Middlesbrough (A) | Foster's Reaction

Argyle produced the consummate away performance to win 2-0 at Middlesbrough on Saturday afternoon.

Goals from Matty Sorinola and Ryan Hardie took the Greens into a two-goal by half-time, and a comfortable second-half performance guided them to three valuable points.

Argyle’s first half was virtually perfection. They pushed Middlesbrough deep into Boro’s own territory, and frequently stole the ball high up the field.

Argyle took the lead when Darko Gyabi curled a goalward shot which goalkeeper Tom Glover palmed out, but only to where Matty Sorinola was lurking, and the wing-back followed in to put the Greens ahead.

The second followed just after the hour mark. Gyabi was involved again, releasing Ryan Hardie, who calmly cut onto his right foot and slotted home.

If anything about the opening 45 was imperfect, it was that Argyle probably should have been further clear, with several chances to add a third not taken.

After the break, Middlesbrough rallied a little, but Argyle were disciplined, calm and comfortable, seeing the game out with a minimum of fuss.

Head Coach Ian Foster was naturally delighted with the outcome.

“I thought we were excellent,” he said. “I thought it was a perfect away performance.  My only criticism of the players at half-time was that we weren't ruthless enough.

“We created umpteen chances in the first half; I don't think [Middlesbrough] had a shot on target. We're really pleased. It shows the players and everybody else what we're capable of.

“I was quite critical at half-time for not finishing them off, really. I thought we could have put the game to bed in the first 45 minutes. We were that good.

“We knew they'd try and play first-line passes. We wanted to be aggressive. We wanted to play on the front foot. We spoke about it being an opportunity to score rather than an out-of-possession high-press strategy. I thought it worked particularly well; the players applied it brilliantly. They stuck together.

“The second half performance: the tactical discipline, the ability to hit teams on the break, the ability to be a goal threat and limit the opposition to no shots on target.

“It’s probably the most complete performance since I've been here.”

The wins comes off the back of back-to-back home defeats, without a goal. The contrast was stark, with Argyle not only winning and controlling the game, but creating numerous chances, especially in the first half.

Foster spoke of the mentality within the group of players, responding to a setback so quickly, but also promised that no-one would be getting carried away.

The week ahead see a rare gap in the middle, with no fixture, before Ipswich Town are the visitors to Home Park on Saturday. Foster is looking ahead to that game, but not before he and his players get a chance to recover.

He said: “The first thing is rest; the players need a little break. They've been terrific; they've been constantly in, they've been constantly getting messages, they've been constantly getting tactical and technical information - and they need a breather.

“The games have come thick and fast. We know it's a massive game for us next weekend, but for now it's rest, it's recuperation, it's implementing our recovery strategies and then we'll go again.

“The most important thing is that we stick together, so we don't get too excited when we win and we don't get too disappointed when we lose. That's our mentality. We stick together; we ignore all the noise. We know as a group of people what we're capable of, and we showed it today, which is excellent.”

Almost 1,000 travelling supporters witnessed Argyle's win, with some of them setting off from Devon or Cornwall at a time when plenty of Friday night revellers were just turning in. Foster tipped his proverbial hat to the Green Army, saying: "They deserve it. Goodness knows what time they've left this morning.

"They've been brilliant, whether it's been Sunderland, Huddersfield, Leeds or here, they get on the bus, they travel and they get behind us. They recognise moments in the game where we need them and - thank goodness - we've given them some to sing and shout about."