THE DAILY DIARY

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Plymouth Argyle FC

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Also included on the three most recent days, facts from Argyle's history.

Monday 31st January 2022

Fulham defender Steven Sessegnon has become Plymouth Argyle's third and final signing of the January transfer window, joining on transfer deadline day on loan until the end of the season. Twin brother of Tottenham star Ryan, the wing-back has made 19 appearances for his senior club and expressed his desire to thrive at Argyle. He said: "I am very happy to be here and once I got the phone call, my mind was set. I knew that this side wants to get promoted, that was a big thing for me wanting to come here and win some games. I just want to play in a good side that wins week in week out and it's clear this side wants to win. It was an easy choice for me to come here."

Steven Schumacher added: "We are delighted to have Steven join us at Argyle. He is a young player who has Championship experience as well as representing England at youth and under-21 level. He will be a great addition to our squad and will provide competition in the wing back areas of the pitch or even in midfield. We look forward to seeing him on the pitch and we are sure the Green Army will be excited to see Steven play."

30th

After an unfortunate collapse at Fleetwood, Steven Schumacher praised the resilience of his Argyle side in getting the win at Doncaster over the line, showing mental resilience in the process. Schumacher said: "Credit to the lads, just to get through today's game, I think the lads have done well. We've scored six goals now in the last two games and we feel it should have been six points. It wasn't easy in the first half in particular and Doncaster put us under pressure. They were putting balls into our box and in swirling conditions it was hard to deal with and I'm not sure we dealt with it well enough in the first half. Credit to the lads in the second half, though, especially to the back players. It has been a tough week, they came through a tough afternoon today and to get the three points, we're all buzzing."

On Luke Jephcott's milestone 100th appearance, Schumacher added: "I am really pleased for Luke, it's an incredible achievement not just for him but for Argyle. He has become an important player for us and scores important goals. It's a huge achievement for everyone at the Academy and everyone who has been involved in his development. He is playing really well at the moment and we need him to continue with these standards. There are four strikers there that are all doing really, really well. We speak to them about needed to pick different combinations depending on the game. You can't always have the same two because they will get burnt out. It's important that they all back each other and encourage each other to score the goals."

Jephcott himself said of the proud landmark: "It's a proud moment for me and my family, it will be one of the first big landmarks of my career. To get to 100 games at a fairly young age it seems like a bit of a blur, but I have enjoyed every second of it. From the moment I could walk, I had my heart set on being a footballer. In my mind there wasn't really another option for me. I remember being a bit fortunate at the time because there had been a couple of injuries, but I had been training with the first team and holding my own and got given the opportunity."

"I remember thinking this is my time now and to score two goals in a win for us I was really happy with that. Goals are what I am in the team to do and for that first season it was almost coming naturally. It makes you think 'I can do this.' It makes you believe and with every goal you get more confident."

Captain Joe Edwards is back amongst the goals, with two in a week at Fleetwood and Doncaster, but the skipper was keen to praise the quality of crossing from his teammates, assisting him for the goals. Edwards explained: "The two crosses have been good for a start, so it gives me a good chance. I like to arrive onto the ball when the defenders are standing still and so I always fancy myself to time it better than they do. I had a slightly different role at the start of the season, where I wasn't in the box as much, but I always want to add goals to my game. I enjoyed doing it last year and I have two in two now which gives me confidence."

"We've had a tough week in terms of late goals and not holding on to what we've had - it's been frustrating. So to come here and get three goals again and hold on is brilliant. It's a little bit frustrating because looking back, it could have been even better this week but to get the win today is brilliant. When you are going through a spell like we are when you are conceding too many chances sometimes you just need to grind out a result. We always fancied that we would score, and we stuck to it today to get the vital three points. When you have someone like Luke Jephcott, whose goalscoring record is phenomenal, you will have a chance."

29th

Argyle ended their poor streak with a much needed win at Doncaster Rovers, coming from behind to turn the game around. Things started badly with the hosts dominating and taking the lead but Luke Jephcott tapped in an equaliser on his 100th appearance for Argyle to level the scores. Argyle dominated the second half and comfortably got the win in the end, with goals from Joe Edwards (his second in a week) and Jordon Garrick off the bench. Argyle used a rare fourth concussion sub, following Adam Randell's first half knock to the head. Argyle: M Cooper, Wilson, Scarr, Gillesphey, Houghton, Edwards, Randell (Mayor), Broom (Camara), Grant (Bolton), Jephcott (Garrick), Ennis. Subs: Burton, Law, Lewis.

