Complete Football Performance

ARGYLE manager Ryan Lowe hailed a complete performance from his side as the major positive from an excellent 3-0 victory at Swindon Town in the Leasing.com Trophy.

The Pilgrims cruised to the win with first-half goals from Zak Rudden and Joel Grant, backed up by a Joe Riley strike after the break, and it was a triumph that moves the Greens to within a point of qualifying for the next stage of the competition.

After a surprisingly lacklustre display in the 2-2 draw with Scunthorpe on the weekend, which failed to build on the battling 1-0 success at Mansfield seven days earlier, the gaffer was delighted with a return to the style of football he wants to see from the Pilgrims.

Although Swindon will clearly be looking for a response of their own when the two sides meet again in Sky Bet League Two on Saturday, this was a performance to enjoy for Ryan, the players and the Green Army.

“It was a good response, not just because of the result but also because of the football we played,” said the gaffer. “I’ve asked the lads to go back to playing the right style and they did that tonight.

“We played ever so well. We made a few changes to freshen it up and we’ve come up against a Swindon team that is a good team, they like to play.

“We know it’s going to be a different game on Saturday but to come here on their turf and dominate in large parts was the complete performance and what I wanted footballing-wise.

“The result is great and scoring three goals, but it was the performance [I wanted]. We need to get back to our patterns of play and playing the style that we’ve been playing.

“At Mansfield, we did it in the first half and then backs-to-the-wall in the second half. On Saturday [against Scunthorpe], it wasn’t great, even though we found ourselves 2-1 up with a minute to go. Tonight was a complete footballing performance.

“It can always be better, we could pass it a bit quicker but, for us, it’s a good win, a good solid performance and I’m pleased.”