Before Saturday’s National League match at Torquay kicked off, all the talk among Notts’ fans on the terraces and social media was about the continued absence of Cal Roberts, not only from the team but from the squad which travelled to the south-west.
By the time referee James Durkin blew the final whistle, questions regarding the absence of the talismanic striker had been almost entirely replaced by those querying the no-show of the Magpies’ defence as they left the field in tatters after a 5-1 drubbing which seriously dented their ambitions of achieving a top-three place come the end of the season.
The desire of a dynamic and physical Torquay side to keep their faint hopes of gatecrashing the play-offs alive once again exposed the defensive frailties of a Notts team which had shown signs of toughening up in recent games but were cruelly exposed here.