26th

Steven Schumacher has called for more defensive solidity from his Argyle side amidst a comedy of errors that saw Argyle slip from a comfortable lead to an infuriating draw away to Fleetwood. He did however have some words of praise for the strikers who ran Fleetwood ragged and took two good goals. Schumacher said: "We're causing our own problems. We're not defending well enough in too many areas of the pitch; just too many errors. When you don't defend well enough you get punished. We didn't defend in the last game from a set play and again tonight, last minute, from a set piece - we're not pleased about that. We got ourselves 3-1 ahead and we didn't manage to hold on to it because we're just not defending well enough. The back lads have had praise throughout the season, as a team we've defended quite well, I just don't think that we're doing well enough at the moment. We're not stopping enough crosses in wide areas, and then when the ball goes in our box, where we have been so solid and the lads have been getting headers on things and getting it away, at the moment we're not and we're getting punished for it. We created some good chances to forward players which is positive, they're looking sharp. Luke Jephcott looks like he's back to his best and Jordon Garrick has worked his socks off so that's the positive out of it. Niall [Ennis] is improving with each game he plays. He got his first 90 minutes on Saturday which was great, I didn't feel he could go again from the start today because of that. We asked him to come on and make a big impact and he did. He was sharp, put himself about and took his goal really well so I'm pleased for him and hopefully his confidence is back as well. We'll go home and have to pick ourselves up and go again on Saturday. It's another massive game, you want to pick up as many points as you can away from home, and we'll carry on with these road trips and try and stay in the pack. Doncaster is going to be a tough game, they had a good result at the weekend, so we're going to have to be at our best to get a result."

Niall Ennis equally spoke of his frustration at the manner of Argyle's collapse, but did say that it was encouraging to get his first goal following a long and painful injury lay off. Ennis said: "It's just frustrating, we came for the win. Obviously I am happy with the goal, but I wanted it to help us win," he said, "It's annoying because we have to be getting these points on the road. Football isn't over until the last minute so its just mentally focussing on winning your headers and managing the game better. We should have won, when you are in a position like that, it's just about managing the game and getting the win. For where we want to be, we need to cut these things out. Having said that, we have to stay as a unit and not let our heads drop because there are plenty of games to come. We don't want to have this feeling again. At the minute these fine margins are costing us. We wanted to go back with a smile on our faces and give the fans something to cheer in the long journey back, but it is what it is. I feel a bit more like myself now and I have to build on it. If the gaffer wants to start me or come off the bench, I need to be ready. It was great to finally score a goal in front of the fans and I want to have that feeling more and more. It's all about confidence and getting that first one and I need to crack on from now."

25th

Argyle were stunned to see what would have been a morale-boosting victory turn into a sickening draw at Highbury, drawing 3-3 with Fleetwood Town. Luke Jephcott continued with a fine run of form, putting Argyle into the lead early on but it was short lived with a fine effort from the hosts. Argyle looked to have put the game comfortably beyond the home side in the second half with good finishes from Edwards and Ennis. Argyle looked to have the game totally wrapped up but two late Fleetwood goals against the run of play saw an evening of bitter disappointment. Argyle: M Cooper, Wilson, Scarr, Gillesphey (Crichlow), Randell, Edwards, Camara (Lewis), Broom, Grant, Jephcott (Ennis), Garrick. Subs: Burton, Bolton, Law, Jenkins-Davies.

23rd

Luke Jephcott declared his frustration at the manner of Argyle's loss to Fleetwood, bemoaning the failure to make the pressure count. He said: "We were in control in the first half, we went one up, and were in control. Then in the second half there was a little period where we had to sit in and dig deep and conceding a goal wasn't ideal. To lose like that, to concede last minute, we know that we've got to raise our standards, we've got to come away from this game with a point. I think I had a couple of shots that I could've done better with personally in the first half to make the game a bit easier for us, but I think it's just a tough one to take. We've got to get back to doing the basics, picking up points, because we know we're good enough to, but I think the important thing now is to recover right and then we go to Fleetwood on Tuesday and the main thing is we get points there to get us back on a little run. We've got a big week ahead of us."

"From the back we built it up well. Niall made a run, bit of a skill in the corner, and then it was a great ball from him to be fair and I think I came on to it at the right time and it went in, it went through like four people. We've been working on it in training, me and Niall and all the strikers have all got a good bond and we all know how to play with each other, and I think it showed today."

