On Saturday, Welling United put in one of their best performances of the season to stun Vanarama National League South leaders Torquay United.

Manager Steve King made two changes from the team that won at Oxford City on the previous Tuesday evening, bringing in Brendan Kiernan and Gavin McCallum for Montel Agyemang and Bradley Goldberg.

Had Torquay taken the chance they had in the second minute the game might have been very different but Saikou Janneh headed over from Jake Andrews’ cross.

King had taken a risk with playing Thierry Audel and it back-fired when his injury meant that he had to be replaced by Richard Orlu after just twelve minutes.

Danny Mills created an opening for Jack Barham with a header across the face of goal but the Barnet loanee’s effort was deflected wide.

Mills then came close himself when his header was kept out by an excellent save from Shaun MacDonald. Orlu followed up but bundled the rebound wide.

Dan Wilks had to rush out to clear a long ball over the top but having got past two Torquay strikers it got away from him and his lunge felled Andrews, earning himself a yellow card. Andrews’ injury wasn’t as bad as it had appeared as he was involved in the free kick move that ended with Connor Lemonheigh-Evans shooting well wide.

Andrews then gave Jamie Reid an opportunity to have a go but his effort also flew wide.

As the first half moved into injury time Welling broke the deadlock. David Ijaha’s perfectly weighted through ball sent Barham clear and MacDonald’s indecision invited him to lob and Barham obliged with unerring accuracy.

After the break Janneh and Reid combined to allow Andrews a shot from long range but he also failed to hit the target.

At the other end, Kiernan created a half chance for McCallum but he couldn’t get a clear connection and MacDonald cleaned up.

However, Welling’s next attack had a very different outcome. Kiernan’s cross was half cleared to Ijaha and he wasted no time in letting fly with an arrowed drive that gave MacDonald no chance.

Gary Johnson, the Torquay manager, made an immediate double substitution to try and change things and Lemonheigh-Evans had a long shot that Wilks claimed with relative ease.

He was helpless when Torquay next attacked when Janneh found Reid and the league’s leading goalscorer spun but shot narrowly wide.

Kiernan had a free kick saved easily by MacDonald before Asa Hall had a shot for Torquay that Orlu deflected over with his head.

Torquay came even closer when Kyle Cameron’s header came back off the post from Lemonheigh-Evans’ corner but the centre back’s participation was cut short soon after.

Having been cautioned in the first half, Cameron escaped a second yellow card for an awful hack on Kiernan. He was given a stern lecture and final warning but failed to heed it and fouled Mills less than a minute later and this time he was dismissed.

That made it much harder for the visitors but Ben Wynter twice had shots saved by Wilks, the first a half hit effort from out wide and the second more cleanly struck from distance.

Reid drew one last save from Wilks before Welling were able to celebrate an excellent victory.

Welling United: Wilks, Gibbons, Braham-Barrett, Ijaha, Acheampong, Audel (Orlu 12), Kiernan, Mendy, Mills, Barham (Goldberg 88), McCallum (Anau 78). Subs not used: Agyemang.