Eastleigh are back in action and back on the road to face relegation-threatened Torquay United at the Plainmoor in the 41st matchday of the Vanarama National League on Friday 7th April with a 3pm kick-off. Preview in association with Unibet.
Torquay United:
The Gulls come into the match with spirits revitalised having won two matches on the bounce most recently of which came last weekend as Torquay United defeated fellow strugglers Scunthorpe United 1-0 thanks to a Lewis Collins goal in the 63rd minute.
The result meant the Gulls still harbour hopes of safety sitting six adrift of safety, with just six matches remaining.
Despite the lowly position of 22nd in the table, Torquay United have lost just once in their previous four matches, placing the Gulls eighth in the form table for that period of time.
Though at the Plainmoor is where Torquay United have really struggled this season, winning just four of their 20 matches at home this season, losing half of those and conceding 38 times in the process.
The Gulls’ top scorer is Aaron Jarvis with 11 goals this campaign, however second in that list is Lee Goodwin who is no longer at the club having returned to parent team Stoke City before heading to League One outfit Cheltenham Town.
Eastleigh:
After almost two weeks out of action, the Spitfires will need those fully rested legs as they begin a run of four matches in eight days.
Last time out, Eastleigh returned from North London with a very positive point following a goalless draw with fellow play-off hopefuls Boreham Wood.
The time off allowed the Spitfires’ play-off rivals to catch up in terms of games played, having been playing catch-up for a large portion of the season.
However, with everyone in play-off contention now having played 40 matches each, Eastleigh remain in the play-off places in seventh position, three points ahead of Bromley just below the dotted line. While three points in the opposite direction would take the Spitfires level with Barnet in fifth place.
Eastleigh have lost just twice in their last 12 league matches and with club top scorer Danny Whitehall on 15 goals, the Spitfires will be hoping for more of the same following their mini break to push on and confirm their play-off spot.
Previous Meetings:
In the reverse fixture, Eastleigh continued their streak of having won every meeting between the two sides at the Silverlake Stadium, thanks to a singular goal from Whitehall from the penalty spot.
All in all, the two sides have met 15 times previously with the Spitfires dominating the fixture, having won 10 of those meetings. The Gulls have only won three times over Eastleigh and the spoils have been shared twice.
Last Five:
25/10/22 | Eastleigh 1-0 Torquay United
18/04/22 | Torquay United 0-0 Eastleigh
28/12/21 | Eastleigh 2-1 Torquay United
01/05/21 | Torquay United 3-1 Eastleigh
06/10/20 | Eastleigh 2-1 Torquay United
By Sajidur Rahman
