Making Good Points

ARGYLE’S 1-1 Sky Bet League 2 Home Park draw with Bristol Rovers was their first stalemate for 13 games...

...but Pilgrims’ midfielder Graham Carey is pleased with a point that keeps them amid the early jostling for places at the top of the table.

With their three closest rivals all also drawing 1-1, Argyle ended the day where they had begun it, in second place, after Jake Jervis’s 85th-minute goals was levelled by Ellis Harrison’s last-gasp penalty.

“We could have won it; we could have lost it,” said the Irish playmaker. “With us not taking our chances, in the end a point was probably what both teams deserved.

“In this league, it’s ‘keep yourself in there’ because it’s a long old season; keep yourself near the top, the games will tick off, and hopefully we’ll be in there at the end of the season.

“There are going to be a lot of twists and turns. We need to stick together as a team and make the next few home games count.”

Argyle battled long and hard against durable opponents before substitute Gregg Wylde eventually worked the opening and provided a fine cross for Jake’s goal.

Graham said: “It was hot and it was tough to keep going; in the end, we dug deep. It was just a pity we couldn’t keep the lead for another minute or so after we scored. We just didn’t get into the rhythm to play the ball into the channels and see out the game. They hit us straight back.”

“We struggled to get into our rhythm – it was partly the way Bristol Rovers played; they were quite direct and had an extra man at the back – but we created enough chances to win any game. It was just one of those days; the ball wasn’t going into the net. I think we were unlucky in the end.”

That feeling was shared by a majority in the Pilgrims’ second 10,000-plus home crowd of the season.

“It was great,” said Graham. “You could hear, before the game even started, the chanting going on. It was good. Hopefully, we can get more crowds like that up towards the 10,000. It does make a difference on the pitch; it’s great to be playing in front of that.

“All in all, it was a great day; it was just a pity we couldn’t get the three points.”