Lowry looking for response against Forest Green

Argyle Under-18s will look to bounce back this weekend when facing Forest Green Rovers in Youth Alliance League action at Millennium Fields.

The Greens suffered a 3-0 defeat away to Portsmouth earlier in the week and will look to return to winning ways when facing the Gloucestershire side on Saturday morning.

Earlier in the season, Argyle claimed three points with a 4-2 victory over Rovers, with a brace from Tegan Finn and goals from Harry Shield and Fletcher Poole. A win will help bring the Greens closer to fourth-place Gillingham, who currently sit six points ahead in the Southern table.

Head Coach Jamie Lowry was disappointed in the manner in which his team lost on Tuesday afternoon but hopes it can prove to be a big learning chance for the young side. 

“I was very disappointed,” Lowry told Argyle TV. “It was an opportunity to go there and perform well, but it played out as maybe one of those ‘end of season’ games. We’ve had lots of highs this season and lots of good moments, however, with all the distance and travel, and getting the boys out of school, in terms of under-16s [in the squad], it was a little bit of a nothing performance, where we didn't really give a good account of ourselves.

“We weren’t at the standards and expectations of what we've set so far this season and it's something we spoke about in length after the game. There’s a way to lose, in terms of performance, effort levels, competitiveness, self-personality and being winners, you can accept that we might make mistakes. However, our intensity in possession, willingness to run, play forward, compete and fight wasn't there.

“It’s a big learning curve no matter where you go. Whether they're mid-table, bottom of the league or top of league, we have to have the right mentality and the right attitude going towards a game, and have the basics and foundations.”

Despite the result against Portsmouth, Lowry believes his side can deal with a physical opposition and pick up a similar result to last against Rovers, with the tie being at home for the first time in six matches for Argyle.

He said: “The last game against them was very difficult. They're doing well in the league and have a big group of second years, so that physicality and experience compared to maybe ourselves, where we’ve recently been a lot younger, is something the boys will have to deal with. It’ll be a good game and is nice to be back at home, which I think is really important in terms of building momentum to the end of the season.

“I guess it's about taking advantage of the home games, and I think that's been a big part of our season. We've been very good at home. Teams also don't like to travel down here, so that's a psychological battle for us to start with. 

“It would be nice to get some good home performances [to end the season]. We know the pitch and know how to play it, and having a bit of backing from parents and supporters helps. It's really important that we go and set our standards and do the basics right going into Saturday’s game.”