Graham Westley believes Plymouth will be crowned League Two champions - 7M sport

Graham Westley believes Plymouth will be crowned League Two champions



Posted Sunday, January 26, 2020 by PA

Graham Westley believes Plymouth will be crowned League Two champions

Graham Westley tipped Plymouth to win Sky Bet League Two but was frustrated at seeing his Stevenage side slip to a 2-1 defeat at home to the Pilgrims.

Goals from Byron Moore and Ryan Hardie were enough for Argyle to come away with all three points from their trip to the Lamex Stadium, although a floodlight failure and Charlie Carter strike made for a nervy finish.

And Westley believes Boro, who dropped to the foot of the table after defeat, deserved better, singling out a handball in the build-up to the first goal as the turning point in the game.

He said: “I feel cheated for that first goal.

“It’s like two hands going towards the ball and the fourth official has to see it – it’s his job to see it.

“To be fair to the referee he hasn’t got the best view but the fourth official has to help and there’s a linesman on this side as well.

“You can see by the player’s reaction and how hesitant he is to celebrate.

“You have to give credit to the players because they showed very good character to get back on the front foot.

“I’m not certain of the statistics but I think we’ve had 13 second-half shots. That is a symbol of the attacking intent the team showed. They didn’t let that incident get to them.

“We scored a good goal and hit the bar, we could easily have got an equaliser and then that changes the game.

“There were a lot of positives – it didn’t look a team at the bottom of the table with no understanding of where it’s going.

“It looked like a side that’s evolving and knows where it’s going.

“We did a good job against a side that will probably end up being champions – they’re a big club.”

The win puts Argyle into the top three and the automatic promotion spots, with leaders Swindon six points ahead of them but having played two games more.

In a goalless first half, Jake Cassidy had a shot well-saved by Alex Palmer while Antoni Sarcevic almost added to his six league goals when he charged down a clearance from Paul Farman that trickled just wide.

Argyle hit the front immediately after half-time, Moore finishing well after being played in by George Cooper, although Westley was adamant the striker had handled the ball before finding the back of the net.

The floodlights then gave up, meaning an interruption just before the hour, and once play resumed, Palmer was again called into action by tipping Carter’s strike onto the crossbar.

Hardie then made it three in three for Argyle as he rounded Farman to double the lead with quarter of an hour remaining.

Carter pulled one back with eight minutes left but even with 13 minutes of stoppage time, Argyle held on for the three points, much to the delight of Ryan Lowe.

He added: “We nullified all their strengths which is why we’ve come away with the victory.

“It’s a good win for us and puts us into the top three. But we’re not getting carried away, there’s a long way to go.

“It doesn’t matter where you are in January, it matters where you are in May. We weathered a storm in the second half and did well to win the game.

“They came hard at us, they’re fighting for their lives and you could see that. We wanted to come here and leave with all three points and that’s exactly what we’ve done.

“I’m pleased with the players. We’re in the middle of a very good run and want to keep that going. Sometimes you have to give the other team credit, I think Stevenage were brilliant all the way through the game.

“They tried to manage it as best they could getting little fouls and falling on the ball a lot.

“They made it really difficult for us to play at times. They had a game plan and carried it out.

“I think they’ll be okay – I don’t think they’ll be relegated come the end of the season.”

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