Change of style sees Argyle pick up first away league win of the season

Goals from wingbacks Adam Lewis and Joe Edwards helped Plymouth Argyle to a 2-1 win at the Stadium of Light on Tuesday evening as Ryan Lowe’s side recorded their first league win away from home since February.

It was not the most attractive, nor the most dominant, display that Argyle have put on this season, but where this performance lacked in style it made up for it in substance.

The free-flowing attacking football that we’ve come to expect from a side managed by Lowe was not as present as usual on Wearside, whether this was planned going into the game, or as a result of a waterlogged pitch making it difficult to play the ball across the floor, is not clear, but what is clear is that Argyle managed to grind out a result for the second away game in a row having also won at Huddersfield Town in the FA Cup last time out.

There were elements of the style used in the win at Huddersfield which were seen again last night. When the game was level, both for the 10 minutes at the start of the game, and the five minutes after Sunderland equalised before Edwards put Argyle back in front, the Pilgrims were the better team.

For the other 75 minutes of the game Sunderland will likely argue they dominated, and to a large extent they did, but Argyle invited that pressure by sitting back, although were still pressing high to try and force a mistake to turnover possession.

In the early stages of the game Lowe’s side tried to play the ball on the ground and cut Sunderland open in their usual style but quickly found out they would struggle to do so with the ball often getting caught up in the water and passes falling a little short.

Despite this, the opening goal came in a fashion that we’ve come to expect from the visitors this season. The wingback got in the box, played the ball across and the other wingback was there to finish from close range.

Edwards has often been the beneficiary when Argyle attack like that with Conor Grant often creating the opening, but this time Edwards was the creator and Liverpool-loanee Lewis tapped in on his debut.

After taking the lead, Argyle struggled with the condition of the pitch which, with rain still falling, was deteriorating by the minute.

The hosts appeared to adjust better to the conditions and Argyle had to sacrifice getting the ball down in favour of going long. This suited Sunderland, who often picked up possession at the end of the long ball and restarted their attack.

Despite now playing in a style unfamiliar to them Kelland Watts, Jerome Opoku and Will Aimson adjusted well. Every cross into the box was headed away, any time they were put under pressure they got around it.

Sunderland players running with the ball were still a threat however, and the hosts did create chances to equalise in the first half. Charlie Wyke was unfortunate not to be awarded a penalty after 20 minutes, and Aiden McGeady put through one-on-one should have scored midway through the half, but his shot hit the body of Michael Cooper and went behind.

Cooper did well to deny McGeady, and made a couple more good saves in the first half to maintain Argyle’s lead going into the break.

The rain stopped falling at half time and by the time the players returned the pitch was in a much better condition to get the ball down and play. It had taken a bit of a beating in the first half and had churned up in places, but it was no longer waterlogged which helped both teams keep the ball on the floor.

Sunderland picked up where they left off before half time and within six minutes the hosts were back on level terms. A cross into the box from former Argyle man Callum McFadzean found Aiden O’Brien who flicked it home with his head.

While Argyle’s mentality has been questioned in recent weeks when it comes to dropping points from winning positions, there can be no question about a poor mentality when it came to a response.

Edwards again came into the box on the left-hand side and looked set to pass across the six-yard box again but this time rifled into the far corner to restore the Pilgrims’ lead.

Argyle’s switch in style between attacking and defending depending on the scoreline is not something that has been seen too often this season, although it did happen at Huddersfield in the cup last time out where Argyle showed they can defend when they have to, but also know how to switch it on.

That is exactly what happened again at the Stadium of Light. Having retaken the lead Argyle went back to defending doggedly and trying to see out time. Cooper, in goal, appears to have improved when it comes to winding the clock down, although pushed his luck at times especially after receiving a yellow card, and could have received a second yellow for time wasting on another day.

In front of him, every man played their part in grinding out the victory. Sunderland had a lot of the ball and still created a couple of chances, but nothing as clear cut as the first half.

As the clock ticked on Argyle looked like they were starting to tire. A high press is something that Argyle have done a lot of this season, with Ryan Hardie and Luke Jephcott defending from the front, but both players are often substituted in the second half with Frank Nouble and Dom Telford often their replacements.

Despite having fresh legs when they come on, Nouble and Telford do not usually press to the same extent as their teammates before them. Niall Ennis joined Argyle on a two-and-a-half-year deal on Monday and made his debut from the bench at Sunderland, replacing Jephcott with 15 minutes to play.

The former Wolves striker made a good impression coming off the bench, pressing high and working hard both in and out of possession, and gave hope of Argyle being able to maintain the press even after Hardie and Jephcott get substituted.

Nouble also came off the bench for the final 10 minutes, and played an important part in seeing the game out. Using his strength to hold the ball in the corner late on, but also pressed the opposition defence more than has been seen in recent games.

Seeing games out has been a problem this season for the Devon side who have one of the best records in the division when it comes to the first 45 minutes of games, but one of the worst when it comes to the second 45.

The addition of Ennis looks to have added what was missing in attack late on in those games, and while Argyle are still on the look-out for defence reinforcements the trio of Watts, Opoku and Aimson seem to be building a good understanding of how each other plays and as a unit appear to be improving game by game.

Argyle’s next away game comes this Saturday against Premier League side Sheffield United at Bramall Lane in the Fourth Round of the FA Cup.

Despite United being a top flight team there is now genuine optimism that Ryan Lowe’s side can complete an upset, especially given Bristol Rovers ran them close in the last round, but the game can be seen as a bit of a free hit, with most people expecting defeat despite Chris Wilder’s side’s poor form this season.

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