What Might Have Been

A WEEK of disappointing lows finished on a disappointing high as Argyle turned in a bravura performance against the npower League 2 leaders only to be denied a deserved win at the death.

After swapping first-half goals with the Gills, the Pilgrims were fired into an 80th-minute lead by teenage midfielder Luke Young and seemed set to go onto to inflict only a third defeat of the season on their visitors.

However, a late header by former Pilgrim Adam Barrett meant the game finished all square at 2-2, leaving Luke to reflect on what might have been.

He said: “I think we should have nicked it, personally, but we have got to look at the positives, and there were a lot of positives. We have got to try to take that into next week.

“We edged it, I think. From start to finish, we were at them and they couldn’t really handle it. All they threw at us, I thought we handled well.

“We have shown what we are capable of against the leaders. I think we are capable of beating anybody on our day.”

The draw stopped the rot of a run of four consecutive defeats – including an FA Cup exit at the hands of non-league Dorchester – which acted as a great incentive.

“You don’t like losing, whether it’s in the FA Cup, the league, whatever – little five-a-sides in training,” said Luke, 19, “so it was a great game for us to try and put it right.

“The way we played – we passed [the ball] at the right times, and played into Griff [Rhys Griffiths] and Feeno [Warren Feeney] at times – was what helped us: making the right decision at the right times.

“It was a great game to play in. It was just unfortunate we conceded right at the end.”

The goal was Luke’s second this season, after a free-kick conversion at Barnet, coming after some love interplay with Nick Chadwick.

He said: “As the ball came across, I gave a shout to Chaddy for a little touch, and it was a great touch, right into my path. I didn’t have to break stride, and got through the left-back and centre-half.

“I was about 16-17 yards out and I thought ‘Head down, keep your eye of the ball, get a good strike on it, hit the target’. Luckily it went in.”

Luck, one suspects, had nothing to do with it for the versatile young Westcountry midfielder.

“I don’t mind where play as long as I’m in the team,” he said.

“I try to give 110% in whatever position I play, and, if you can get a goal, that tops off a personal performance.”