21st

Argyle suffered a heartbreaking late loss at home to Lincoln City, making it their second consecutive defeat after their previously excellent run. Luke Jephcott scored a classic poacher's goal to give Argyle the lead but Lincoln countered well and levelled up just before half-time. The second half saw chances for both sides but it was the visitors who stole the win at the end, heading home from a corner kick. Argyle: M Cooper, Wilson, Scarr, Crichlow, Houghton (Camara), Edwards (Garrick), Randell, Broom, Grant, Ennis, Jephcott (Law). Subs: Burton, Bolton, Gillesphey, Lewis.

18th

Argyle have announced that Zimbabwe international defender, Brendan Galloway, has signed a new 18-month contract at the club. The defender made a fine start to the season before being sadly ruled out for the rest of the campaign following an injury suffered in the game against Wycombe in November. Galloway said: "I am delighted to be honest. This is where I want to be, I love the club, I love the players, I love the staff. We have great people working around us and we have amazing fans so it was a no brainer really. I am going to work as hard as I can in the rehab to get back and be better than before."

17th

A new date has been set for the Greens' League One clash with Cheltenham Town, with the Robins now visiting Home Park on Tuesday 22nd March for a 7:45pm kick off. The game was originally meant to be played on Saturday 5th February but had to be rearranged due to the FA Cup fourth round tie with Chelsea.

16th

Adam Randell has spoken of a bittersweet set of emotions following his first goal for the club, but a frustrating day for the team in general, at Hillsborough. The young midfielder explained: "It's mixed emotions; buzzing to have scored and it's something I have dreamed about from the moment I was taking free kicks in the park as a kid but overall, we weren't good enough. It was the dream way of scoring really and was a really proud moment for me. As soon as we won the freekick I wanted to take it, no one was taking that ball off me. I used to practice freekicks a lot when I was younger, and I was over the moon to score really. The first half killed us really, we didn't start well enough and didn't really ever get back into it. We wanted a reaction in the second half and tried to be positive. It was vital for us to get that first goal after the break which we did, but it ended up not working for us in the end. We know today wasn't good enough, we have to put it right and improve. We will look at what we have to do and yeah, we'll be back."

15th

In the fourth meeting between the sides this season, Sheffield Wednesday finally got the better of Argyle, winning 4-2 in a frenetic game packed with action. The hosts went in 2-0 up at half-time and in truth, were unlucky not to be further ahead with Mike Cooper making a series of wonderful saves. Argyle couldn't have started much better at the start of the second half with Adam Randell getting his first goal for the club from a stunning free kick. The momentum wore off and Wednesday took control of the game again, going 3-1 up. Argyle once again made it tighter with a goalline scramble being bundled in for an own goal 30 seconds later however, the hosts put things to put with the match's 6th and final goal. Argyle: M Cooper, Bolton, Scarr, Gillesphey, Houghton (Law), Edwards, Randell, Mayor (Broom), Grant, Ennis (Jephcott), Garrick. Subs: Burton, Wilson, Crichlow, Lewis.

14th

Argyle's fourth round FA Cup tie with Chelsea will be played on Saturday 5th February, with a 12.30pm kick off, as a result of the fixture's selection for live broadcast on BBC Red Button.

13th

Argyle have completed the signing of 22-year-old defender Romoney Crichlow on loan from Huddersfield Town until the end of the season. The Luton born centre back spent the first half of the season on loan at Sky Bet League Two side Swindon Town, scoring two goals in 24 games. Argyle fans may remember him for scoring against the greens in the FA Cup third round tie last season, as Argyle marched on to the fourth round. Steven Schumacher said: "He's a great signing for us, he is a young player who has been on loan at Swindon Town. He has had a great first part of the season with Swindon and we feel he will be able to add some real competition to our squad. He is a good athlete who has good quality and a really nice left foot. I am sure he'll be a good addition to the squad."

12th

Argyle have confirmed that striker Kieran Agard has left Home Park after the expiry of his contract. Agard got 3 goals in all competitions for the club. Agard has since joined Doncaster Rovers, initially until the end of the season. Steven Schumacher said of the departure: "Kieran is one of the best professionals I've ever worked with as a player or as a coach. He trained every day, with a smile on his face and always supported his team mates even when he may have been frustrated with a lack of opportunities. I felt that the game time he might have got in the second half of this season may not have been enough for him at this stage in his career, and therefore we felt it was the best decision for him to go and find a club where he can play more football. I wish him all the best in the future"

The Greens' rearranged League One home matches against Wimbledon and Portsmouth have been confirmed for the first two weeks of March. We will take on Wimbledon for a 7:45pm kick off on Tuesday 8th March and then face Pompey a week later, on Tuesday 15th March again for a 7:45pm kick off.

