Lee's Shock Debut

LEE Cox may very well be the first outfield player to ever represent Plymouth Argyle for an entire game, without having visited Home Park yet.

In fact, Lee did not even make to Plymouth before getting kitted up and being placed in the Pilgrims midfield.

Owned by Swindon Town, Lee was allowed to leave the Robins once the loan window reopened on February 7, and a deal was swiftly done to allow him to join Argyle.

Rather than have him do some unnecessary travelling on Friday, though, the Argyle team coach found Lee waiting at the side of motorway, boots in hand, en route to their game at Aldershot.

He settled in well, though, and played a vital part in Argyle’s crucial 2-1 victory at the EBB Stadium.

“I literally heard about it on Thursday,” said Lee. “I got told to get my boots ready for the game, because I was going to playing a part. I didn’t know if I would be starting, but I definitely knew I was playing a part. It was a bit of a shock.

“To save me from coming to Plymouth on the Friday, I got picked up, so that helped me out a lot.

“It was difficult. I know Ronan [Murray] and Brano [Guy Branston], so they got me settled in. It was hard to know names, but once you’re on the pitch, you all know the football language.

“I think I’ve still got a bit to go towards fitness. I’ve not been having the hardest regime in training at Swindon, so I know, when I’m 100%, and I’ve got a bit to go. I’ll put in a bit extra in training next week and be ready for the game.

“It’s what I need. I’m up for the challenge. Every 90 minutes I play, I’ll give my all and get some tackles in. I’m excited for the challenge and ready to go.

“[Argyle] play at an impressive stadium, and the fans today were unreal. That was a bit of a shock  – seeing how many fans came to Aldershot. It’s good stuff. If they carry on like that, I’m sure they’ll inspire us to more wins.

“It was a scrappy game – the ball was in the air, more than on the floor – but sometimes those games come about, especially in a bottom-of-the-league clash. I think everyone dealt with that well. I know I’ve only been for one game, but I could see everybody wanted to win it.

“From first impressions, there’s some good honest boys here. Defensively we did well, and obviously, with it being a scrappy game, you can’t really what we can do going forward.

“We had little spells, but we’ll see more in the week in training and hopefully next week [against Oxford United].”