Jenkins Davies' Cheltenham Reaction

Will Jenkins Davies augmented a strong personal week by grabbing two goals as Argyle Under-18s beat Cheltenham Town 3-0 in the first round of the FA Youth Cup.

The attacking midfielder rose to head the Pilgrims in front, then followed up from close range to double his tally and Argyle’s lead.

Jenkins Davies also scored twice when the sides met in a league tie earlier in the season, but confessed that the headed goal was a bit of a collector’s item.

“I scored a header against these at the start of the season!” he said. “I don’t know how it happened again. I think it’s my only two headers in five years! It was a good feeling to see it go into the back of the net.

The brace came four days after Will started for the Argyle in the Emirates FA Cup tie at Grimsby, following several involvements in the first team this season.

Still an Under-18s player, but with a professional contract and a foot in the first-team camp, Jenkins Davies is uniquely placed to point out how the senior side can positively influence the next generation.

“Everything we’re doing, we base it round the first team” said Will. “We look up to them, everyone looks at players in their own position and idolises them, tries to do what they are doing.

“As a collective, we need to have the same goals. We look up to them and try to replicate what they are doing.”

The victory over Cheltenham, which has earned Argyle a second-round tie against Gillingham, was relatively comfortable, but Will feels standards are so high at the football club that even a 3-0 victory should not automatically mean contentment.

“It’s a good feeling to get the goals, keep a clean sheet and get through,” he said.

“I thought the performance could have definitely been a lot better. We could have kept the ball a lot more, especially second half. We stopped keeping it simple.

“I feel like we’ve got to demand more. That’s the level the club is at. The first team are flying, top of the league. Us winning 3-0 at this point is not enough. We need to keep the ball better than that, get more goals and punish teams.

“All-in-all, we are through to the next round, so we’ll take that as a positive.

“We’ll travel to Gillingham and it’s going to be a tough game. We’ll do our homework on them and we’ll know what to expect. I really want to progress in this competition; it’s my last Youth Cup, and we’ll give everything we can through to the next round.”