THE DAILY DIARY

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Greens on Screen's Daily Diary is a compilation of Argyle news, with help from these and other Argyle-related sites.

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

Sunday 31st March 2024

Argyle Women rescued all three points from their trip to London Bees, coming from a goal down to win 2-1 at The Hive.

The Bees led at half time, but the Greens levelled 45 seconds into the second half through Charlotte Whitmore and later confirmed victory after Ellie Sara blasted Whitmore's lofted through ball into the back of the net.

The Greens move up into ninth place in the FAWNL Southern Premier Division with a game in hand on Portsmouth - Argyle's next opponents.

29th

Football is a cruel, brutal game, and Argyle left Carrow Road feeling very sore after two set-piece goals saw Norwich fight back for a 2-1 victory. Argyle's number ten scored after ten minutes, neatly adding up to 20 goals in the season for Morgan Whittaker, and the Pilgrims held that lead until the midpoint of the second period. Josh Sargent delivered the equaliser for the Canaries and Argyle, who had created a number of chances to extend the lead, were left shattered by a painful own goal, as the ball bounced off the unfortunate Ashley Phillips.

Argyle: Cooper, Houghton, Hardie, Whittaker, Miller (Sousa), Devine (Waine), Gibson, Randell (Forshaw), Galloway, Phillips (Pleguezuelo), Sorinola (Edwards). Substitutes (not used): Hazard, Scarr, Wright, Bundu.

28th

Argyle director, Trevor East, has resigned from the Board of PAFC.

Trevor was appointed in 2019, having spent the majority of his career in broadcast and television at ITV and Sky Sports, respectively, Trevor has been a sounding board as Argyle have developed into one of the leading EFL clubs for marketing and communications.

Chairman, Simon Hallett, paid tribute to Trevor's contribution to the Board, saying: ."...his contacts, knowledge and support have opened a number of doors for us over the past five years.

"I'm sorry to see Trevor depart but I fully respect his decision and wish him well. He leaves us in a better place than when he joined, and he made immense contributions to making that possible."

Argyle and Argyle Community Trust have been selected as finalists for three awards at the 2024 Football Business Awards. The marketing and communications team has been nominated for the 'Best Club Marketing Campaign' award for this season's home shirt campaign which saw record-breaking sales and media coverage.

Argyle Community Trust has received nominations for Best Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Scheme, with Project 35, the award-winning social action initiative aimed at reducing poverty in Devon and Cornwall in partnership with Ginsters, recognised as one of sport's leading CSR programmes.

The second nomination is in the Best Football Community Scheme category, where the Trust has been chosen as a finalist for their clear commitment to the local community, its people and business.

The awards take place on Friday, 24 May at The Brewery in London.

Argyle's Under-18s secured their first win in Merit League One as they beat Stevenage on Thursday morning.

Tegan Finn scored the game's only goal on 75 minutes when he finished from close range.

"They boys were really good today," said manager Jamie Lowry. "I had that feeling at the start of the game, and during the game, that they were up for it. After the game it's always nice to have that feeling of three points.

"The biggest message was defensively, as a team, to keep working hard, which they did outstandingly all game. We know the ability of the attacking players that we have, that we will create something and score a goal.

"Collectively, from the first minute to the last, they worked really hard, dug in for each other and got back and doubled up; all the nitty-gritty things you need to do to keep a clean sheet."

27th

On-loan midfielder, Darko Gyabi, has returned to his parent club, Leeds, after suffering a groin strain during training. He will now miss the rest of the season at Home Park while he is treated for the injury at Elland Road.

Argyle defender, Brendan Galloway, was a 63rd minute substitute for Zimbabwe in a 3-1 defeat to Kenya in the final of a four-nation African tournament.

Striker, Ben Waine, also came off the bench for New Zealand in the 81st minute of a 0-0 draw with Tunisia at the Cairo International Stadium in Egypt in a third and fourth place play-off at the ACUD International Cup.

Plans have been approved for the multi-million-pound transformation of Brickfields into a sporting centre of excellence and asset for the wider Plymouth community.

