FAN’S VIEW: 24/25 – No.30: PLYMOUTH AWAY

Article by Paul Beasley Thursday, January 16th, 2025  

FAN’S VIEW: 24/25 – No.30: PLYMOUTH AWAY

PLYMOUTH ARGYLE 1 OXFORD UNITED 1

This second trip to Devon in such a short space of time was so much more enjoyable than the first. What a difference three days and putting out a much stronger team makes.

When you draw 1-1 it is usually a case of “feels like a loss” if you had the lead and “feels like a win” if you came from behind. Here though, although we went ahead the whole thing had much more of a winning feeling about it than a defeat. So what if Argyle are bottom? They would have been on a high after beating Brentford, drawing Liverpool in the next round and getting a new manager who isn’t Wayne Rooney. In contrast we’d lost to a team lower down the pecking order last time out.

As the players left the field at the end to pass down the tunnel in the corner right near us, the applause they received, including from myself, couldn’t have been more heartfelt.

This performance just about wiped away all the negativity dropped on us following the Exeter debacle. I will however have massive concerns should we, out of necessity, be forced to make wholesale changes for any of the remaining fixtures.

We had another trouble free journey down south and had planned to park in the big car park at the ground but our chauffeur (I’ll describe him as that because he does such a fantastic job) decided at the last minute to continue on past Home Park and back down the Alma Road to get closer to the first drinking establishment we had on our itinerary. I’ll call him “Parker” because that’s the name of a fictional chauffeur and parking is something which always provides entertainment of sorts. Often very unconventional. Also to protect the innocent as the saying goes, or should that be the guilty? Mates will know who I am talking about and I will have mentioned him before.

Part way down Alma Road he decided to turn right. “Can’t go down there, that’s a no entry sign.”  “I’m only turning round”. Then “look, there’s parking spaces”. “Yes but we think it is one way”. “I’ll just reverse then”. Moments later we are parked up. We also noted that coming out there was a “no right turn sign” and “turn left” painted on the road which would have sent us back towards the ground afterwards and into the traffic.

Having wandered into a warren of narrow streets we found the Fawn Private Members club. It looked not much more than an end of terrace residential property. “Non-members ring bell”. I did, a dog started yapping. CAMRA members are allowed in. The door was unlocked for us. It’s one of those places that looks like it has not been modernised since the 70s, all bright fluorescent lights and basic furniture including an old style dominoes table with holes for pint glasses. I suspect it doesn’t make much money but serves the local community well with everyone looking out for each other. The club hosts multiple darts and euchre teams and no doubt would fill up with customers later on and at the weekends but at 17:30 there were just two people in, quietly and slowly sipping a beer before heading home for their tea. Likely a routine they follow most days. Somewhere warm. And here’s the thing, three pints cost £10.70. The membership fee (£5 or £8 a couple) would soon be recouped.  It’s comforting that places like this exist and they allow the likes of me in.

A short walk away was the Clifton Inn. Only one hand-pump operating so no choice to be made. We were still in side streets but I was not getting an Argyle vibe. Chatting to friendly locals, one with a slight Devon accent but originally from up north, was a Leeds fan and was much less sure than I am that they’ll go up. The other a Man Utd fan with nothing Devon in his voice. Occasionally they will watch Plymouth. At least one of them was an ex-marine. Its football chats like this that help make an away day. As we left they stood up, shook our hands and wished us luck.

For choice of beer the Fortescue Hotel had a much wider range to pick from. More in keeping with a GBG listing as all three places we visited were. Not much time to hang around though and the Hanlons Port Stout needed supping quite quickly.  Given the opportunity I’d revisit. 10% discount for CAMRA members.

I’d still not detected much of a football atmosphere in the air. Google maps showed approx. half an hour walk to the ground. Parker couldn’t go direct. Ticket left in car. Neither did we end up going direct. Our route took us to a locked gate across some parkland. Following a steady stream of people we did get across some open parkland and, with the help of a steward, down a little path and into the away end without having to go right round the ground. We made it just in time for kick off.

665 was our lowest away following in the league this season but given the circumstances I thought it was decent and the backing given was exemplary.

Argyle didn’t appear to be no hopers and came at us with some belief. I don’t think there’s an argument to say they weren’t the better team in the first half. We weren’t able to keep the ball. Players getting dispossessed and poor passing. But we had that shape and resilience back, weathering the pressure quite well and not looking like we would concede at any moment.  

Just before half time we lost Sam Long to injury. He tried to carry on but couldn’t. The second time he went down the home fans booed as football fans do. The lad from Bicester does not feign injury.

