Home Comforts For Derek

...when he waited by his television set to see who his side were drawn against in the upcoming Emirates FA Cup first round.

Luckily for Derek and his team, the Greens were given a home tie against Carlisle United, a Sky Bet League 2 team that his Pilgrims have already beaten 4-1 at Home Park this season. 

“I watched the draw and I’m delighted it was a home tie,” said Derek. “Being at home is a major factor. We’re comfortable in our own surroundings and it allows us to have the best possible chance of getting through

"A team from your division that you know about also helps and [Carlisle]’ll be happy with that, too. It’s a difficult match; they’ve done very well this season.”

With Carlisle travelling down to the Westcountry the weekend following the cup tie for a Sky Bet League 2 fixture against Bristol Rovers, a match away to the table-toppers was not what the Cumbrians were looking for.

“We’re fortunate that we’ve got a home tie and Carlisle are having to travel," said Derek. "It’s something they’ll not be too keen on. That’s the difficulty with the draw.”

The tie will take place on the first weekend in November between two other home games - a league match against Morecambe and Johnstone's Paint Trophy area quarter-final against League 1 Millwall. Cup matches have often been called into question, with many clubs choosing to put their focus into league campaigns. That, however, is something Argyle will not be doing. 

“It’s a famous cup competition that all the teams in England want to try and win," said Derek. "We’ll take [the cup games] extremely seriously because you want to progress in the cup competitions. 

“The further you can go in the cup, and being able to pick up a bigger team on the way, can help finances.”

“Being at home - being the first round in the FA Cup - we want to try and get through.”