MIDFIELDER NICKY Wroe's hat-trick – Torquay United's first for nearly three years – lifted the Gulls into the Second Round of the FA Cup against ten-man Cheltenham Town as winter swept in over Plainmoor on Saturday.

Two first-half penalties and a thunderous drive in the 70th minute earned Wroe the man-of-the-match award.

It also stretched United's current unbeaten run, if you include the 2-2 90-minute score at Southampton in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy, to eight games.

Lee Thorpe was the last man to hit three goals for the club, in a 4-1 home win over Grimsby in January 2007.

That result, with leading scorer Jamie Ward also scoring, briefly gave United some hope that they might haul themselves out of the League Two relegation trouble in the days under former chairman Chris Roberts.

Those hopes quickly evaporated when Roberts sold Ward to Chesterfield just before the transfer window closed.

Three years on this victory, coming after the crucial 1-0 home league win over Northampton seven days before, should go some way to convincing Paul Buckle's players that they have turned a corner.

They found themselves a goal down after only eight minutes of a shaky start against Cheltenham.

The Robins, who haven't won for nine games now, have a much-touted teenage prospect in Theo Lewis.

Lewis, 17, had nearly scored twice, from a 25-yard drive just over and a 20-yarder wide after an outrageous pitch-length run, before he did the real thing.

From a half-cleared corner defender Drissa Diallo set up Justin Richards for a cross from the right and Lewis threw himself at the ball to head home in a crowded area…0-1.

There'll be some questions asked at training today about how Lewis was able to finish as he did.

It was one of those 'now let's see what you're made of' moments.

United's response was instant.

A minute after Lewis' goal, Tim Sills got on the end of Lee Mansell's diagonal ball from the right, Scott Brown parried the header and Elliot Benyon followed up to 'score'.

The offside decision which disallowed the goal must have been tight, to say the least.

No matter, in the eight minute United equalised.

Wroe supplied a telling through-ball to Benyon on the move, he dashed clear – and goal-side of Josh Low – and any touch from the defender was bound to leave him in serious trouble.

Low appeared to push Benyon over, and it was only a question of whether referee Darren Sheldrake would add a red card to the penalty decision.

He settled for yellow for Low.

Wroe drilled the penalty just right of centre, while goalkeeper Scott Brown dived to his right…1-1.

On-loan winger Jake Thomson has brought some needed pace and bravado to United's attack, and going into the 19th minute he brought the home crowd to its feet.

A dazzling run from deep in his own half left a trail of defenders in his wake, eventually forcing a corner on United's right.

Kevin Nicholson swung the spot-kick to the far post, Chris Hargreaves' first effort was blocked by Brown, again Benyon was there on the rebound and this time Lee Ridley handled on the line.

Mr. Sheldrake may have shown some lenience to Low, but it was a red card for Ridley.

The angry Robins' left-back, just returned from injury, took an inordinate amount of time to leave the field, giving goalie Brown a chance to delay the spot-kick.

So credit Wroe for a terrific finish – Brown guessed correctly, low to his left, but the shot was still too good for him…2-1 to United.

It was Wroe's fifth goal of the season.

Cheltenham's caretaker-manager John Schofield reshuffled to cover for Ridley's loss, shifting right-back Low to the left, withdrawing midfielder David Bird to right-back and going to a 4-3-2 formation.

For an uncomfortable spell up to half-time, United almost seemed to doubt themselves against ten men.

Neither their movement, even with Thomson and Wayne Carlisle switching wings, nor their quality of pass was good enough to open up the visitors.

Indeed, Cheltenham made light of their handicap and nearly equalised.

The Robins' veteran 6ft 4in tall targetman Julian Alsop has never boasted pace among his treasured attributes, and the pressbox wag who announced that he's seen grazing cattle move quicker may have had a cruel point.

But Alsop gave as good as he got against Chris Robertson in the air, and his flicks kept the Town attack believing that they could still pull off an unlikely result.

From one Alsop header, Elvis Hammond's overhead kick bounced just wide.

Scott Bevan, back in goal for the unavailable Michael Poke, held on to a Low drive after a pitch-length counter-attack.

Centre-half Michael Townsend glanced a Bird cross narrowly wide.

United were also glad to see Bevan come off his line to punch one dangerous corner away.

Just before the interval Thomson did cross from the left, Sills nodded the ball back at the far post and Hargreaves headed over.

But that was United's first decent attack for some time.

They needed to move up a gear in the second half. And they did.

Even into the teeth of a strong wind, with rain also sweeping in over the Ellacombe End, United started stretching their opponents to, and beyond, the limit.

Thomson was always capable of something out of the ordinary, even if his final ball was sometimes lacking.

Benyon, from one good move between Nicholson and Thomson down the left, had a shot saved.

Robertson went close from the edge of the area.

Wroe had a 20-yarder saved low by Brown.

In the 58th minute Thomson's crossfield pass to Carlisle on the right prompted United's winger to make some ground and then unleash a 30-yard drive which hit the right-hand post with Brown beaten.

Kieran Charnock, who had a good match in the heart of United's defence, did have to come up with a top-drawer tackle to halt substitute Barry Hayles.

The much-travelled Hayles had joined Alsop up front, their combined ages totalling 73!

But in the 70th minute, ironically with United also down to ten men, they ended the contest.

Benyon was off the field for treatment to his second nasty hand injury in successive games when United counter-attacked after a Cheltenham corner.

Thomson set off on another of his exciting solo runs and, although he actually lost possession at the end of it, Wroe had set off in pursuit, arrived at the right time and blasted the loose ball home from 20 yards…3-1.

It was some effort with his weaker left foot. Brown had no chance.

Moments later Benyon was replaced by Scott Rendell.

Cheltenham tried gamely to save themselves, Bevan pulling out one excellent save from Hayles near the end.

But nearly all the traffic headed in the other direction over the last 20 minutes.

Sills, who put in a solid shift up front, Wroe forcing a fine save from Brown as he went for No.4, and Mansell all went close.

Rendell, just a foot or two wide with one glancing header from a Thomson cross, nearly put some icing on the cake in the last minute of normal time.

Some 35 yards out, he hit a volley on the turn which beat Brown all ends up, hit the inside of the right-hand post, rolled along the goalline, but stayed out.

United are up and running in the Cup once more.

But Shrewsbury, dumped out by Staines, await them in the League at the New Meadow next Saturday.

Three points there, and this 'revival' would start to move into 'serious' territory.