The City Council has given the green light to the scheme brought forward by a partnership between Plymouth Argyle, Argyle Community Trust, Plymouth City Council, Plymouth Albion RFC, and Devonport Community Leisure Limited (DCLL).

The milestone means legal agreements can be formalised, the remaining funding secured and the proposals to deliver an exciting range of community and sport facilities on the underused site in Devonport can now progress.

At the core of the proposals is a new permanent home for Plymouth Argyle's youth wing, the Argyle Academy, and Plymouth Argyle Women. Extensive community and sport facilities will include new grass and all-weather 3G pitches, athletics facilities for the City of Plymouth Athletics Club and other users, play zones exclusively for public use, better public access, landscaped public areas, and parking. Brickfields is also currently home to the DHaN Food Bank which supports over 300 local families each week and will be retained.

26th

Argyle sponsors, Seco Support, have won the 'Supported Living Team Award' at the National Finals of the Great British Care Awards for dedicated work in their communities.

Seco Support was co-founded in 2018 by former Argyle player, Marcel Seip, and his friend, Simon Cook. Seco are specialists in 24/7 complex supported living services for people with learning disabilities and/or autism who present with behaviours of concern.

25th

Argyle Academy has appointed Niall Cully as its Under-13s lead coach. Dubliner, Niall, will also assist Under-18s' manager, Jamie Lowry.

Argyle Women's Under-16s' goalkeeper, Freya Weeks, is with the England Under-15s' schoolgirls squad for their round of fixtures against Northern Ireland, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland.

23rd

Argyle's Under-18s fell to late defeat against Leyton Orient in Merit League One on Saturday morning.

Cole Gibbings scored the Pilgrims' only goal of the game, a flicked header from a Tegan Finn set-piece. This equalised a Devine Samuel goal, but the same player popped up late on to score the match's decisive goal which knocked the wind out of Argyle's sails.

This was the young Pilgrims first defeat in the league.

22nd

Argyle 'keeper, Conor Hazard, played the first half of Northern Ireland's 1-1 draw with Romania in a friendly in Bucharest. Northern Ireland scored in seven minutes, with the equaliser coming on 23 minutes. Hazard was substituted at half time, having picked up a yellow card on 44 minutes.

Alfie Devine, on loan to Argyle from Spurs, was a 78th minute substitute for the England Under-20s in a 5-1 Euro Elite League win against Poland in Bialystock.

And striker, Ben Waine, was a 65th minute substitute as New Zealand lost 1-0 to Egypt in Cairo as part of a four-team tournament.

21st

Plymouth Parkway played their Southern League Premier Division South fixture with Winchester City at Home Park. Argyle offered Parkway the use of the stadium as the international break meant there were no EFL games there for 16 days. The match, which kicked off at 7.45 pm, ended in a 1-1 draw.

Argyle loanee, Lino Sousa, played the whole of the England Under-19s' match against Morocco in Rabat. The game ended in a 1-1 draw.

17th

Argyle Head Coach, Ian Foster, blamed two incidents in the game against Preston North End for his side's one-nil defeat at Home Park.

Argyle failed to deal with a cross from the Preston left flank, which eventually found its way to substitute Liam Millar, who slammed it in for the only goal of the game. There were shouts for a penalty in the second half after Ryan Hardie went down in the box, but the referee waved play on.

"Their goal, we're disappointed with in terms of the manner of how we defended it," said Foster. "Then, the 'penalty' at the other end; it's a clear foul on Ryan Hardie. The referee's right there and decided not to give it, which is a blow to us.

"We're desperately trying to pick up points in this division; today was an opportunity for us to do that. It's a game, possession-wise, that we've dominated, but unfortunately for us, we just haven't created the chances that would have put us in a position to get points from the game.

"That's my responsibility to do that. The players are trying; they're working hard, they fought to the final whistle, and will continue to do that. I'm sure if we do, we'll continue to pick up points."

Nonetheless, the result left many fans very disgruntled at the style of play with calls for Foster to be sacked coming from certain parts of the ground.

There are now two weeks for the international break before Argyle travel to Norwich - a side they beat 6-2 at Home Park - for the Good Friday game.

