ALDERSHOT TOWN 0

TORQUAY UTD 2

ALDERSHOT'S six-match unbeaten run came to an abrupt end on Tuesday with a surprise home defeat against a confident Torquay side.

Former Shots striker Scott Rendell and the excellent Elliot Benyon converted rare chances in a tight first half to dent Aldershot's bid for the play-offs and ease their own side's relegation fears.

Aldershot had climbed up to fourth in League Two with a succession of impressive results, but a Torquay team inspired by their recent 5-0 drubbing of league leaders Rochdale proved too good for the tired-looking hosts.

Chris Blackburn moved to right-back to cover for the injured Ben Herd, but the invention of Gulls winger Mustapha Carayol troubled him throughout the game and led to a number of openings for the visitors.

Louie Soares also came in for the injured Marlon Jackson at left midfield, but aside from a confident break forward and shot in the first minute, he also struggled to make an impact.

The warning signs were there after 11 minutes when a failed punch by Jamie Young left Benyon to blast over the bar from just two yards.

It was a huge let-off for Aldershot, but just five minutes later, the striker was given a chance to atone for his miss.

Played in down the right-hand channel, Benyon shrugged off a weak challenge from Aaron Brown to calmly slot the ball low past Young into the left-hand corner.

It was a well-taken goal, and a richly deserved reward for the Gulls' early industry.

The hosts responded well and Ben Harding and Marvin Morgan were both unfortunate to see efforts zip wide of the goal. But the pressure proved short-lived as Torquay began to press for a second goal.

Unrest was growing in the home support as their team struggled to get out of their own half, and when the Gulls' second came, it was met with a groan of inevitability.

Winger Chris Zebroski was finding space down the right, and when Aldershot failed to clear his dangerous cross on 36 minutes, the ball fell to Rendell. Ten yards from goal, the Shots youth product made no mistake in placing his shot beyond Young into the bottom right-hand corner.

Manager Kevin Dillon pushed full-backs Blackburn and Anthony Straker further up the pitch in the second period to bolster his outgunned midfield, but the damage had been done and Aldershot offered little to threaten a comeback.

Marginalised in the first period, Shots playmaker Scott Donelly produced a series of testing set-pieces early in the second half, with one centrally placed 25-yard effort whizzing narrowly past the left upright.

It was a more even contest, but clear-cut chances were few and far between for both sides and the game stuttered towards full time.

The lack of a single booking (on both sides) perhaps summed up Aldershot's less than combative effort.

Dillon voiced his disappointment afterwards, but insisted the result was a minor blip in their promotion bid.

"We had no spark tonight, and apart from left-back Anthony Straker, the performances weren't very good. We're normally very creative going forward, but there was no movement today.

"The best team definitely won on the day. Their forwards were sparkling up front and their wide players were causing us all sorts of problems."

He added: "We're very disappointed with the result, but we've got to look on the bright side. We've been terrific throughout the season and the only reason the place is buzzing at the moment is because of the players. We have created the pressure ourselves, and we have to live up to it.

"We've had to do a lot of travelling recently and maybe it was just one game too much. The injuries are mounting up, but we need to make sure everybody is ready for the weekend.

"It was disappointing tonight, but we'll bounce back. Today's result is only a blip as far as I'm concerned."

Aldershot drop to seventh in in the table and are separated by just one point from eighth-placed Morecambe. This Saturday, they host mid-table Crewe Alexandra, who were beaten 3-0 at play-off rivals Bury on Tuesday.

Aldershot: Young; Straker, Blackburn, Brown, Winfield; Soares (Hudson 60), Harding, Bozanic (Howell 70), Donelly; M Morgan (Spencer 59), D Morgan. Subs (not used): Jaimez-Ruiz, Hylton, Riza, Connolly.

Torquay: Poke; Nicholson, Robertson, Branston, Ellis; Mansell, Wroe, Carayol (O'Kane 90+5), Zebroski; Benyon (Thompson 90+1), Rendell. Subs (not used): Smith, Charnock, Rowe-Turner, Stevens, Haldin.

Optiplan Kitchens Man of the Match: Anthony Straker.

Referee: Darren Sheldrake.

Attendance: 3,652.