Matete Looks Back

Jay Matete arrived at Argyle in unusual fashion.

He joined the squad the night before the Greens’ away game at Bolton Wanderers, and was quickly thrust into action the following day, as a substitute in a 0-0 draw.

It seemed not to faze the all-action midfielder, though, and served as a microcosm of the whole season. Matete, in on loan from Sunderland, was joining an Argyle side top of Sky Bet League One, and he needed to slot in seamlessly.

He did, and speaking to Argyle TV having finished his loan spell with the League One champions, he credits a welcoming environment for the transition.

“I came into a winning culture,” said Jay. “I've enjoyed it a lot. Every time I stepped on the pitch, I just tried to embrace it, and enjoy it.

“I love winning, so I felt like I fitted in quite well within the group. Demands are high within the players, the staff, everyone. It was just about me maintaining my own standards and not trying to let anyone down.

“It was unreal. Honestly, it's unreal. When I first came in, I got introduced to everyone, I was maybe a bit nervous, but they just brought me into the changing room, everyone was cool with me. I’ve met some teammates there that I’ll probably speak to for a long time.

“The goal when I signed was to get promoted – and we won the league. Objective: completed.”

Matete’s home debut, a 4-2 win against Cheltenham Town, saw the midfielder provide a memorable assist for Sam Cosgrove, and he scored his only Argyle goal in a 3-1 win at Morecambe. However, when pressed for a highlight during his time as a Pilgrim, Jay selected a game in which he only played 35 minutes.

What a performance it was, though. Matete came off the bench with Argyle a goal down against Derby County at Home Park, live on Sky TV, and was an inspiration as the Greens turned the game around and won 2-1. Jay was voted as man of the match that night, and it is a game that was at the forefront of his mind when asked to recall his top moments.

“I really enjoyed Derby,” he said. “For some reason that one sticks in my mind. It was sold out, a Tuesday night. I came on and I thought I made a big impact that day and I really enjoyed it. Derby felt good. The atmosphere was rocking that day and I was just fired up.”

The four months that Jay spent with Argyle were clearly happy ones for him, and he now has a second straight promotion from League One on his CV, following a play-off final victory with Sunderland the season prior.

Summing up his spell, he said: “I’ve loved it. I'll say it probably exceeded expectations.

“There's some big hitters in League One; big, big players on big wages elsewhere, and their expectations are probably to get automatics. Here, maybe it was playoffs, I don't know. But I would say we've exceeded it. We've done well. We've won the league, we’re the best team in the league, so everyone here should be proud of themselves.”