Report: Truro 0 Argyle 1

A GOAL from trialist Rhys Griffiths, ten minutes before half-time, gave Argyle a pleasing victory from their by-now-traditional Cornish tester from Truro City.

Striker Griffiths, who has mined a rich seam of goals for years in the League of Wales, impressed on his Green bow, causing problems for his markers and proving a constant menace to the Blue Square South side’s defence.
On the debit side, new signing Jamie Lowry’s first game as a Pilgrim back on the Cornish soil of his home county ended in agony after he turned an ankle, an injury bad enough to warrant a visit to Treliske Hospital.

Argyle manager Carl Fletcher had shuffled his pack again following the Pilgrims’ team-of-two-halves outing against Yeovil at Dorchester.
In, for first appearances of the pre-season, came giant goalkeeper Rene Gilmartin; winger Joe Lennox, who had missed the trip to Dorset for family reasons; and League of Wales goal-machine Griffiths, on trial from Port Talbot.
Truro’s squad, managed by former Pilgrim Lee Hodges, contained four others with a Home Park connection, as well as Hodges himself. Completing the Green hue to the White Tigers were coach Dave Newton and physio Ian Leigh.

Argyle dominated first-half proceedings, and Griffiths came close to giving them the lead early on when his header from Lowry’s cross was cleared from the goal-line by Frazer Clark.
The home side were kept largely at arms’ length, but Gilmartin was called into action after one lapse of concentration allowed former Pilgrim Stewart Yetton to fire off a speculative shot that was tipped on to the post.

The Pilgrims reaped their reward for a solid and enterprising performance ten minutes from the break, when Clark missed his header from Lowry’s cross and the ball dropped behind him for Griffiths to shoot home from close range.
The pleasing first half was interrupted five minutes later, when the impressive Lowry needed assistance to leave the field after a coming-together with Yetton.
After more shuffling at half-time, Argyle started the second period brightly, with Matt Lecointe stinging the fingers of busy former Home Parker Tim Sandercombe.
Curtis Nelson hit the crossbar with a shot following a corner, and Griffiths went close with an unintentional ‘Welbeck’ before Lecointe again brought the best out of Sandercombe.
Gilmartin rescued his defence when they were nearly caught napping by Keither Moore before Hodges rolled back the years with a little late cameo appearance as Argyle ran out comfortable winners
Truro City (4-4-2): 1 Tim Sandercombe; 2 Dan Green, 5 Frazer Clark, 6 Jakes Ash, 3 Ben Williams; 11 Cody Cooke (14 Rob Wearne 70), 4 Ben Adelsbury, 8 Joe Broad (15 Lee Hodges 70), 7 Adam Kelly (12 Danny Crane 60); 9 Stewart Yetton (18 Keither Moore 60), 10 Andy Watkins.
Argyle (4-4-2): 20  Rene Gilmartin; 16 Jaie Lowry (17 Curtis Nelson 40), 4 Max Blanchard (5 Darren Purse h-t), 23 Jamie Richards (14 Onismor Bhasera h-t), 3 Robbie Williams (23 Jamie Richards 71); 19 Joe Lennox (25 Isaac Vassell 60), 6 Conor Hourihane (8 Luke Young h-t), 24 Jordan Copp (18 Ladjie Soukouna h-t), 26 Jed Harper-Penman (21 Matt Lecointe h-t); 7 Paris Cowan-Hall (22 Jared Sims h-t), 28 Rhys Griffiths.
Attendance: 1,007.