Torquay edge past Histon

Torquay United booked their place in the Blue Square Premier play-off final at Wembley despite suffering a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Histon on Monday.

Histon were looking to overturn a two-goal deficit in the return leg but they were unable to fashion a second goal to level the scores on aggregate.

The Stutes will be disappointed to have missed out on a final against local rivals Cambridge United after enjoying a greater share of ball possession throughout.

The home side made an early breakthrough with Neil Andrews finding the back of the net from ten yards after the Gulls had failed to deal with a long ball into the box.

However, they failed to create any more clear-cut goalscoring chances and Torquay held firm to book their place in the final at Wembley.

Histon skipper Mathew Mitchell-King had a glorious opportunity to send the match into extra time but his shot hit the bar and was subsequently cleared.

But that was not to be their last chance to draw level as they continued to pile on the pressure.

With a handful of minutes left on the clock, Gareth Gwillim launched a long throw into the box and the ball appeared to be handled by a Torquay player.

However, it was not to be as the referee waived play on and the final whistle sounded just three minutes later, much to the relief of the Torquay players and supporters.

Histon 1-0 Torquay (agg 1-2)

Histon bookings: None.

Torquay bookings: Stevens 84.

Ref: Steven Rushton (Staffordshire)

Att: 2,481.