Argyle Women made a sensational comeback to earn a superb point against second-placed Hashtag United in the FAWNL Southern Premier Division. Two goals from Ellie Sara were enough to seal the draw.

"I thought we were superb today and got what we deserved from the game," said manager Ryan Perks. "Fifty-five seconds into the game, we've had a howler and conceded, but the girls have shown great character to get us back into the game. We almost nicked it at the end as well... In the end, we've worked hard and improved on last week's performance which has helped us get another point on the board."

Argyle now only need one win - or for eleventh-placed Chatham Town to lose - to confirm their safety in the league.

16th

Argyle fell short of delivering a much-needed three points on the annual Armed Services Day at Home Park, as Ryan Lowe's Preston North End snatched a narrow, 1-0 win. The first period was a disjointed affair with the former Argyle manager forced to shuffle his pack with two early substitutions, and one of those replacements, Liam Millar, grabbed the only goal two minutes before the break. The Pilgrims battled gamely after the interval but were unable to find the answer to the Preston problem and will use the international break to regroup ahead of the final push of a long season.

Argyle: Cooper, Houghton, Pleguezuelo (Devine), Edwards, Hardie, Whittaker, Miller (Sousa), Bundu, Gibson, Randell (Waine), Phillips. Substitutes (not used): Hazard, Scarr, Wright, Galloway, Roberts, Issaka.

15th

Seven of Argyle's current squad have been called up for international duties in next weekend's 'break'.

Striker Ben Waine can add to his 11 caps for the New Zealand All Whites in a four-team competition known as the W Cup, which will take place in Dubai. New Zealand will play Egypt on Friday 22 March, and Croatia or Tunisia on Tuesday, 26 March, depending on results.

Brendan Galloway is also heading to a four-team competition. His Zimbabwe squad are off to Malawi for a tournament that also includes the host country, Kenya and Zambia.

Goalkeeper, Conor Hazard, is included in Northern Ireland's squad that will play friendlies on Friday 22 and Tuesday 26, against Romania and Scotland respectively.

Spurs' loanees, Ashley Phillips and Alfie Devine, are both included in the England Elite League Squad (formerly England Under-20s). The Young Lions meet Poland in Bialystok on Friday 22 March, and Czechia in Ostrava on Tuesday, 26 March.

Lino Sousa will be part of the England Under-19s who travel to Morocco to play two games in Rabat. England will meet Morocco on Sunday, 21 March, and USA on Sunday, 24 March.

Freddie Issaka has again been called into the Wales Under-19s squad. The Dragons will play Belgium in two away games--on Friday, 22 March and Monday, 25 March.

14th

David Tivey has joined Argyle as Physical Performance Coach, initially until the end of the season on a consultancy basis. He is known to Neil Dewsnip and Ian Foster from their periods at the FA where he worked as National Team Performance Coach under Roy Hodgson, Sam Allardyce and Gareth Southgate. David also spent time at Swansea City and Nottingham Forest under Steve Cooper, working closely with Cooper at Forest as they clinched promotion to the Premier League.

10th

Argyle Head Coach, Ian Foster, pronounced himself conflicted after yesterday's draw with Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park. He was clearly disappointed not seal the victory their dominance deserved, but he was naturally pleased with the way his players went about things, especially after the team's performance against Sheffield Wednesday on Tuesday, and his reaction to it.

Argyle had made five changes with starts for Mustapha Bundu and Bali Mumba and, most notably, the return of Michael Cooper in goal on the turf where he made his substitute debut in October 2017.

Although chances missed were probably the story of the day, the Championship's two top goalscorers both added to their tally with Rovers' Sammie Szmodics scoring his 21st league goal of the season after just seven minutes. Blackburn has defender Kyle McFadzean sent off after 54 minutes for a tackle on last man Ryan Hardie but, by the time Morgan Whittaker scored his 19th of the season on 74 minutes, Argyle had had countless opportunities to level.

They continued to push for the winner but could not find the net again, despite their efforts.

"Even before their goal, I thought we were the team on top," said Foster. "We've created chance after chance, and we've done it playing the right way. Some wonderful football from the from the players today shows they're not lacking in confidence. It shows what they're capable of.

