- On The Up
- For Fear Of Falling
- Team News
ON THE UP
It's a competitive league and it's true that back-to-back wins can see your situation change dramatically, but three victories on the bounce have seen the Pilgrims steer their ship away from the falls into 14th position. Just two weeks after fighting for survival with Crewe, can Plymouth push themselves into the top half with a win at Burnley?
With pretty much a settled starting XI, a new wind of optimism has swept through the club but the Clarets will pose a new kind of threat at home, not like the downbeat Leicesters and Southamptons of this league. They will play a similar game with an effective, goal-scoring midfield so it is difficult to call.
FOR FEAR OF FALLING
Many may fancy Argyle's chances at Turf Moor, where it's hardly been as sunny as it appears to be in the Westcountry. Steve Cotterill's side have been on the slide after looking amongst the more than likely play-off contenders earlier in the season. However, just 2 points in six games has coincided with the Greens' ascendance and now just a couple of points seperate them.
The Clarets, like Argyle, seem to always fight a league season with a relatively thin squad and this campaign appears to be no exception. The Lancashire club has a good reputation almost as a breeding ground for talent and progessing young, prospective professionals. It was obvious during a midweek interview that manager Cotterill is again frustrated at the board's attitude towards keeping top players for a late season promotion push. 14-goal Ade Akinbyi left in January for high-flying Sheffield United, in attempt to secure promotion and make a success of a Premiership season, after failing to do so with Leicester a few seasons ago. Cotterill was "certain" that his side would be winning now if star names like Akinbyi, young midfielder Richard Chaplow and potent striker Robbie Blake were still Burnley players.
The Dingles' reluctance to pursue with these now proven names bears some similarity to Argyle's experiences in the mid-70's, as some older Pilgrims will recall. The sale of solid-gold strikers Paul Mariner and Billy Rafferty in light of possible promotion to the old 1st division seemed suicidal and fans still won't have forgiven those directors, who seemed too afraid to enter the highly-competitive top-flight for fear of falling dramatically.
The current Argyle set-up appears more optimistic but Clarets fans must feel that the attitude of the club's hierarchy needs to change if they are to progress, rather than tread water at this level. In their defence, the number of clubs who have fallen dramatically after a year of Premiership football, particularly Bradford, Swindon and Barnsley, fights the other corner. But would it be worth the while? Many fans of these clubs have fond memories of their 15 minutes.
The conflict of interests are evident and the former Cheltenham boss had been linked with the vacany at Leicester City, a big club who haven't been afraid to go up and down the Premiership staircase - although it has had an adverse affect on their finances and the Foxes look in serious trouble now. So it hasn't neccessarily worked for everybody, it's a difficult compromise, but being football fans we should not have to spend our bread in return for such negativity.
TEAM NEWS
As where Tony Pulis was content with his front-pairing, he saw no need to bring in back-up so urgently, even though the squad need it in truth. Burnley, on the other hand, had to be in another striker to replace Akinbyi and when deadline day came, no-one had been tied to a permanent deal. Journeyman Michael Ricketts came in on loan from Leeds and made his debut against Brighton. Something that Clarets fans should bear in mind is that like Akinbyi, Ricketts once plyed his trade in the division above but has now spent 2 years in the Championship in comparitively poor form. Steve Cotterill will be hoping to rekindle another old flame who, in fairness, was much more of a success in the upper-tier with Bolton Wanderers. His memorable goals, including a winning goal at Old Trafford, saw him rewarded with an England cap. He is likely to partner Graham Branch, though Gifton Noel-Williams, once rumoured to be a Plymouth target, could return after the goalless draw in the week.
For the Pilgrims, Tony Pulis has Paul Connolly back to full fitness and Tony Capaldi available again after serving a one-match suspension. The only injury concern on the eve of this weekend's clash is Anthony Barness with a slight thigh strain. The manager was confident that the former Bolton full-back would be fit leaving him with more selection problems, of the more desirable variety. On the left-hand side of the midfield quartet, Plymouth could start with Akos Buzsaky or Bojan Djordjic should Capaldi not regain his place. Buzsaky, just back from injury, was given the nod in midweek but was evidently out of practice. Djordjic was impressive when introduced as the Hungarian's replacement and sparked several opportunities leading to the goal. Both Eastern European starlets have definite qualities, despite their lack of involvement recently, and both have a good case for starting.