Under-18s Report | Argyle 4 Bournemouth 1
Argyle’s Under-18s kicked off their Professional Development League Cup campaign with a 4-1 victory against Bournemouth on Saturday morning.
In a superb start to the game, Josh Bernard scored in the third minute with Jack Matthews scoring just four minutes later to make it two. Freddie Issaka was back among the goals, scoring a second-half brace to take his tally to six for the season.
After the slow start last weekend in the Devon derby, the Young Pilgrims will have come into this game wanting to ensure they got off to a fast start.
They certainly did that, with Bournemouth perhaps not anticipating the relentless press Darren Way’s side would deploy from the off, the visitors looked to be struggling to match Argyle’s intensity in the opening exchanges.
This proved the case when Bernard gave the Greens the lead after just two minutes. It was his pressing that forced a mistake from the Cherries defence allowing him to steal the ball from them and put it in the back of the net from close range.
The goal did little to help Bournemouth settle into the game but crucially gave Argyle a lift as they’d already reaped the rewards of their hard work. This is perhaps why, just four minutes later, the Bournemouth goalkeeper found himself picking the ball back out of his net again.
This time, Caleb Roberts’ corner was not dealt with by the visitors, causing a scramble in the six-yard box from which Matthews capitalised, poking the ball into the goal from just yards out.
The Greens went on to hit the woodwork three times in the remainder of the first half. With the score still 2-0 at the break, it seemed fortunate that Bournemouth were still in the game, so it was critical Argyle put the game to bed in the second half before they were made to rue their missed chances.
The Young Pilgrims started the second period just as well as they did the first just without the goals to show for it. Joe Hatch ensured the opposition keeper was busy with a flurry of efforts which were all well saved.
Finally, the third goal arrived in the 70th minute, when Issaka spectacularly beat two defenders and was brought down by the third as he forayed into the box. His skill proving too much for the Bournemouth defence to cope with, the referee was left no choice but to award a penalty kick.
Issaka himself dispatched from the spot, firing powerfully into the bottom-left corner, beating the goalkeeper who dived the right way.
It was not long after this that the referee awarded another penalty to Argyle, this time clever play from Roberts drew a foul inside the area.
Issaka once again finished confidently and beat the keeper with power, this time in the bottom-right corner.
Bournemouth got on the scoresheet late on, when their lively winger beat Cole Gibbings for pace and curled the ball around Dan Holman, who had been relatively unchallenged up until this point, making it 4-1.
The win means that Argyle’s Under-18s extend their 100% record to four games, something that they will be looking to hold on to for as long as possible.
Argyle: Dan Holman, Lewis Colwell, Joel Sullivan, Cole Fisher (Tegan Finn 46), Jack Matthews, Cole Gibbings, Freddie Issaka, Caleb Roberts, Joe Hatch, Josh Bernard, Harry Shield. Substitutes not used: Jack Flower, Henry Donovan, Finley Wilkes, Jensen Ireland.
