The Dominic Effect

ARGYLE skipper Conor Hourihane paid tribute to Dominic Blizzard after the Pilgrims extended their unbeaten run to six game with a hard-fought 1-1 draw against Southend United at Home Park.

Dom netted his first goal since moving to Argyle from Yeovil in the summer to give the Pilgrims a 65th-minute lead in the Sky Bet League 2 encounter.

The 28-year-old has overcome illness to cement a place alongside the captain in the centre of midfield and Conor said: “He’s done well. I like playing with him. We’re kind of on the same wavelength and bounce off each other. I’m delighted for him.

“He was always going to be a good player for us. He had a slow start, but he’s getting there now, slowly, but surely. We have to be on our toes because when you’ve got someone like Luke Young on the bench, who’s a very good player, you have to put in some good performances to stay in the team.”

The Shrimpers’ outstanding player, Kevan Hurst, levelled the game within three minutes of Dominic’s strike.

“It looked like a bit of a sloppy goal on our behalf,” said Conor. “When they got the goal, they could have upped the tempo a bit, but we stuck at it and we had a couple of chances, and it was a pity we didn’t win in the end.”

The game marked the return of Jason Banton to Home Park after his midweek move from Crystal Palace.

“Jason’s a very good player,” Conor said.”If he brings and kind of form like he had last year, he will be a great player for us. It’s going to be a slow start for him, fitnesswise – he hasn’t played in a while. But he’s got a lot of talent so he’ll only improve us.”