Swansea City (H) | Match Preview
The Game
Argyle v Swansea City. Home Park. Saturday, 7 October. 3pm. Sky Bet Championship.
The Opposition
Swansea failed to win any of their first seven games of the Championship season - but they have won their last three.
After draws with Birmingham City, Coventry City and Queens Park Rangers, and losses against West Bromwich Albion, Preston North End, Bristol City and rivals Cardiff City, Swansea's luck changed at home to struggling Sheffield Wednesday, whom they beat 3-0.
That was followed by a 3-0 win at Millwall and then, on Wednesday night, a 2-1 win against Norwich City.
The Gaffer
Michael Duff took over at Swansea in the summer, following Russell Martin's departure to Southampton.
As a player, Duff had an extraordinary career. He moved up through several divisions with first club Cheltenham Town, from the Southern Premier Division up to League One, playing over 300 times.
He moved to Burnley, and played for them for over a decade, mostly in the Championship, but did spend two non-consecutive seasons with the Clarets in the Premier League. He played 383 times for Burnley, and also won 24 caps for Northern Ireland.
His first managerial job was back at Cheltenham, with whom he won the League Two title in 2020/21. In 2021/22 Cheltenham finished 15th in League Two, their highest ever finish, but Duff departed to Barnsley in the summer. Last season, his only one with the Tykes, he guided them to the play-off final, which they lost in extra-time to Sheffield Wednesday.
The Squad
Jamal Lowe (below) has scored in each of the last three games, all of which Swansea have won. Currently on loan from Bournemouth, Lowe's story is an interesting one. He was 23 and playing for Hemel Hempstead when spotted by Portsmouth, where he spent two-and-a-half seasons before moving to Wigan Athletic. He moved to Swansea in 2020, and scored 14 goals in a single season, before being picked up by Bournemouth. With the Cherries, though, he found a starting berth hard to come by, and the second half of last season at QPR, and is now back at the Swans.
Lowe is the joint top goalscorer with Jerry Yates. Yates signed for around £2.5m from Blackpool in the summer. Another player who was at Blackpool last season was Charlie Patino. The 19-year-old Arsenal man was borrowed to the Seasiders last term, and now is on loan at Swansea. He thought to be a huge prospect for the Gunners.
Fancy a Stat?
The last time Argyle, Morgan Whittaker scored a hat-trick. It was, however, for Swansea, as they won 4-1 in the Carabao Cup.
The History
Argyle have played Swansea 95 times. The Greens have won 36 of those encounters, 19 have been draws, and Swansea have won the other 40.
The last league meetings between the sides were in the 2009/10 season. Swansea won 1-0 at home, before a 1-1 draw at Home Park later in the season.
Tickets
If you have a season ticket and cannot attend, you can make your ticket available via the Ticket Exchange and receive face value credit if your ticket is resold. Find out more about the Ticket Exchange.
Argyle TV
Argyle TV’s pre-match show, hosted by Erin Black and Ian Stonebridge, will begin at 6.45pm, and is available to watch for free on YouTube.
Commentary for the game will be provided by Charlie Price and Katie Middleton.
Domestic supporters can listen to audio commentary on Argyle TV, while international supporters can buy a match pass to watch the game, here.
Kick it Out
Saturday's game will be our Kick It Out dedicated fixture with various activity taking place to ensure football continues to provide a safe, welcoming and inclusive environment.
Kick It Out will be celebrating their 30th anniversary and this weekend's game will mark that milestone and the work the organisation has already done, but also continues to do.
We ask the Green Army to support all activity throughout the day and ensure Home Park is a welcoming environment for everyone in attendance.
