Match Report : 11/03/2017

Bradley 69, Carey 74

by Rick Cowdery

Then, Bradley’s sixth goal of the season – all with his head – in the 69th minute and Carey’s free-kick five minutes later secured the Pilgrims their 11th  away win of the campaign. They have worked no harder for any of them.

Adams had made two changes from the side beaten by Blackpool at Home Park in midweek, one up front and one at the back.

On-loan Cardiff City forward Matty Kennedy was ruled out through injury, leading to a recall for Jordan Slew, after ten games on the substitutes’ bench, to the scene of probably his best game as a Pilgrim and possibly his greatest career goal – the opener in Argyle’s 2-1 Emirates FA Cup win at One Call Stadium on Guy Fawkes Day.

The other recall was for Czech defender Jakub Sokolik, who resumed his centre-back partnership with ever-present Sonny Bradley, allowing Yann Songo’o to yo-yo back to central defensive midfield. Ryan Donaldson, who had occupied that position against the Tangerines, retained his place in the side, moving to the right side of midfield and relegating Jake Jervis from the starting 11.

The Pilgrims’ starting line-up showed five differences from the one that had begun the November cup-tie, as did that of their hosts. Mansfield had also changed manager in the interim, Steve Evans coming in after the dismissal of Adam Murray.

The most notable name on the Stags’ team sheet was that of forward Alex MacDonald, who scored six goals in 35 appearances for Argyle in 2012 at the beginning of a career which has since taken in Burton and Oxford, who he left in the January transfer-window to continue his affinity with the colour yellow.

MacDonald almost caught his former employers napping in the opening minutes, sprinting into space to seize on to a quickly-taken free-kick before composing himself and firing in a shot low to Luke McCormick’s near post that the Argyle ’keeper saved well. The move set the pattern for the first half. 

McCormick’s alertness was tested soon afterwards as Mansfield sought to hit the Pilgrims with speed of thought and sharpness of movement. Their top pin, Matt Green, chased down Sokolik, facing his own goal, forced him into an imprecise header back to the Greens’ custodian and then nipped in to volley a chip goalwards that McCormick clawed away with the tips of his fingers.

After soaking it up, Argyle started to make some decent headway and nearly went ahead when Donaldson won two free-kicks in quick succession. The first was too far away to make decent use of although the second saw Carey send an exquisite shot curling over the defensive wall that left Stags’ goalkeeper Scott Shearer flat-footed but drifted just wide of the goal.

Mansfield, though, looked the more potent, and Ben Whiteman twice found himself in more space than he should have been afforded, but wasted the opportunities by failing to find the target on either occasion. Centre-back Krystian Pearce did send a header from a corner goalwards, but McCormick was squarely behind the rather tame effort.

Mansfield’s pace and eye for a break continued to cause problems for Argyle and, when CJ Hamilton caught them on their heels ten minutes before the break, Sokolik was obliged to take direct action. His cynically calculated foul summarily halted the danger and earned him a yellow card which, on another day, might have been red. MacDonald’s free-kick beat the wall, but not McCormick. 

Argyle limped to the interval, literally in the case of Ryan Taylor and Gary Sawyer, who had suffered knocks during the testing first half, without suffering any more scares and hoping, no doubt, that they had drawn the sting from their eager hosts. 

Taylor failed to show for the second 45 minutes, with fellow Yorkie Jimmy Spencer replacing him in a like-for-like exchange but the switch did little, initially, to alter the pattern of the match.

After a quiet spell following the resumption, Mansfield sprang into life and, when Hamilton got  ahead on MacDonald’s cross at the far post, it needed all the experience and anticipation of McCormick to keep the ball out of the goal. That was followed by an excellently timed tackle from Sokolik to not only prevent a possibly fatal Stags attack, but also to avoid a sending-off. 

MacDonald sent a speculative shot into McCormick’s near post before Jervis was sent on in place of Slew. Imperceptibly, Argyle began to make gentle headway, with Carey moving into the middle and getting on the ball a lot more.

He was moved off it by Hamilton after dropping a shoulder and heading for the penalty area. It looked like the collision had happened inside the box but referee Richard Clark ruled otherwise.

No matter. Carey curled a left-foot shot towards the far post, where Bradley’s only competitor for the ball was his own team-mate Songo’o, and Bradley was not for being beaten to the wonderful delivery by anyone.

Carey continued to be central to the Pilgrims’ revival. Literally. Within five minutes from architecting the breakthrough, he gave Argyle the breathing space that had barely seemed possible for the first hour.

When he was poleaxed by Pearce in front of goal 25 yards out, there was no doubt that he would bounce up to take the kick himself, and there was only marginally more doubt that he would have the beating of Shearer. This time, the ball was on target.

Goals change matches, for sure; two of them so closely together doubled that effect. Argyle appeared to have an extra yard in their legs, Mansfield a yard less in theirs.

Gary Miller was sent on for his first appearance since Anfield to shore things up, and they saw the game out with calm to a continual chorus of Twist ’n’ Shout.

Shake it up, baby.

Mansfield Town (4-2-3-1): 1 Scott Shearer; 16 Hayden White, 5 Krystian Pearce, 2 Rhys Bennett, 3 Mal Benning; 4 Lee Collins (capt, 7 Shaquile Coulthirst 76), 26 Joel Byrom; 18 Alex MacDonald (8 Alfie Potter 84), 28 Ben Whiteman, 22 CJ Hamilton; 10 Matt Green (32 Danny Rose 76). Substitutes (not used): 11 James Baxendale, 12 Brian Jensen (gk), 17 Yoann Arquin, 24 Jamie McGuire. 

Booked: Pearce 74.

Argyle (4-2-3-1): 23 Luke McCormick (capt); 18 Oscar Threlkeld, 31 Jakub Sokolik, 15 Sonny Bradley, 3 Gary Sawyer; 4 Yann Songo’o, 24 David Fox (2 Gary Miller 88); 11 Ryan Donaldson, 10 Graham Carey, 8 Jordan Slew (14 Jake Jervis 62); 14 Ryan Taylor (9 Jimmy Spencer half-time). Substitutes (not used): 5 Nauris Bulvitis, 13 Nathan Blissett, 21 Vincent Dorel, 27 Craig Tanner.

Booked: Sokolik 34, Donaldson 80.

Referee: Richard Clark.

Attendance: 4,546 (657 away).