Six wins from six games – that’s the hope for Jamie Lowry and his Argyle Under-18s after Saturday’s upcoming EFL Youth Alliance League South match against Bromley.
The Greens are heading into the game full of confidence, with their most recent win coming in a 4-3 victory in Gloucestershire against Cheltenham Town.
Although it was not enough to reach the knockout stages of the competition, with a three-goal swing needing to be completed by Argyle, Lowry believes the performance and the current winning mentality can place his side in a strong position in the capital this weekend.
“We’re all really excited for it with the form we're in,” he told Argyle TV. “Five wins from the last five - the boys have been in excellent form. The Cheltenham game was one of those frustrating scenarios because we probably deserved to win by the goals we needed to. However, I think we ended it with 23 shots on goal and 40+ crosses into their box, so a really dominant performance was hampered by conceding three poor goals.
“That ruthlessness in the box, with some things not dropping for us, was disappointing, but to have 23 shots in one game shows how dominant we were. In terms of the whole performance, if it were a league game, you're delighted with it, really.
“Results are a key part of our development, but also the performance, and the boys are putting in good performances. What I like to see is that the boys were really disappointed, even though we won the game and were so dominant. They were disappointed that we weren’t able to win by the three goals needed to progress to the next round.”
Bromley are a side that sits above Argyle in the league table, but not by much. The London side currently has three more points than the Greens, but having played fewer games, Lowry is hoping his side can close the gap to the Ravens on Saturday with a victory on the road.
However, the Argyle Head Coach is aware of the threats they possess and understands why they hold an advantage over the Pilgrims in the table.
He said: “It could be a difficult game. They are doing well this season, so far. It’s our last away game to the capital, so we want to take the form that we're in and the performances that we’ve had into the game.
“At the moment, we’re scoring lots of goals and have lots of excellent play with our build-up phase, so the boys are in really good spirits at the moment, as you can imagine.
“Where we've been so dominant in possession, it's something we need to continue. Our bravery, our willingness to build from the back and pass the ball, is what is helping us thrive at the moment. If they go and get after us, then we'll play over and around the press really well, but we need to see the bravery and the confidence. It's such a key part of football having that confidence.
“The ability is always there, but it’s whether you are in form or out of form to produce the key moments. We're expecting to go there and play on the front foot, with them being aggressive in the press. We’ll try and pass the ball and be as calm as we can, as long as the surface dictates that, to try and make it six wins from six.”