"I can't complain. The players were absolutely outstanding. We asked them to play a certain way. We asked them to be brave in possession, as we always do, and they were terrific. They connected the game really well. They've caused the opposition countless problems, and we should have had more than one goal.

"We've got to take a lot of positives from the game today. The players have obviously come in disappointed, because we felt it was a game we ought to have won, but it's a point in the right direction, and it's a performance the players can really build on."

Again, Argyle were buoyed up by the magnificent travelling Green Army of nearly 1,500.

"I'm sure the fans are really proud of the players today," said Foster. "They've given them lots to scream and shout about today; we've lacked that of late.

"The players want the fans to get behind them, and we have to give them something. We've given plenty today, and the fans were outstanding - we thank them for that. We're just disappointed that they're going back with a point and not three."

A dramatic, late, injury-time goal saw Argyle Women fall to defeat away to Cardiff City. The home side led through a first-half goal and retained their advantage until the closing stages when Ellie Sara levelled for the Greens just after the 90 minutes had elapsed. It seemed the late equaliser had earned a point for the Pilgrims, but a 95th minute shot found its way into the Argyle net, resulting in heartbreak for Ryan Perks' team.

"We're incredibly frustrated with that result," said Perks following his side's late defeat. "We've worked hard to come back into the game, did so through a great finish from Ellie and you think you're going to come away with a point. Cardiff have then got a chance through a lapse of concentration from us and with a bit of luck have found the back of the net through a bobble that's took the ball over Lily. It's a sucker punch.

"Today, we weren't on it. We get drawn into a scrap every time we play Cardiff and they're better at that side of the game than us. We're a young side that lack that physical presence but that will come with age and experience."

9th

Every point is precious at this stage of the season and Argyle thoroughly deserved something from their trip to Blackburn. The Greens fell behind early to a Sammie Szmodics strike but then created a number of decent opportunities in the first period. A red card for home defender Kyle McFadzean changed the complexion early in the second half and the Pilgrims finally got their reward, Morgan Whittaker scoring on the rebound for a 1-1 draw.

Argyle: Cooper, Mumba (Sorinola), Houghton (Randell), Pleguezuelo (Devine), Hardie, Whittaker, Miller, Bundu (Gyabi), Gibson, Phillips (Galloway), Forshaw. Substitutes (not used): Hazard, Sousa, Edwards, Waine.

7th

Argyle have appointed Simon Ireland as first-team coach, initially until the end of the season. He becomes the second backroom signing since Ian Foster joined the club in January.

Barnstaple-born Simon has previously worked at Huddersfield, Brighton, Nottingham Forest, QPR and Sheffield Wednesday.

Argyle's away fixture with Rotherham United has been selected for broadcast on Sky TV. This crucial match will now kick off on Friday 5 April at 8pm.

5th

Argyle fell by a single goal at Hillsborough on Tuesday night, with Djeidi Gassama's strike for Sheffield Wednesday on the hour the difference between the two teams. It was a game of precious few chances. In the end Gassama, latching on to a right-wing cross from Ike Ogbo, pounced, and forced the ball over the line. The Greens tried in vain after the goal to find an equaliser, having their best spell of the game towards the closing stages, but Wednesday fell back, protected their box, and saw the game out.

Argyle: Hazard, Edwards (Mumba), Hardie, Whittaker, Miller, Gibson, Gyabi (Bundu), Randell, Galloway, Phillips, Forshaw (Houghton). Substitutes (not used): Cooper, Sousa, Pleguezuelo, Devine, Waine, Sorinola.

Argyle's Under-18s drew their opening Merit League One fixture against Cheltenham Town on Tuesday afternoon, sharing six goals. Freddie Issaka bagged a brace, scoring each side of half-time, bringing his total to 15 for the season across all competitions. Argyle's other goal was scored by Henry Donovan, with the forward hitting the back of the net for the first time this campaign.

Argyle went two up before Cheltenham, in the shape of Sopuruchukwu Obieri struck twice - the second from the penalty spot before the break.

In the second half, Obieri completed his hat trick before Issaka scored his second individual goal. Both sides had the chance to win the game but it ended with the points shared.

