In 1899 a Sergeant-Major Edward Tomney recruited a detachment of school-leavers and founded Torquay United Association Football Club. In 1910 Torquay merged with a club called Ellacombe and they became Torquay Town. Ellacombe played at a place called Plainmoor and the new partnership set up home there. Torquay Town, as they were then known, shared Plainmoor with local rivals Babbacombe until, that is, in 1921 when they decided to marry and become one. After doing so Torquay Town reverted to its maiden name and again became Torquay United. It is starting to sound a bit like a soap opera, I know, but this trois deviennent un lived happily at Plainmoor. In 1927 they built an extension to their home in the shape of a £150 new wooden grandstand to coincide with the club’s first season in the football league. There the three little clubs lived happily until 1930 when a wolf in the shape of a gale huffed and puffed and blew the stand down. Apart from Eastenders, soaps usually calm down and get a bit boring after their tumultuous beginnings, and that’s what happened here until 1985, when just six days after the devastating and shocking fire at Bradford, Plainmoor had an early morning blaze of its own. Fortunately nobody was hurt but capacity was reduced considerably. Today Plainmoor holds 6,500, and local rivals whom the fans have no intention of merging with are Plymouth Argyle and Exeter City.
It was Exeter’s Local Studies Library that helped me with Torquay’s old badge, which is the town’s coat of arms and thank you for the email, Tony. Before the new owner took over some years ago it was these arms that adorned the shirts on Saturday afternoons. (PIC 1) Yes, kids, once upon a time in days of yore before satellites ruled the airwaves there was no SKY TV, all football matches kicked off at 3 pm on Saturday afternoon, cup replays and European matches were all you would get on a weekday evening. Back to the arms, and the motto in the banner or scroll is “SALUS ET FELICITAS” meaning, Health and Happiness. The heraldic description is as follows, Arms; Ermine, (which is a fur with spots) three bends azure, (azure means blue) and thereon a three-masted ship in full sail proper, (proper being in its natural colour) with flags gules. (gules meaning red) The ship symbolises the maritime interests of the area plus the historic links of the Royal Navy in the borough. On the chief (the chief is the top of a shield) wavy gules two wings argent, (argent being heraldic for silver or white) and between them a silver pale charged with a castellated gateway on a mound proper. Wings are symbolic of flight both in a literal and spiritual sense. Since they were a means to get from the earth to the skies they were seen as a symbolism of the link between heaven and earth. Castles are symbolic of strength and endurance. In Christian writings, God is often compared to a fortress just as castles are a haven from attack. God is therefore a refuge from the Devil’s onslaughts. (Compare Plymouth arms.) A mound is often a representation of a hill or ground. On the crest we have a wreath argent and azure, a rock thereon a gull proper supporting an anchor with a gold cable. The anchor is a reference again to the sea and when cabled is a symbol of both seamanship and hope. Again, both the skies and the sea are represented by the gull. The gull also gives the club its nickname “The Gulls” as well as the centrepiece for the present badge. (PIC 2)
The badge, as I mentioned earlier came into existence when the new owner took over and wanted his own badge. As I have mentioned before in this work, coats of arms are no safeguarded against pirated goods because they belong to the people and cannot be copyrighted, this is why you get these daft-looking logos instead of a badge that has symbolism and historic meaning. I would like to thank, Debbie Hancox, the club’s Customer Liaison Manager, for replying to my letter and pointing me in the right direction to glean my information from. I was directed towards the local paper, The Herald Express where I had a nice chat with a nice chap regarding the club’s badge. The badge is blue and gold in colour and this represents the blue sea and golden sands of the local beaches. It is in the roundel with the club’s name encircling the edge, whilst in the middle is a symbol of two golden gulls representing the club’s nickname. Before the war it was another bird that gave the club its nickname the Magpies, as is common with clubs that play in black and white, as Torquay once did.
Now I have it from a very reliable source that a very lovely Sky Sports presenter has a tattoo of this badge on her bottom, and I am sorry, I have no picture, but just imagine a bottom and look at picture 2 and you should have it in your mind’s eye, Oh, you already have! Torquay’s name originates from it being the quay or wharf of the ancient village of Torre. Torre takes its name from the Tor, the extensively quarried rock in the area, remains of which can still be seen on the Tor Hill Road. The name was Tor Quay before becoming Torquay. For more information on “The Gulls” peck your way to www.torquayunited.com
