Gulls set to keep striker Lloyd

Torquay United have decided to remove striker Lloyd Macklin from the transfer list, club manager Martin Ling has confirmed.

Ling had said the 22-year-old forward was surplus to requirements at Plainmoor, stating that Macklin needed a 'reality check'. But after impressing during pre-season, the striker is back in his manager's plans. "Lloyd has now come off the transfer list," Ling told the club's official website. "I had a meeting with him and spoke to him about whether he understands what I'm looking for and what we need from him as a player. "He's played well in all three pre-season games he's been involved in and Lloyd can be a big asset to us if he can reproduce that form, which is the challenge for Lloyd. He had a good pre-season last year and didn't follow it up. "Lloyd is blessed with incredible pace, good technique and really has everything required to be a professional footballer, but people have been saying that for years. The only frustration with Lloyd is getting the best out of him. "It is last chance saloon for him at Torquay and I've spoken to Lloyd about the situation. Lloyd has never been a problem on the training ground as a person or as a player. This is nothing I haven't said to Lloyd. I don't tell lies or speak behind anyone's back. I've spoken to Lloyd and he has really got the bit between his teeth at this moment in time."