Sat 3rd Sep
Kick-off 15:00

DER Derby

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PLY Argyle

Derby County Preview

Sync Fixtures

Argyle face Derby County this Saturday at Pride Park Stadium, looking to extend their winning streak to three matches in Sky Bet League One.

Following The Pilgrims’ midweek Papa John’s Trophy tie against Bristol Rovers, which finished 1-1 after 90 minutes, with Argyle winning a shoot-out, Argyle face a Derby side managed by Liam Rosenior. who has led The Rams to sixth place in League One and have picked up 11 points from six games this season, one point fewer than Argyle.

Last Saturday, Derby staged a dramatic late comeback against 10-man Peterborough United, scoring two goals in the space of three minutes to secure an impressive 2-1 win against a side who, like Derby, were relegated from the Championship last season.

The Rams have won all five of their home fixtures this season, three in the league, with wins also coming against Oxford United and Barnsley.

Away from home, they are yet to score, but had goalless draws at Shrewsbury Town and Fleetwood Town, and a 1-0 loss at Charlton Athletic.

County have scored only four goals in the league this season, one of them coming from former Pilgrim Conor Hourihane who amassed 142 appearances for The Greens netting 16 times as well as captaining the club in the 2013/14 season.

This will be the first time the two sides have met in 12 years. On that occasion, Argyle won 1-0 thanks to a goal by Jamie Mackie, although the last trip to Pride Park ended in defeat, Miles Addison scoring a 90th minute winner as The Rams won 2-1 having trailed to an Alan Judge goal.

Schumacher Says
“They’ve got some really good players. They play some lovely football. They have loads of good movement, and players that complement that. We could see that once they started signing players in the summer following their takeover. At a huge, sold-out Pride Park it is going to be a good game, and we’re really looking forward to it.

Argyle Team News
Mickel Miller, Conor Grant, and James Bolton are expected to miss out with injuries that have prevented them from playing this season so far. Sam Cosgrove, having signed on Thursday, comes into the reckoning. 

Tickets
We have sold over 2,000 tickets for the away end at Pride Park. However, there is no pay on the day option. Please do not travel without a ticket.

Argyle TV
Audio commentary of the game is available for £2.50 in the UK, and live video streaming is available for overseas supporters. Click here to see what is available in your region.

 

 

Season Tickets

Captain Joe Edwards at Derby

Derby County 2 
Collins 26 
Mendez-Laing 38 

Argyle 3 
Whittaker 56 
Cosgrove 77, 90 

A dream debut from Sam Cosgrove was just reward for an inspired Argyle display in front of incredible Green Army support at Pride Park. 

The Pilgrims were excellent throughout and yet still found themselves 2-0 down at the break, James Collins and Nathaniel Mendez-Laing scoring against the run of play for Derby County. 

There was no suggestion of Argyle meekly conceding defeat. Morgan Whittaker pulled one back on 55 minutes and Sam Cosgrove, two minutes after coming on as a sub and two days after joining on a season-long loan from Birmingham, levelled from close range. 

A draw would have been a fine fightback from Argyle but Cosgrove turned it into a remarkable recovery, winning a fantastic match with a cool finish in the dying seconds.   

Argyle manager Steven Schumacher made three changes from the win over Bolton Wanderers last weekend, with Adam Randell, Whittaker and Ryan Hardie replacing Jordan Houghton, Finn Azaz and Niall Ennis. 

A bright start from the Greens saw Joe Edwards working the play nicely down the left, Danny Mayor slipped a pass back into the path of Matt Butcher, who forced an excellent early save from Joe Wildsmith after a sweet strike.  

Edwards quickly switched into defensive mode for a block on Tom Barkhuizen’s shot and the all-action skipper then started the move that concluded with a shift of feet from Whittaker before a fizzing effort that shaved the far post. 

The Greens were creating chances at will, Whittaker slipping a pass in behind for Hardie, who just stumbled over as he was poised to strike. Hardie had another sniff moments later, Eiran Cashin recovering for a last-ditch block. 

Derby replied with Mendez-Laing racing clear and Brendan Galloway did a great job in forcing him wide enough for a sliced attempt that failed to trouble Mike Cooper. 

The Rams were in front from their next attack, David McGoldrick robbing the ball in midfield and feeding a pass to Collins, who lifted a clever finish over the advancing body of Cooper. 

The Pilgrims responded with some probing possession followed by a dipping shot from Whittaker, who began his career at Pride Park, but Wildsmith comfortably gathered on the bounce. 

Whittaker then cut the ball back perfectly for Edwards but he was denied by an incredible goal-line block from Jason Knight. 

The cruel side of football reared its head seven minutes before half-time, as, despite creating numerous opportunities, Argyle fell further behind, Mendez-Laing wriggling through two challenges and slotting a smart finish in the bottom corner. 

There was still time for Wildsmith to palm clear an Adam Randell scorcher from distance but Argyle needed an excellent challenge from Galloway to thwart McGoldrick early in the second period. 

Argyle were back in the game 10 minutes after the break. Butcher rifled a low shot from distance and, after a Derby block, the ball squirmed into space for Whittaker to calmly plant a neat finish beyond the exposed Wildsmith. 

Both sides made a couple of changes on the hour, Azaz and Houghton replacing Bali Mumba and Randell for the Pilgrims, while Derby introduced Liam Thompson and Louie Sibley for McGoldrick and Barkhuizen. 

The Greens resumed by setting up camp in the Derby half, Houghton immediately pulling the midfield strings, and Schumacher twisted again with the fresh legs of Ennis for Hardie. 

Argyle were in complete control of possession, as the Rams looked to shut up shop. Cosgrove was handed his Pilgrim debut in place of Whittaker for the final 15 minutes, while Macaulay Gillesphey replaced Galloway. 

Within two minutes of introducing himself to the Green Army, Cosgrove had his first Argyle goal, slotting an easy back-post finish after a terrific low cross from Ennis. A simple goal and the Pilgrims deserved to at least be level. 

Derby finally broke the shackles with a break down the left and Dan Scarr did a super job to deflect the shot from William Osula into the side-netting.  

A breathless, brilliant game had one final magnificent chapter. Cosgrove pounced on a loose touch, surged into the left channel and steered a sublime finish under the sprawling Wildsmith. 

Derby County: 1 Joe Wildsmith (gk); 3 Craig Forsyth, 4 Conor Hourihane, 6 Eiran Cashin, 7 Tom Barkhuizen (17 Louie Sibley 60), 8 Max Bird (capt), 9 James Collins (23 William Osula 70), 10 David McGoldrick (16 Liam Thompson 60), 11 Nathaniel Mendez-Laing (18 Lewis Dobbin 80), 19 Richard Stearman, 38 Jason Knight. Substitutes (not used): 21 Scott Loach (gk), 15 Haydon Roberts, 34 Jake Rooney. 

Booked: McGoldrick 57 

Argyle: 1 Mike Cooper (gk); 6 Dan Scarr, 7 Matt Butcher, 8 Joe Edwards (capt), 9 Ryan Hardie (11 Niall Ennis 68), 10 Danny Mayor, 17 Bali Mumba (18 Finn Azaz 60), 19 Morgan Whittaker (16 Sam Cosgrove 75), 20 Adam Randell (4 Jordan Houghton 60), 21 Nigel Lonwijk, 22 Brendan Galloway (3 Macaulay Gillesphey 75). Substitutes (not used): 25 Callum Burton (gk), 5 James Wilson. 

Booked: Mumba 34 

Attendance: 27,173 (2,283 from Argyle)

Referee: Ollie Yates