for administration until businessman Ray Trew saved them. He has reduced the staggering debt to just £500,000 and hopes to be debt-free by the end of the season. Remarkably the Magpies still won the League Two title last year.

Despite not knowing who the owners of County were, they were still able to take over and do the damage, and actually - eventually - passed the Football League's much maligned Fit and Proper Persons Test.

Argyle's current board will no doubt have passed the same test. Yet somehow they have allowed the club into a perilous situation, clearly not heeding the lessons from other clubs.

They have two Japanese-based directors, who have gone awfully quiet. They joined the club with a lot of fanfare, promising this and that, and no doubt made fans believe that Premiership football was on the horizon - not League Two.

Peter Ridsdale, who was acting as an advisor at the club, recently resigned after becoming frustrated at Yasuaki Kagami and George Synan and their broken promises. The fans may know their names, and probably what they look like. But they have become faceless. They don't visit Home Park, they haven't lived up to what they said they would do and they have contributed - not wholly - to the club being in a diabolical position.

A huge £5 million is needed for the club to see the season out. They have already sold their best players such as Bradley Wright-Phillips - and he is no Fernando Torres, no £50 million man. 

The Japanese directors should be summoned before the fans to explain why the club is in its current position, and explain how they can get out of it. They should be unmasked in front of supporters who face weeks of worrying. They should be getting behind their team's fight to avoid the drop, but only surviving as a club now matters. They will probably stay in Tokyo with enjoying their sushi.

After rising from the bottom of the league ladder to English football's second tier in the early noughties with two promotions in three seasons, Argyle should be much-vaunted. Those behind that rise will probably join fans in demanding answers.

It is time the Football League ensured a more rigorous process when allowing new directors, buyers and owners into clubs, before more fall the way of Argyle.