Fortunes Of Football

NAPOLEON’S observations about generals might also apply to football club chairmen’s requirements in a manager: all other things being equal, lucky beats clever every time.

Pilgrims’ manager John Sheridan would not disagree. “You do need luck,” he said. “Managers who are a lot better than me, and who have won trophies, need luck.

“We’ve played in games at Scunthorpe and against Accrington when we’ve had no luck whatsoever – we could have won both games; last week [against Northampton], Nelse [Curtis Nelson]’s header could have been an own goal and it would have been a totally different game; at Mansfield, when Luke [McCormick] made a great save early in the game and the rebound dropped to Maxi [Max Blanchard] who cleared it, could have been a goal from Mansfield – a totally different game.

“Little things even themselves out and those might have been points in the game when things really change, but when you are still in the game and it’s 0-0, and it goes on and on, you have always got a chance of winning.

“We’ve got six points from the last two games, so we’ll just stay level-headed and keep nicking the points and trying to catch the teams up above us.”