Argyle battled well against Derby to earn a valiant away point at Pride Park on Saturday afternoon. The 1-1 draw ended a run of five straight away league defeats for Wayne Rooney’s side. 

Jerry Yates’s acrobatic overhead kick put the Rams ahead within the opening ten minutes. However, Argyle struck back, Adam Randell marking his return to the side with a fine free-kick goal just minutes before half-time.  

After late pressure from the hosts in the second half, the Pilgrims walked away from Pride Park with a commendable point in what was a closely contested game. 

Rooney made four changes to the side that were victorious midweek against Portsmouth, perhaps a reflection of the impact made by the substitutes on the night. Callum Wright, Mustapha Bundu and Michael Obafemi, all second-half replacements against the Blues, came in for Rami Al Hajj, Freddie Issaka and Andre Gray.  

The other change was Adam Randell, who had missed the previous two games with a thigh injury, taking the place of Jordan Houghton. The recently-turned 29-year-old dropped to the bench and was joined by Marko Marosi, Nathanael Ogbeta, Victor Palsson, Ryan Hardie, Gray, Adam Forshaw, Al Hajj and Issaka.  

The defenders and goalkeeper, who each played the entirety of the 90 minutes against Pompey on Tuesday night, retained their places following the Greens’ first league clean sheet of the season.  

This meant that it was Daniel Grimshaw in goal, in front of an unchanged back-four of Matty Sorinola, Kornel Szucs, Julio Pleguezuelo and Bali Mumba. Ahead of them, a returning Randell partnered Darko Gyabi, Wright the most advanced midfielder on the day in the ‘free’ role.  

Morgan Whittaker and Bundu flanked Obafemi, who led the line, fresh from his second goal in green, in midweek. 

Following powerful Remembrance Day commemorations at Pride Park, the game got underway at Pride Park with Argyle attacking toward the 1,900-strong away contingent.  

Both teams struggled to get the ball down and start playing in the opening exchanges, Derby looked to hit one of either Mendez-Laing, Yates or Jackson with a long ball, while Argyle searched for spaces in-behind Wilson and Forsyth. 

Early on, Wright was proving a handful, counter-pressing well on the edge of the area, nearly unlocking Bundu with a block-turned-pass, the wide-man well-stopped by Wilson. 

It was a spectacular acrobatic effort from Yates that unlocked the Greens rearguard. Mendez-Laing’s out-swinging corner was met by Wilson, who headed back across goal. Wright’s botched headed clearance popped up behind Yates, who seemed to defy gravity, rotating in mid-air and connecting sweetly with a bicycle kick from the corner of the six-yard box. His effort flew beyond the outstretched glove of Grimshaw and cannoned into the back of the net. 

Argyle were lucky to keep it at one when Kayden Jackson put it on a plate for Liam Thompson after a quick break down the left, thankfully Sorinola had recovered well to make an excellent last-ditch challenge and divert the ball away from the onrushing midfielder, behind for a corner.  

Another wave of Derby pressure came, Mendez-Laing crossing beyond everybody inside the area, inadvertently finding Kenzo Goudmijn just beyond the corner of the six-yard box. His half-volley looked as though it was going to cause Grimshaw grave danger, had it not been for a headed intervention from Mumba.  

Down the other end, the Pilgrims were struggling to find that final ball, both Wright and Obafemi having moments where, if their lay-offs had been better, their teammates would have had the chance to test Jacob Zetterström in the Derby net.  

When Whittaker was bundled down clumsily by Mendez-Laing, who had scampered back to defend, and a free-kick was awarded just over 25-yards out, there was a sense of anticipation as Randell placed the ball down and began pacing backwards with the goal at his mercy. 

He stepped-up and hammered the ball with the inside of his right-foot, a deflection off the head of Yates wrong-footing Zetterström, and the ball looped into the back of the vacant net, the goalkeeper helpless.  

The skipper wheeled away in celebration, tongue-out, towards the erupting away-end. He’d marked his return from injury with a goal, his first this campaign, an important time in the game for Argyle to hit back. 

Derby nearly responded quickly when Mumba lost his footing on the halfway line, Goudmijn forayed forward and dragged a shot narrowly wide of the far post from distance.  

Mendez-Laing was proving dangerous from set-pieces and came close to creating something for his side once again early in the second half.  

His curled cross forced a punched clearance from Grimshaw, which only went as far as Jackson inside the area. The winger’s wild strike nestled amongst a crowd of bodies inside the Argyle six-yard box and was promptly cleared by a green shirt.  

Yates was clearly in the mood on Saturday afternoon, forcing an excellent save from Grimshaw just after the hour mark after a courageous effort from inside his own half. 

A pair of Derby changes followed, with Marcus Harness and Ben Osborn taking the places of Wilson and Goudmijn. This also meant a change in formation from Paul Warne, a back four to a back three.   

Rooney responded with a duo of changes himself, Issaka and Hardie replacing Wright and Bundu. The formation also diverted from a 4-3-3 to more of a 4-4-2, Hardie and Obafemi now leading the line. 

Chances from both Harness and Osborn came close to calling Grimshaw into action as the change in personnel and system from both sides appeared to have acted as the catalyst for a period of pressure from the Rams.  

Rooney’s tactical change was swiftly reversed, Obafemi was brought off and on came Forshaw to shore things up in the centre of the pitch.  

Derby brought on wildcard Dajaune Brown with just over ten minutes left to play, in an attempt to give their side a different attacking dynamic on the left. 

Warne’s side remained in the ascendency as the final whistle drew closer, both Nathaniel Phillips and Curtis Nelson had headed efforts come close to crossing Argyle’s goal-line.   

After struggling away from home in the months past, Rooney’s side can take great pride in the fact that they battled well in the final moments to ensure they brought a point back to Home Park with them. 

Now, we head into another international break, time for rest and recuperation for all at Argyle ahead of the hectic Christmas schedule. 

Argyle: 31 Daniel Grimshaw, 2 Bali Mumba, 5 Julio Pleguezuelo, 6 Kornel Szucs, 10 Morgan Whittaker, 11 Callum Wright (68, 35 Freddie Issaka), 14 Michael Obafemi (78, 27 Adam Forshaw), 15 Mustapha Bundu (68, 9 Ryan Hardie), 18 Darko Gyabi, 20 Adam Randell (capt), 29 Matthew Sorinola (91, 44 Victor Palsson). Substitutes: 25 Marko Marosi (gk), 3 Nathanael Ogbeta, 4 Jordan Houghton, 19 Andre Gray, 28 Rami Al Hajj. 

Goals: Randell 41 

Booked: Bundu 42, Sorinola 65, Mumba 68, Grimshaw 85 

Derby: 1 Jacob Widell Zetterström, 2 Kane Wilson (64, 18 Marcus Harness), 3 Craig Forsyth, 10 Jerry Yates, 11 Nathaniel Mendez-Laing (capt) (78, 39 Dajaune Brown), 12 Nathaniel Phillips, 16 Liam Thompson, 17 Kenzo Goudmijn (64, 8 Ben Osborn), 19 Kayden Jackson, 32 Ebou Adams, 35 Curtis Nelson. Substitutions: 31 Josh Vickers (gk), 5 Sonny Bradley, 7 Tom Barkhuizen, 9 James Collins, 23 Joe Ward, 27 Corey Blackett-Taylor  

Goals: Yates 8  

Booked: Jackson 57 

Referee: Simon Hooper  

Attendance: 29,652 (1,900 est)