Bouncing Back at Boro

ARGYLE forward Lewi Alessandra is convinced the Pilgrims can bounce straight back from their streak-busting 2-0 home defeat by Bury.

Lewi had two ‘goals’ chalked off by referee Fred Graham during the reversal, in which second-half goals from Danny Nardiello and Danny Rose did for the Pilgrims’ four-match winning run.

The victory saw Bury leapfrog over Argyle, who dropped out of the Sky Bet League 2 play-off places a few days before they travel to another promotion hopeful, Stevenage for the first time in the club’s history.

“It’s just a blip,” said Lewi. “If you said that, in the next five games, we’ll win four and lose one, you’d probably take that. We look to go on another little run now – we’re fully capable of doing it and, the good things is we’ve got another game in three and a half days to try and put today’s loss right.
 
“It was frustrating, but it’s football for you. In the first half, I thought [Bury] were the better team; they had more of the ball. We found ourselves, at times, just sort of lumping it.

“We went in at the break 0-0 and came out with a better tempo and put our stamp on the game. I thought we were the better team. We playing some good stuff and getting [the ball] high up the pitch in the final third, and I thought: ‘We’re going to go on to win this game because we’re in the ascendency.’

“Then they went down the other end, a good counter from them, a good cross and the lad’s found himself a bit of space in the box, and it’s a good header. It really took the stuffing out of us.”

Lewi had a new strike partner in Ryan Brunt, who was called up to replace leading scorer Reuben Reid when the St James Park hero gave best to the foot he injured scoring his historic hat-trick

“I felt a bit sorry for Brunty,” said Lewi. “Because you see him as a big frame, big stature, you sort of, maybe subconsciously, use that as a get-out, but obviously the lad he was up against was a monster, as well.

“We all wanted [Reuben] fit, but you can’t magic him fit. It’s one of those things. It was too painful to play. I know Rubes – he gets through quite a lot and looks after his body when he does suffer. If he could have played, he would have played. It’s a shame, and we hope he gets fit as soon as possible.

“We did miss him – you are going to miss a player of Reuben’s quality but, when someone’s injured, it gives someone else a chance. [Ryan]’s done well, of late, when he comes on; obviously he scored in the Cambridge game and out us on our way there. He has been really good in training, as well.”

As for his two disallowed efforts, Lewi said: “The first one, I’m not too sure, hence I sort of ran off, half-celebrating; the second one, I knew I was five yards offside. I didn’t even celebrate.

“I thought: ‘I’ll put it in the net, just in case.’ Nelse was screaming at me to leave it to go out for a corner, but I’m a striker, I’m not going to do that.”

And so to Hertfordshire on Tuesday to face Graham Westley’s Boro, and former Argyle captain Simon Walton.

“We know what we’re in for,” said Lewi. “They are big solid, organised team, the way their manager has them set up, so we’re under no illusions how tough Tuesday night is going to be.

“We’ll have to go there; stand up and be counted as men; match them in the battle first and foremost; and hope that a bit of our quality shines through and we get the breaks on the night.”