Skipper Connor Riley-Lowe says that the end of season schedule for his Truro City side has been ‘carnage’, writes Gareth Davies. 

The former Exeter City defender, who famously scored the winning goal to take City into National League South 12 months ago, has led his side on a run of ten games in 20 days.

Eight of those games have been ‘home’ matches, but owing to City’s groundshare ending with Plymouth Parkway in February, another temporary switch to Taunton failed because of the wet weather.

This saw City forced to play games at Gloucester’s Meadow Park, a commute of 194 miles each way from Truro. But against all the odds, Riley-Lowe and his charges secured Step Two status with a 1-0 win over Dover Athletic last Tuesday.

“It has been carnage to be fair,” Riley-Lowe told trurocity.co.uk. “We knew it was coming because we had so many games cancelled during the season, but I don’t think we realised just how tough it would be.

“It was ten games in 20 days, which was a tough shift and although not everyone played in every game, the majority of the squad was used. We all chipped in and got there in the end.

“The hardest thing was all the time spent in a car, up and down, up and down, it really does impact your body. You are then playing on astro which isn’t best for your body, but as always, the lads dug in.

“Nobody made a fuss and if someone couldn’t make a game, one of the other lads stepped in and stepped up.”

Riley-Lowe also revealed his pride in captaining Truro and despite the former Exeter City man, who has also turned out for Bath City, revealing he is not your everyday skipper, this current City crop is full of leaders.

“Proud, absolutely, to walk the boys out every time,” he added, when asked what it meant to lead the side. “I know without a shadow of a doubt that even if we don’t play the best football on the day, each and every player will work their socks off.

“We have a real honest squad and that shows with the adversity we have had to overcome this year. I don’t think many other squads will get through what we have."

With Truro returning to a new facility next season, this will end a near four-year exile for the side after they vacated Treyew Road in January 2021. And Riley-Lowe hailed the support the side have received whilst in exile as ‘unbelievable’.

“Every year I have been a Truro player, we have had such a good connection with our fans,” the 28-year-old enthused. “We really appreciate their support and we feel that we have paid them back for going up to Gloucester with some of the performances on the pitch.

“They have been unbelievable and just to see them with smiles on their faces, singing along with the lads is special.

“We will be playing back in front them next season and ultimately, we are coming home.”

Meanwhile, City boss Paul Wotton says that his side’s gruelling end of season schedule finally caught up with his team on the final day, with a defeat to Dartford.

In a game that City dominated, they fell behind to Joash Nembhard’s 23rd minute header from a Luke Coulson corner.

In the dying embers, Tyler Harvey scored his 14th goal of the season but Dartford held on to prevail 2-1.

“It was one game too many for us as we are on our knees,” Wotton told trurocity.co.uk. “I don’t want to talk about the game too much because there was no way we deserved to lose it.

“We had more chances than we had in any other game throughout the entire season. But our finishing wasn’t great and we didn’t hit the target enough until late on. The two goals we conceded were poor and my overall view is that it is a disappointing end to a massively successful season.”

Looking back on the season overall, Wotton opened up on just how tough this campaign has been for his side, which has included three different groundshares and playing ten games in 20 days during this last month of the campaign.

“It has been a real challenge,” he added, “The different grounds and the travel has been well-documented, but we have come through it.

“I said to the players that they deserve their break because it is amazing what you can do when things are stacked against you, as long as you stick together.

“I say this a lot about my boys, but they are a resilient bunch who deserve a lot of accolades."