Three Hundred Cheers

...then chided his captain for conceding a goal in his 300th appearance for the club.

Luke’s landmark Pilgrimage saw him lead Argyle to a 3-1 victory at Rodney Parade that increased their lead at the top of Sky Bet League Two to four points.

After the match, the Pilgrims’ skipper was presented with a shirt commemorating his achievement by Derek, coaching staff and team-mates.

Earlier, the goal on the wrong side of the scoreline had come courtesy of Newport’s veteran forward Jon Parkin, in between two Graham Carey penalties, a speculative long-range effort from wide on the right.

“It was a bad mistake from Luke,” said Derek. “Luke will tell you that it was right at his near post and [Parkin] shouldn’t be scoring from there. 

“We shouldn’t have allowed him to turn and get the shot off to start with, and Luke shouldn’t have let it in at his near post.”

Other than that blip, Derek was pleased with how his team dealt with a direct approach from hosts who were under new management at home for the first time since Graham Westley’s appointment. 

He said: “We knew it would be difficult coming here today. They have got a new manager so we know what their tactics are going to be and we had to stand up to that.

“They were going to knock the ball long into Parkin and play off of him; they were going to go for the long throw-ins and the corner kicks, and that’s what we saw. They didn’t disappoint and we had to deal with it.

“To win 3-1, to score three goals away from home, is very good.”