Academy Preview | Newport County (H)

Argyle’s Under-18 side are back home this Saturday, 21 January (11am) as they face Newport County in the Youth Alliance League, at Millennium Fields.

The last time these two teams faced each other was at the beginning of December, in South Wales, in a game the Young Pilgrims dominated and won by a comfortable 6-0 margin. So far in this New Year, Newport have one draw and one loss in their tally, the latter coming against another Devon side, Exeter City.

Manager Darren Way shared his thoughts on the game ahead of the fixture, including how his team will approach the game, following a 2-2 draw against Oxford United last week.

“Newport will be a tough challenge,” way said. “They’re always committed, they always work hard. They've been on a run of results where they've conceded a few goals, but we have got to make sure we give them respect. We went there and played him at their place, and it was a successful outcome, but we've just got made sure we are consistent in our performances.”

The Greens come into the game in good form, currently on a run of eight unbeaten games. They have not lost since November, against Portsmouth. This streak has allowed Argyle to sit second in the Youth Alliance League table with 31 points, just two points away from leaders Bournemouth.

Way said: “We’ve got four games to go, and we've got something to play for. There are three teams that are in the race: ourselves, Portsmouth and Bournemouth. It's going to be a real competitive edge towards the end of the season and we're looking forward to it.

“I think it's good for the players’ development to play with that added pressure of winning and knowing that you can't make too many mistakes. We're playing Portsmouth, we're playing Bournemouth, so we've got you to know the teams up with competing against. 

“I know coaches in the league, everyone is competing for it and there are a lot of good players at our level that we're coming up against. The players have enjoyed that challenge so far.

Way also reflected on the season so far and how the team has managed to keep up with consistency and high-level performances despite not having access to the entire squad throughout the season due to injuries, and mainly due to players being in first-team duties.

Many under-18s players have been involved with the first team in one way or another, often in Papa Johns Trophy action, but also in the league and other cup competitions. The future of Argyle looks really promising, with the youngsters showing their desire and ambition to get a chance with the first team and show everyone what they are capable of.

“The margin of error whenever you're competing is very small,” said Way. “We have been talking in detail, in terms of preparation, and have treated every team the same. Some players have put in some excellent performance. We have had an unbalanced team in terms of putting in the younger players, certainly when a lot of the 18s were supporting the first team.

“It's pleasing that we have got some of those players back now. I think we've managed it really well this year in terms of players supporting the first team in the Papa Johns, trying to blood younger players into the 18s programme and still being in a real competitive position.

“There is still a lot of work to do. We are working hard and we're all excited with this challenge that's coming up.”