MORE REACTION TO THE FLEET’S WIN, THIS TIME FROM THE INTERNET…
ALDERSHOT TOWN
“I watched the Trophy final yesterday and could not believe that Akinde was only 18 he was immense he has power, determination and chases lost causes, the sort of striker that the club is looking for alongside John Grant. He could easily play League 2, maybe give him a chance?”
“So our conquerers in the semi-final have gone on to win it, well done to them, they deserved to win it the the end, the lad Akinde up front is going to be a good player, he showed a lot of maturity for one so young, and the experienced McCarthy at the back was as solid as a rock. As for Torquay well it was all a little too predictable from them, they really are a long ball side, I think they lack mobility in midfield and Ebbsfleet had the edge in this department with Long and Bostwick.”
BURTON ALBION
“At least we lost to the eventual winners (wonder if thats an omen for the play off final?). I actually feel a bit sorry for Torquay, they’ve had a pretty bad week really.”
CRAWLEY TOWN
“Well done to Ebsfleet (Bostwick/Opinel) in front of 40,000 people. What a shocker for Torquay, losing to us, out of the play offs and losing in the Trophy final.”
“It must have been a record for the Ebbsfleet left back to have stayed on the field for 90 minutes!”
“Looked to me as though we really could and possibly should have done a little better in that particular competition… Ebbsfleet. Very very average team. Better than us this season? Not sure.”
“The league table (always a better gauge of how good a team are IMHO) says they are better than us (even giving us back six points).”
DARTFORD
“May I offer my congratulations to Ebbsfleet for their victory over Torquay United today. Our nearest rivals for so long, and eventually coming to our rescue, in a funny sort of way. You can not deny them a great win. Well done Ebbsfleet aka GRAVESEND AND NORTHFLEET.”
“I remember their Chairman allowing us to play a final farewell game at Stonehenge when we went bust and donating the money to the Supporters Association. Well done Ebbsfleet, oh how I wish that will be us one day soon looked like a fantastic day out. Where did all those Ebbsfleet fans come from though…”
“Well done Gravesend and Northfleet, I am very pleased a local side has done so well, and particularly pleased for thier supporters, many of whom supported Dartford in bleaker days also those who helped out when we were sharing. It wasn’t that long ago when G&N were the poor relations, Darts were then the superior side. I follow all the local teams ( Darts first of course) and am pleased for any local success. I feel a bit sorry for Jimmy Jackson who was probably the most loyal player in G&N’s rise to fame, he might have shared the glory had he stayed at G&N…”
“To those loyal band of fans who stuck with the team of course I am pleased that they have been rewarded for their support over many years, but I’ve no doubt that they have no more interest in Dartford winning the league than I have in them winning the Trophy, that is until we are due to play them in a Bank Holiday league fixture.”
DOVER ATHLETIC
“Great day out, Ebbsfleet fully deserved there win after dominating the whole of the game after the 1st 15 minutes creating chances througout but only taking one. Torquay were very poor for a team that was challenging all season at the top of Blue Square Prem. Close on 30000 Fleet fans there and just over 10000 Gulls fans who were very quiet from start to finish. Best player on the day was John Akinde who was on loan at Whitstable for two months earlier in the season. If one day he ceases to figure in Liam Daish’s plans then i would love to see him wear i white shirt for us.”
GILLINGHAM
“Just got back from Wembley and firstly like to say congrats to Ebbsfleet for bringing home the FA Trophy. For those who were there, I hope you agree that John Akinde has a fantastic game. A strong heavy weighted centre forward who showed great strength and pace. He caused the torquay defence nothing but problems all day. How he did not get man of the match I do not know. The lad is only 17 as looks to have a very bright future ahead of him. He was superb today and showed a class above everyone else on the pitch. This is a sort of player that Gills should be targeting to partner Jackson next season. Whilst I appreciate that this is the one and only game I have seen him play in, I am sure he will be playing in the football league within the next 12 months. I would like to see him in a Gills shirt and think he could be a good player for us but they may be bigger teams interested.”
“I tell you who else I like to see us sign from Ebssfleet and that is midfielder Stacy Long who has scored 17 goals this season and only 23 as well meaning their is alot of room for improvement in his game. Akinde and McPhee were a class above the other Ebbsfleet players IMHO. Those two, plus the Torquay keeper, were the three best players out there today.”
“I would also give a mentioned to the central defensive pairing of McCarthy and Smith, who I thought were magnificent. Really good atmosphere. I went with the obvious intention that I wanted Gravesend to win, but once caught up in the atmosphere, I really became a honorary Fleet fan, if only for the afternoon and those last 10 minutes were as nervy as many a Gills afternoon.”
MARGATE
“Massive congratulations to Ebbsfleet, took the game to Torquay from start to finish with Akinde playing a blinder of a game, Hessenthaler commentating on Radio Kent was amazed at the quality of Akinde.”
“You would have thought that it was Ebbsfleet who got into the play-offs not Torquay. Akinde played very well and should have scored at least one possibly even two.”
“Special mention to Akinde who was definately one of the best players on the pitch alongside McPhee. Who would have said that Akinde would be one of the best players in the FA Trophy final match at Wembley Stadium, at the start of the season when he was playing for us. Probably not many.”
NORTHWICH VICTORIA
“Surprised that no one has yet posted to say how richly Gravesend (I refuse to call them after a train station) deserved their Trophy final success over Torquay.”
“After a dodgy first 15 minutes, they bossed the game for long periods and the Gulls offered very little in the second half.”
“Overall, a really enjoyable game and Gravesend?s win gives the supposed ‘smaller’ clubs like ours some hope for the future.”
WEYMOUTH
“Congratulations to Ebbsfleet – nice to end up going out of the competition to the eventual winners as well.”
“Went along this afternoon and have to say that Ebbsfleet had three chances – one a missed penalty – whereas Torquay should have scored three before Ebbsfleet scored. 40,000 there, including 21,000 from Ebbsfleet, not bad for a club who have an average of under a 1,000! Disappointing atmosphere in the Torquay end, didn’t really get behind their team. Wembley though is quite something…”
