2011 Prediction League; Game 12 - Plymouth Argyle (away)

[Div3North]

Plymouth Argyle

V

Accrington Stanley

2011 Prediction League – Game 12; v Plymouth Argyle (away)

Now is not a good time to be a Pilgrims’ fan.

Ten years ago – 2001/1 – they won the old Division 3 with 102 points ; two seasons later they won the old Division Two with 90 points. They graced the Championship comfortably until 2008/9, when they finished 21st; at the end of season 2009/10 they were relegated to League One in 23rd place – defeated 27 times in 46 games, achieving 41 points ; last season they were relegated to League Two in 23rd place – defeated 24 times in 46 games, managing 42 points . They spent, it seemed, more time at the High Court than they did playing football. At the end of last season every single out-of-contract player declined to re-sign (and who can blame them?) save for 23 year-old Guadaloupe-born defender Stephane Zubar who did re-sign, and then quit just before the end of August, joining Bournemouth instead (and who can blame him?)

The result of all that was that Peter Reid – unto whom it has been done most cruelly – started the season with just three senior players; 31 year old midfielder Carl Fletcher (the club’s Player of the Year for 2010 and 2011); goalkeeper and longest-serving player Romain Larrieu (Player of the Year 2009), and Zimbabwean international defender Onismor Bhasara (25) who unfortunately suffered a serious knee injury towards the end of last season from which it seems he hasn’t yet recovered. Reid – who sold his Cup Runner’s-Up medal to help some of the younger players to pay their rent (their wages have been routinely deferred in large part for months) – was forced to sell, sell, sell (he sold something like 40 players during his 15 months in charge) and he was then sacked two weeks back, being replaced (temporarily, although who the hell’s going to take that poisoned chalice permanently?) by the self-same Carl Fletcher (manager) and Romain Larrieu (first team coach). Fletcher, who had been captain, appointed ex Leeds and QPR midfielder Simon Walton to take that role over ………..

If you’ve had a fire sale, I suppose you then need a fire purchase; that wasn’t easy, because some (many?) weren’t interested; Anthony Elding (ex Rochdale) wasn’t ; Liam Dickenson (ex Barnsley) was, but he stayed exactly one week before changing his mind and moving to Southend . In came ex NI international Warren Feeney (30) – ex Oldham, Leeds, Bournemouth, Stockport, Cardiff and Sheffield Wednesday (at the second time of asking, having turned them down first time); also in came Jake Cole, a 25 year old goalkeeper from Barnet; Luke Daley, a winger from Norwich; former Aston Villa trainee Durrell Berry, a 19 year old full back; Rochdale’s former left back Robbie Williams (also late of Barnsley, Blackpool, Huddersfield and Stockport); and Ladji Soukouna, a 20 year old French defender whose last club was French Div 3 side US Creteil-Lusitanos; “Ici Ladji, sur ma tete!”

Included amongst the loan signings are ex Barnet and Gillingham defender Simon King, Blackburn striker Tom Hitchcock, and Will Atkinson, a midfielder from Hull.

Their League record is abysmal ; P11 W1 D1 L9 F5 A21 Pts 4; at home, W1 L4 F3 A9 ; away, W0 D1 L5 F2 A12 . Out of the JPT at Exeter on penalties after a 1-1 draw (they lost the penalty shoot-out 3-0!) and the Carling 1-0 at home to Millwall, they’ve scored just 6 goals (yes, that does say “six” ) in 13 games – 5 in 11 League games and 1 in two cup games; they got one in a draw at Shrewsbury on the opening day, one at Burton in a 2-1 defeat, one against Exeter, one in a 4-1 defeat by Rotherham, and two – yes, two – in beating Macclesfield in Fletcher’s first game in charge (they had 7 players aged 25 or under, and just one - Feeney - over 30). They haven’t troubled the scorers in 8 of their 13 games …………..

That said, they don’t ship bucketloads either; four once (Millers), three once, two six times, one four times and one clean sheet (the Macc game); trouble is, that’s 23 conceded – almost four for every one scored . For the record, their goalscorers are Will Atkinson (2), and one each for Feeney, Fletcher, Williams and Luke Daley.

We’ve never met, of course, since 2006, so all to play for. If your team had a goals total of 5 after 11 League games, and a goal difference of -16, I think you’d have a nasty sinking feeling, and I think you’d be right …. Add to that they’ve only hit the net in one of their last five games …………

The deadline for entries is, as ever, scheduled kick-off time, which is 3pm on Saturday 8th October. There’s been a feeling for a little while that someone was going to get a right hiding playing us, and this one would have to be the bookies’ favourite for it; three good goals last Saturday to lay the Aldershot home-bogey – how many this week? Will we win? (We’d better …….) Will Wynonie’s “extreme” prediction come true this week (26-0’s the League record, Wyn)

Good luck to everyone ………… and thanks for playing!

[Redash]

3-1 to The Stanley, please chaps.

[jaysay]

2-1 to Stanley please

[Tom D]

3-0 to stanley please. Think its about time we beat someone comfortably and don't think we will get a better opportunity than this.

[Outback Ozzy]

Never a better chance of the first away win - that said, the Pilgrims won at home last time out, tricky one to call - therefore I am going for 4-1 Stanley with Mr Spray to score twice.

[Grimps]

2-1 stanley

[norwich stanley]

2-2 draw please

[teach]

3-1 Stanley for me please.

[smudgie]

Plymouth Argyle 1-2 Accrington Stanley



Do it for Tom

[deeayess]

2 1 stanley please

[WOLVERHAMPTON REDS]

Plymouth 2
Accrington 3

[football19]

Plymouth 1 v 1 Acci

[Mysteron]

This could be our chance of a first away win & giving a team a thumping that must come eventually - a 3 - 0 win to the Stanley Boys

[sherry]

Stanley 3 Plymouth 1 please.

[Div3North]

Our chances may have had something of a boost:

• "Plymouth Argyle caretaker manager Carl Fletcher says it will be hard for the club to play without Northern Ireland international Warren Feeney.
  
• The 31-year-old will miss Saturday's League Two clash at home to Accrington as he is away on international duty.
  
• Feeney is the club's only experienced striker after joining Argyle in August.
  
• "It'll be tough," Fletcher told BBC Radio Devon. "But we'll get on with it and it's an opportunity for someone to come in and fill his position."
  
• He added: "Feeno works his socks off in every game, he's 31 and he's got a lot of experience."

"Feeno"?

I suppose it's better than "Wazza"

But not by much