3rd

"We're disappointed to lose the game; of course we are," said Argyle Head Coach Ian Foster after the defeat against Ipswich Town. "We don't like losing games of football, particularly at Home Park."

For 45 minutes, Argyle matched their opponents but an unfortunate deflection off Brendan Galloway on 63 minutes turned the game with the visitors scoring their second less than 10 minutes later.

"We're desperately disappointed in the manner of the first goal. There's nothing in the game up until that point. We nullified their threats really, really well.

"We perhaps didn't react and respond the way we wanted to, and we probably hadn't caused them the problems that we wanted to.

"I just want to see a little bit of a bounce from us, though, on the back of that goal, and unfortunately we didn't get it.

"The disappointing thing for us, again, is we've conceded from a set play, so that's poor on our behalf. We have to be better in those moments.

"We came in on the back of a wonderful performance up at Middlesborough, where we had 17 shots I think in the first half. We just couldn't replicate that today."

Ipswich did the double over Argyle this weekend when Argyle Women fell to defeat by their East Anglian visitors at Coach Road.

The Greens responded quickly to an early Town goal but the Tractor Girls scored again before half time and consolidated their lead 12 minutes into the second period.

"Overall, I'm really happy with how we played today," said Manager, Ryan Perks following his side's narrow defeat.

"In possession, and out of possession, I thought we were superb. Our performance levels across the 90 minutes were equally just as good. We've had three or four really good chances and responded incredibly well to their first goal but like our matches against Portsmouth and Hashtag, we've come away with nothing in a match that if I'm honest I feel like we should've had something from.

"If you compare today to the previous result against Ipswich, we lost 7-1 in a game that we could've conceded more. Whereas today we've caused them issues and shown how much we've developed as a side in a match that is probably the best we've ever played against one of the best teams in this league."

2nd

Two scruffy second-half goals condemned Argyle to a frustrating 2-0 defeat at home to promotion-chasing Ipswich Town. The game was bereft of clear chances in the first hour of play but turned in favour of the visitors when a hopeful effort from Conor Chaplin took a massive deflection off Brendan Galloway to break the deadlock. The Pilgrims were then hit by a decisive second from Ipswich, Kieffer Moore drilling a volley into the corner after the ball had bounced around the penalty box.

Argyle: Hazard, Houghton (Forshaw), Pleguezuelo, Hardie, Whittaker, Miller, Gibson, Gyabi (Bundu), Randell (Devine), Galloway (Phillips), Sorinola (Edwards). Substitutes (not used): Coope, Mumba, Sousa, Waine.

Argyle have done their bit for Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, in partnership with men's cancer charity, the Chestnut Appeal. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men with more than 52,000 diagnoses and 12,000 deaths from the disease every year. A simple blood test measures the level of PSA--a potential marker for and early detector of prostate cancer.

Before the game against Ipswich, the Club, hosted a free clinic at the Life Centre. It proved a resounding success as all 300 places were fully booked.

Former Argyle player, David Norris, working with Sky Bet and the Club, handed out vouchers for 1,330 free pasties and other snacks to fans at Home Park before the game against another of his former Clubs as a thank you for fans' generosity in crowdfunding £6,000 for him.

Norris, who played for Argyle between 2002 and 2008, recently fell into unexpected financial difficulties which left him on the verge of being forced to auction off his 2003-04 League One winners medal.

After seeing the former midfielder's post on social media, the football community, led by Pilgrims fans, quickly came to the rescue via crowdfunding platform JustGiving.

Sky Bet will help deliver the reward scheme as part of its new #ForTheFans campaign, which aims to champion the modern football fan and fan culture while making their matchday experience better.

David Norris said: "After being faced with what is a really difficult situation in my personal life, the response I have had from Plymouth and Ipswich fans along with the wider football community has been incredible. The generosity and kindness they have shown has been overwhelming and I am really pleased to be able to show my appreciation for them this weekend and help give back to them with help from Sky Bet."

1st

Darko Gyabi has won the Argyle player of the month award for February. The loanee from Leeds has impressed, in particular in the Greens' success against Middlesbrough last Saturday.

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