Exeter City’s penultimate pre-season of the summer ended in a 1-1 draw as Torquay United found a late leveller at Plainmoor.
Jayden Wareham’s second pre-season goal had City ahead shortly into the second half after a fine header, but Jordan Young found the net with a minute of normal time remaining to halt the Grecians 100% record in pre-season.
With eyes on Pierce Sweeney’s testimonial on Saturday afternoon, Gary Caldwell named a starting XI made up of both first team and academy products for the trip to a sun drenched Plainmoor. A young bench, plus a trialist goalkeeper and Pat Jones completed the squad.
After a confident start, Wareham was the first to register an effort in the game, as he quickly reacted to a pinpoint through ball from Kevin McDonald to fire a snapshot just wide. He could have found the net soon after again, when Kieran Wilson’s ferocious cross just evaded him, taking a knock off a defender for the first corner of the game.
It was as physical an encounter as we’d come to expect for a game against the Gulls, but City were dominating the possession in the early exchanges between the niggly fouls.
George Birch was performing like a player well beyond his years and his was his neat interchange with Wilson that allowed Liam Oakes to play a slick pass inside to Ryan Rydel, who drilled an angled effort just wide of the far post with Wareham just centimetres from a connection.
Torquay’s first real chance of the game came as Callum Dolan stole the ball from Liam Oakes and found himself through on goal. Dolan lost control but managed to find former City promotion winning skipper Matt Jay, who saw his curling effort take a slight deflection for the Gulls first corner.
In truth it was a half of little action, though the hosts could have taken the lead on the stroke of the break when their Trialist A drilled a low effort wide of Joe Whitworth’s post, though it was always curling in the wrong direction.
Second Half
Caldwell introduced a trialist goalkeeper at the break to replace Whitworth, while Oakes was replaced by Harry Crees. The shot-stopper almost had work to do from the off, but he thankfully saw a powerful effort sail over the bar.
Birch continued to impress in red and white and he was unfortunate not to see his drilled shot find the back of the net from the edge of the box as Torquay keeper Matt Wonnacott turned it round the post. A second Birch effort a minute was then deflected wide.
The intensity increased in the second period, and having stayed in an attacking area as played was recycled, Ed James was able to take a chance from 18-yards, though Wonnacott was equal to it.
A goal was coming, and the Grecians took a deserved lead seven minutes into the half when Wareham connected to a delightful whipped cross to head into the bottom corner in front of the travelling supporters.
It could have been two when Cummins directed a corner back across the face of goal, with birthday boy Luca Woodhouse’s header bulleted into the hands of Wonnacott.
Torquay had pace on the wings and City’s trialist keeper had to be alert when the Gulls caught City on the counter – the hosts’ trialist forcing the shot-stopper into a save at his near post.
The average age of the City squad dropped as Caldwell introduced further youngsters, as Louie Cayless, Callum Graham and Liam Cartwright were all handed further pre-season minutes.
Cayless was immersing himself deep on the right hand side and it was his ball into the newly introduced Pat Jones that gave Kevin McDonald the opportunity to deliver a free-kick from the edge of the box, with James heading narrowly wide.
The Grecians were close to holding onto another pre-season victory, but were denied by a late leveller from the hosts. Caught on the counter, Jay started an attack for the hosts before play switched to the right hand side, where Young cut inside and smashed the ball from the edge of the area.
The final action of City’s summer schedule comes on Saturday, when Swansea City are the visitors to St James Park for Pierce Sweeney’s Testimonial fixture.
Torquay United XI: Wonnacott (GK), Dreyer (Foulston), Cooke (Dennis), Dolan (Young), Carson, Palmer, Trialist B, Worthington (Sundire), Hayfield (Lo-Everton), Trialist A, Jay.
Subs: Hamon (GK), Morgan, Crosbie, Herbert, Edwards.
Exeter City XI: Whitworth (GK) (Trialist), McMillan, Cummins (Cartwright), James, Woodhouse, Rydel (Cayless),, McDonald, Oakes (Crees) , Birch (Graham), Wilson (Jones), Wareham.
Subs: Anthony, Perkins.
Goals: Wareham 52’
Referee: Jonty Bolland
Attendance, 3,121