Changes For Tuesday

PLYMOUTH Argyle travel to Swindon Town in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy on Tuesday night on the back of a four-game winless run after losing to Exeter City on Saturday.

The 3-1 defeat in the Devon Expressway Derby is the latest game to give manager John Sheridan some foot for thought as he ponders ways of rekindling Argyle’s fortunes. The trip to Wiltshire may be a good chance for some players to take advantage of an opportunity to shine.
 
“There’s a game Tuesday, and one or two of them will be playing,” he said.  “We’ve got a lot of players who are fit and available, and all wanting to play. When you keep losing games, it’s time for change. And I mean big change.

“We’re on a run where we’re playing alright, but we’re losing games. It’s the mentality and the will to win on the football pitch. And it’s only the players who can take care of that.”

One name that could be in the reckoning for a run-out is teenager Tyler Harvey, but John is anxious to treat his young talent with kid gloves. Sheridan is no stranger to looking after young players who have gone on to bigger things, but insists that rushing players into starting line-ups is not always the best thing for their development.

“Tyler’s a young kid with potential,” he said. “He’s got lots of potential, but he’s an 18-year-old kid.

“I’ll make the decisions. I’ve done it with other players before that are now playing in the Premier League and the Championship.

“What I’m doing with Tyler, I think is the right thing. I know he needs football, and I know he’s scoring goals in the reserves against Bideford and Exeter youth team.

“I understand that, if we’re not scoring goals, we’re not winning football matches.

“I’ve got [Andres] Gurrieri, [Andre] Blackman, [Neal] Trotman and ten other players that didn’t play that could make a difference in the game.”