Edwards and Dewsnip Preview Cardiff City (A)
The nature of the way the dates fall during this festive period means a series of short gaps between fixtures for Argyle, and indeed all teams in the Sky Bet Championship.
Straight after Saturday’s to-and-fro 3-3 draw, Director of Football Neil Dewsnip and Argyle captain Joe Edwards spoke about what goes into preparations for Boxing Day’s trip to Cardiff City.
“The players will be in [Christmas Eve] for a recovery session and then off home to see their families,” said Neil. “They'll meet up again Christmas evening and we'll plan and prepare at the hotel in Cardiff.
“I think if you're a football fanatic - I guess I would be in that category - then Boxing Day is a major day, isn't it? It's like the first day of the season. The games are always exciting. You get some crazy scores all around the country.”
“It's our busiest period, so we're going to do everything right,” said Joe. “We're in the cryo chambers, ice baths and everything, ready to go and recovering as best as we can.
“I'm used to it now, so I do enjoy it. Your family's always around, you have people coming to watch you, and I know it's a special time for fans. It's hard for the players, don't get me wrong, it's hard for a lot of them away from families, but we've got a great team here that we're all together. A Boxing Day win is always, I find, very special.”
Cardiff are 10th in the division, with 10 wins and 10 defeats from their 23 games. Argyle will head there searching for their first away win of the season so far, but Joe says that good results against Queens Park Rangers and Rotherham United, before the Birmingham draw, give confidence heading across the Severn.
“It's going to be a tough game; in the Championship, they're all tough games,” he said. “They've had a really good season so far. They're probably very happy about how they've been doing this year. We know we're going to have to go into it fully prepared, fully focused, and we'll make sure that the boys are ready.
“We've got a belief inside of us. We're on a little unbeaten run now, which is great for us, and we want to build on that and take our ‘A’ game to Cardiff.
“To have that little belief after the week we've had is something special to have and to be proud of. We can we can go into Cardiff full of confidence and really pushing to get a good result.”
For Dewsnip, and first-team coach Kevin Nancekivell, the task is to swiftly shift focus to the Bluebirds, and to pick a side they feel is capable of getting a result in the Welsh capital.
Dewsnip said: “Our analysts have just thrown a load of stuff at me - my homework, if you like - so I'll have a really good look at them. Nance is doing the same, we'll come up with a plan and we'll be ready.
“Some of the lads who didn't start [against Birmingham] will be chomping at the bit, I'm sure, to get a go. We'll have a good chat, myself and Nance, and come up with the team that we think will give us the best chance.”