10th

As excitement builds for the FA Cup fourth round game against Chelsea, Neil Dewsnip identified it as a perfect opportunity for the club to impress. Speaking after the draw was made, he said, "We're very excited and it's a fantastic opportunity for the players to show what they can do against the best team in Europe. There are a lot of things going on that are very, very positive. We just want to keep on building and improving because there is still just under half of the season left. Chelsea are the European champions so it's a wonderful opportunity for all of our players to show what everyone can do. As a footballer you surely strive to be the best you can be and to play against the best you can play against. Chelsea is probably the least important fixture for the rest of the season but it's the most exciting. Do we want to go and beat Chelsea? Absolutely, we will be going there trying our best, that is for sure, but the league is at the top of our priority list for the rest of the season. There has been an amazing reaction from everyone. The supporters must be incredibly excited and the support on Saturday against Birmingham was incredible - I am hoping we could have the same sort of noise and support against Chelsea as well. I want the whole stadium green, it will be an amazing occasion. Saturday against Birmingham was great, but I am sure this will be a bigger version – I cannot wait."

Defender Ethan Mitchell has joined Northern Premier League side Nantwich Town, on a one-month work experience loan. The third-year scholar made his Argyle debut last season in the Greens' 3-1 win over Newport County AFC in the Football League Trophy.

9th

Argyle have been drawn away to European Champions Chelsea in the fourth round of the FA Cup. The game at Stamford Bridge will be played between 4th-7th February 2022.

After a long injury delay, James Bolton finally made his Argyle debut, completing a full 120 minutes away to Birmingham. He gave his views on the game following a strong and assured performance. Bolton said: "It feels amazing. It has been a long road but it was an absolute privilege to play tonight in front of those fans who just sang the whole night through. It was so tough, it was my first long injury and to deal with it is something completely new to me. You have so many bad days where you think you're making progress then something happens and it's just a horrible process. I don't think I needed the 120 minutes to be honest. We played a friendly game a couple of weeks ago and I blew up after 20 minutes, so I really didn't need the 120. There were some nerves, excitement and bit of everything really. The crowd carried us on today and made us and me have that extra yard. There were so many emotions, but I am so glad to be back, nights like that are what you play football for. I am just buzzing to be back."

8th

Argyle progressed to the fourth round of the FA Cup with a dominant performance and deserved victory at Championship side Birmingham City. Argyle had already had a number of chances before the hosts were reduced to ten men, following George Friend's red card. The game finished 0-0 in normal time and right on the stroke of half-time in extra-time, Argyle made their dominance count with a decisive strike from substitute Ryan Law that curled into the top corner from 25 yards. Victory was assured and Argyle confirmed a third successive win in all competitions. Argyle: M Cooper, Bolton, Scarr, Gillesphey, Houghton, Edwards, Randell (Law), Mayor, Grant, Hardie (Ennis), Garrick (Lewis). Subs: Burton, Pursall, Garside, Shirley, Issaka.

7th

One player will be looking forward to tomorrow's trip to Birmingham City in the third round of the FA Cup with special pleasure, as Dan Scar returns to his former and boyhood club. The big defender spoke about the joy of playing for his hometown club, tinged with regret that he never got to do so in front of their fans. He explained: "It will be good to get back to some familiar surroundings and see some familiar faces that are still there. I've not been on the receiving end of playing in front of the fans, so I am excited to do that. I love the FA Cup, it was the competition that put me in the shop window to be honest. I wouldn't be where I am today without that cup run so I have a lot of good memories of playing in it. All of the lads have been buzzing to get back to it and it's a good game and occasion to come back to. If we raise it and play well and Birmingham drop their level then anything can happen. You want to test yourself against the best players and it's a chance to play against a side from a higher division and we all want to do ourselves proud."

6th

Argyle have confirmed that the former Accrington defender Mark Hughes has joined Steven Schumacher's backroom staff as a first team coach. Hughes joins from Bristol Rovers where he has been player coach for the season so far. The new man spoke of his desire to move into coaching in the long run, saying: It is something I have always wanted to do and football is in my blood. Steven and I speak on the phone regularly and I am lucky to be given this opportunity alongside a friend which will make it all the more special. I am grateful for the opportunity I got at Bristol Rovers to start my coaching journey and am looking forward to starting a new one at Argyle."

5th

Alfie Lewis is Argyle's first signing of the January transfer window and the first to be bought in by new manager Steven Schumacher. The 22 year old midfielder appeared on the bench for West Ham in the Premier League as recently as July 2020 and has spent the past year at St Pat's Athletic in the Republic of Ireland. Lewis will wear the number 16 shirt for the greens.

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