Planet Swans ArchivesThe reserves were beaten 2-0 at Plymouth on Wednesday but there was good news for Roberto with the fact that both Owain Tudur Jones and Darren Way both came through unscathed in their latest match on their return from injury.
Tudur Jones managed the full 90 minutes whilst Darren Way played an hour – Rory Fallon led the Plymouth attach in the game.
REPORT FROM THE PLYMOUTH OFFICIAL SITE
STRIKES from the impressive Jake Moult and Frenchman Jimmy Abdou gavethe Greensa comfortable Pontins Leaguevictory over a young Swansea team at Home Park.
Argyle named a strong side for the game with Frenchman Mathias Doumbe forming the central partnership in a defence that included Martin Watts at left-back and Dan Gosling at right-back with manager Ian Holloway looking at the prospect of the England Under 17 international providing competition for regular first-team choice Paul Connolly.
Youngsters Dan Smith and Moult were assigned the wing positions with Luke Summerfield and Jimmy operating in the midfield engine room. Former Swan Rory Fallon partnered Ashley Barnes in attack.
The Swans named three players in their squad with Argyle connections. Former Argyle schoolboy Matthew Wright started in attack, while recently released youngster Ben Adelsbury was named among the substitutes.
The third link came in the form of diminutive midfielder, who was born in Plymouth and spent time on Argyle’s books before making his name at Yeovil Town. He joined Swansea City for £150,000 in January 2006.
Argyle piled on the pressure in the early stages with Fallon terrorising the young defence that would have faced him on the training ground last year.
One foray ended with the big Kiwi lobbing the ball up for Moult and the blonde winger will be disappointed with his poor connection on the volley, which gave visiting ‘keeper David Knight the opportunity to make a save he should never have been allowed to make.
Swansea’s eventual reply, after spending the first 15 minutes camped in their own half, was a stinging volley that flew inches wide from rangy midfielder Owain Tudur-Jones, who, we suspect, is a native of the land of Wales.
Sawyer was the next man to threaten, as his firm header from a Summerfield corner shaved the crossbar with the slightly under-sized Knight well beaten.
He may be small, but Knight soon showed why he is a young professional. A deep cross from Smith was flicked on by Fallon for Moult, who looked to have opened the scoring. Knight had other ideas, and his fingertip save would have graced a Premiership match, let alone the Pontins League.
If Fallon was dominant in the air, it was all about Moult on the deck, and he had another chance to break the deadlock. He shaped his body beautifully in the box and steered a neat effort towards the far corner that missed by mere inches.
The apparently inevitable opener continued to elude Argyle with Barnes the next man guilty of not converting. He was sent through by Smith, but fired straight into the arms of Knight with the goal gaping.
Gosling was the last player to test Knight in a painfully one-way first period, but, again, the visiting ‘keeper was equal to the effort.
At the start of the second-half, you couldn’t help become more convinced that it was David Knight’s day. The young ‘keeper fired a routine clearance straight at Barnes, which cannoned kindly back into his arms to give him the lucky escape his first-half heroics arguably deserved.
Jake Moult finally made the net bulge, and disproved the above theory,just after the hour mark when a low cross from Smith wheeled its way across the box and found the fair-haired assassin ready to make his long-awaited kill. Moult’s left-foot shot was well-struck and Knight was well-beaten, at last.
Moult was also involved in Argyle’s second, releasing Jimmy with a raking ball that the French midfielder did well to bring under control, but the chance appeared to have gone when Knight narrowed the angle.
Jimmy kept his composure, however, and dinked the ball over the advancing ‘keeper and into the vacated net to give the Pilgrims clear daylight over the tiring visitors from the valleys.
Matty Doumbe and Barnes both came close to adding to the scoring in the late stages but Argyle had to settle for a competent 2-0 win.
Argyle (4-4-2): 1 Lloyd Saxton; 2 Dan Gosling, 4 Gary Sawyer, 5 Mathias Kouo-Doumbe, 3 Martin Watts, 7 Jake Moult, 6 Nadjim Abdou, 8 Luke Summerfield (capt), 11 Dan Smith; 9 Rory Fallon, 10 Ashley Barnes (16 Jarred Stevens 81).Substitutes (not used): 13 Michael Misiewicz (gk), 14 Shane White, 15 Shane Duggan, 17 Toby Davis.
Swansea (4-5-1): 30 David Knight; 2 Daniel Sheehan, 4 Karl Keogh, 5 David Kingdom, 3 James Burgin; 11 Dion Chambers, 6 Owain Tudur-Jones, 8 Matthew Collins, 7 Darren Way (12 Ashley Richards 68), 10 Shaun MacDonald; 9 Matthew Wright.
Substitutes (not used): 13 David Cornell, 14 Ben Adelsbury, 15 Joe Harris.
