Home Grown Talent

THE produce from Argyle’s Green shoots was much in evidence at Birmingham in midweek.

The entire seven-man bench for the Pilgrims’ Capital One Cup tie had come through the Argyle youth set-up. Indeed, one – Ryan Lane – is still technically, still in it. Maybe ‘seven-man’ is stretching it a bit.

Argyle manager John Sheridan has personal past experience of being brought through at a young age, and has no qualms about using the likes of Lane and first-year pro Ben Purrington if the occasion demands – or even just to gain experience.

“It doesn’t matter what age they are,” said John. “I learnt that myself as a young player when was at Leeds with Eddie Gray. That’s how you learn the game. You get thrown in sometimes when you least expect it.

“I think some of the young players have got an opportunity. They know, if they perform well and they impress me, they have got a chance of getting on the pitch.

“I would have liked to have thrown one or two on [at Birmingham], but the game was a bit tight. It’s important that, when they go to places like Birmingham, they are involved: if they work hard, there may be a chance of them playing at grounds like Birmingham on a weekly basis.

“It was a good experience for them, and it’s only good for the club if we’ve got one or two promising young players coming through.”