You Say It Best

Argyle's manager has frequently said he felt his side have players who could score goals; his faith shone through as Argyle went on to win 1-0 thanks to a fantastic Reuben Reid volley.

"[I didn't say] too much because we always know we have got players that can score goals," he said. "We just had to tighten up the midfield and pass the ball more than we did in the first half. I thought we were too direct and gave the ball away in needless positions.

"In the second half we seemed to pass the ball better and after we scored the goal we were on top; Accrington had lost a wee bit of belief. Then they came back in and had another go at the end."

Argyle's boss defended his team selection, which saw Graham Carey and Carl McHugh watch the first half from the bench before coming on for Craig a Tanner and Hiram Boateng at the beginning of the second half.

"Graham's obviously coming back from injury, and Carl is coming back from suspension and injury. He's obviously trying again to get himself suspended as quick as possible," Joked Derek, after Carl's booking on his return from suspension.

"Carey is a very good player for us, but Craig Tanner has done well for us as well. I just felt we needed to change something at half-time to give us that impetus to go forward in the second-half.

"I think we had to nullify the space a wee bit in the second half and we did that. Carl is capable of sitting in that midfield and shoring that up."

Derek felt that the victory against Accrington lacked similarities with the one over Notts County six days earlier.

He said: "I think the two games are always different, but it was another good win for us, another three points and we move on.

"Accrington played well and they are a good side. They are not near the top of the table for nothing. Take nothing away from their performance, but we have come away with a clean sheet and a goal because we have had a very good goalkeeper and a very good striker."

Argyle travel to Oxford on Tuesday night, a fixture which Derek thinks may be tougher than Accrington Stanley's visit today. It will be the league leaders visiting the team in third place. 

"Week on week they [the fixtures] get tougher and tougher and I think that is the nature of the league," he said. "We have got a tough game on Tuesday night away to Oxford."

"That's where we want to try and be, you want to try and win every game. It's a difficult league and where we end up at the end of the season, time will tell, but we have given ourselves a very good start."