So on 43 minutes Jordan Thorniley replaced him. Now a back three of him, Peter Kioso and Ciaron Brown with Greg Leigh and Matt Philips operating as wing-backs.

42 seconds after the game re-started with our 34 on the pitch he was instrumental in us taking the lead. I wasn’t expecting it nor were Plymouth. It came out of nowhere. A team goal of the highest quality.  Przemyslaw Placheta had been fouled and Will Vaulks took the free-kick near the half way line. He got the ball back from Cameron Brannagan then played it backwards to Kioso. Patient stuff. I was happy with this given how the game had been going. Kioso backwards again to Thoniley just outside our area. He took a touch and got his head up to see what was on much further up the field. With his second touch he launched it towards Leigh out wide midway inside the Argyle half. Leigh headed it on to Mark Harris. Winning such balls is a real strength of Leigh’s. Harris, who was in space, controlled it very well and with vision laid it perfectly into the path of Vaulks who had come bursting forward. From a couple of yards outside the D he rifled the ball into the net. I missed his somersault as we were partaking of some celebrations ourselves.

In the second half we were the better side but it was the hosts who got the only goal of this period meaning the spoils were shared.

Before we’d been pegged back in the 63rd minute we could have gone further ahead. Leigh failed to connect on what I didn’t consider to be a very difficult chance when Brown put a ball in. The home defence was dozing.

The equaliser came when Phillips was robbed on the half way line which resulted in Plymouth putting a move together with a cross coming in when there was no pressure to stop it. That’s not necessarily much of a problem if all attackers are tightly marked in the box but they weren’t. Rami Al Hajj stepped into the space between Kioso and Thorniley then placed a good header beyond Jamie Cumming.

Like our goal it had come from nowhere.

Unlike at Exeter we didn’t fall apart. We continued to play and looked much the likelier of the two teams to get a winner. Siriki Dembele, on for Placheta in the 68th minute, was twice thwarted by very good saves from Dan Grimshaw.

The stats on this game make interesting reading. We only had 38.7% possession but had three shots on target compared to Plymouth’s two. Overall they had more shots than us, 11-8 but I can’t recall Cumming being stretched at all.

With more possession they obviously made more passes than us (449 – 277) and their passing accuracy was higher than ours. 81% to 64%. However we made 59 successful passes in the final third and they made 55. We also got in more crosses than them. I suspect Vaulks’s long throws were counted as crosses. They will also explain why we had many more touches in their box than they had in ours: 29-9. Although no clear cut chances resulted from him hurling the ball in, the home defence was clearly uncomfortable. A tactic well worth persisting with even without Elliott Moore in the team. With him at the far post I think it is a much more potent weapon.

The trip back home was something of a challenge. Not getting away from Plymouth. Right turn no problem even with traffic going both ways. As Bob Mortimer would say “and away”. But the M5 being closed wasn’t helpful. More road closures on our route home and, with the fog, couldn’t see very far ahead but we were still back in Bicester just before 2 a.m. To quote Lady Penelope “Parker, well done”.  

After travelling about a thousand miles in eight days we’re back at the Kassam for a home game on Saturday and a 3 o’clock kick off too. Back to normality? Not sure, but we certainly can’t relax in any way shape or form.

Blackburn are fifth and turned Pompey over 3-0 on Wednesday (thanks for that). This was their first win after a poor run of only picking up two points from five games but they had won the previous six and that included beating Leeds.

With another forward through the door, Tom Bradshaw and with OIe Romeny already in the building and working towards match fitness our strike force could soon look quite different. Presumably some/a lot of the burden will be taken off Harris. And I start to wonder more and more if Dane Scarlett will return to Spurs. It’s just not quite worked out.

It seems Owen Dale will be gone and I’m not so sure about Louie Sibley, idris El Mizouni and Josh McEachran. But football is a funny old game. Thorniley may now have a very big part to play. Who would have thought that a few weeks back?

We’re supposedly interested in Ryan Longman from Hull. Gary Rowett has worked with both Bradshaw and Longman before. They’ll therefore be players he knows and trusts.

It’s an ever changing situation. A situation which looks way healthier than it did going into Christmas when we were second bottom with 18 points from 21 games. We’re now 17th with 29 points from 26 games. The odds at the bookmakers still have us as third favourites for the drop. A few are only offering 1/16 on Plymouth. Pompey are about 4/5 and you can get 2/1 on us. The best around for Cardiff is 12/5 and Hull 5/2. I find this a little bit discourteous given that there are now seven teams below us but long may it continue that we’re underestimated. Perhaps it has just not been accepted yet that we are a Championship team.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 16th, 2025 at 10:32 pm and appears under News Items.

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