Argyle are through to the second round of the Emirates FA Cup with a 4-0 win over Southern Premier Division side Alvechurch.
The breakthrough took a while. A stolid opening 45 minutes yielded no goals and little excitement, but Argyle upped it after the break, and scored the opening through Will Evans. A second was credited to Evans, although might have been an own goal, with Michael Baidoo scoring the third goal on his return to the team, and fellow substitute Ronan Curtis rounding things off.
Eyecatching in the Argyle line-up was the inclusion of Malachi Boateng, starting a game for the first time since 22 August, when he was injured at Wycombe Wanderers. Also returning, following lengthy injuries, were Baidoo and Owen Oseni, who both featured as substitutes.
Returning to a 4-4-2 formation, Argyle lined up with Jimmy Storer in goal, behind a back four of Joe Edwards, Mathias Ross, Alex Mitchell and Wes Harding. Oli Irow played on the left side of midfield, Xavier Amaechi on the right, with Boateng and Harvey White in the centre. Up front, Bim Pepple played alongside Evans.
The first half played out like a thousand-and-one similar games before it, also akin to an England qualifier against lower, yet stubborn, opposition.
Possession and territory, naturally, all Argyle, but it was goalless at the break, with Alvechurch’s organisation and resolve to the fore. It was not as though their defenders were forced into last-ditch tackles, or that goalkeeper Redman Evans was having the game of his life, or anything.
The game fell into a pattern. Argyle had the ball, worked it forward, found it difficult to penetrate Alvechurch’s lines, and had an effort from distance. This was the case for a Bim Pepple shot on target which the goalkeeper gathered, and a Harding shot from 30 yards, on his left foot, which was actually not far away.
There were two free-kicks from outside the area, one which White had deflected wide, the other that Amaechi sent not far over.
The best chance of all was a Will Evans header, from an Irow cross, which went narrowly wide, with Evans and Edwards, in close proximity, convinced the goalkeeper saved it, although a goal-kick was the decision.
Edwards’ afternoon ended prematurely, though, as Argyle were forced into a change just after the half-hour mark. Edwards came off, replaced by Alex Hartridge, who came on at left-back. Wes Harding took the captaincy, and Edwards’ spot on the right side of defence.
Towards the end of the half, Amaechi whistled a decent effort not far wide but, on the whole, the first 45 minutes was a pedestrian affair, with very little tempo to it. When the crowd get animated over two gulls scrapping on the pitch over a piece of pasty crimp, you know the game has not been thrilling.
However, the second half was much improved, and saw Argyle safely through.
The Greens got the goal they needed, to settle any residual nerves, five minutes into the second period, and it was all Evans’ own work. An Alvechurch defender took half a second too long in his own box, and was robbed of the ball by the always industrious Evans. Argyle’s number nine then rifled a low drive into the bottom corner, marking his first Home Park goal.
The question is: did he have another? Argyle got their second of the game when Hartridge clipped a lovely ball into the channel for Curtis, who had been part of a triple substitution on the hour, also including Baidoo and Tyreeq Bakinson.
Curtis crossed, it took a heavy deflection, and found its way into the net. Evans was on the premises, and was credited with the goal by PA announcer Gary McLean, and by statisticians Opta. Therefore, we’ll give it to him – although the muted celebrations, and players generally giving the pats on the back to Curtis, suggested otherwise.
Then came Argyle’s most heartwarming story of the day, as Michael Baidoo made it 3-0.
Baidoo’s Argyle debut was against Brentford, on 11 January 2025, in the FA Cup, as part of Argyle’s storied run of two seasons ago. His most recent appearance of 13 in first-team football for the Greens was on the last day of that season, in the 2-1 loss to Leeds United, as Argyle were relegated from the Championship.
553 days later, following a season on loan in Qatar, a pre-season back with the Pilgrims in which he caught the eye, and an unfortunate injury in Argyle’s final prep game before the campaign began, Baidoo was back on the pitch.
And he scored his first goal for Argyle.
The assist is another nice story. Jared Rendle played 45 minutes for Argyle Under-18s on the morning of this game, hot-footed it to Home Park to take a place on the bench, then came on in the 71st minute. Seven minutes later, he was making a good run down the left and sending in a cracking low cross for Baidoo to thump home.
Curtis, lively in his half-hour on the pitch, knocked in the fourth, latching on to a lovely ball from White, and then clipping over the goalkeeper.
Argyle could have made it more, with plenty more opportunities against a visibly tiring Alvechurch, but the job had been done, and Argyle are ball number 30 in Monday’s draw, taking place the other side of the Manadon flyover, in PL5.
Argyle: 21 James Storer, 2 Mathias Ross, 6 Malachi Boateng (19 Tyreeq Bakinson, 61), 7 Harvey White, 8 Joe Edwards (capt) (22 Alex Hartridge, 31), 9 Will Evans, 10 Xavier Amaechi (20 Michael Baidoo, 61), 14 Oliver Irow (11 Ronan Curtis, 61), 15 Alex Mitchell (42 Jared Rendle, 71), 27 Bim Pepple, 45 Wes Harding. Substitutes: 1 Murphy Cooper (GK), 18 Owen Oseni, 23 Bradley Ibrahim, 46 Frankie Maund.
Goals: Evans 50, 69, Baidoo 78, Curtis 80
Booked: Hartridge 54
Alvechurch: 1 Redman Evans, 2 Harry Reilly, 3 Jack Kelly (21 Nick Clayton-Phillips, 65), 4 Jamey Osborne (23 Johan Rask, 57), 5 George Forsyth (capt), 7 Sam Perry, 8 Jonny Ngandu (10 Ben Stephens, 72), 9 Miracle Okafor (11 Tope Obadeyi, 72), 14 Callum Sullivan, 15 Kieran Wakefield (18 Danny Newton, 65), 17 Jessy Bavanganga. Substitutes: 13 Logan Ellis (GK), 16 Billy Corns, 20 Louie Rea.
Booked: Perry 45+1, Newton 66, Stephens 85
Referee: Elliott Swallow
Attendance: 10,426 (538 away)
