I fully agree with the doctrine of 'fine margins and key turning points'. If the classic cliche about promotion teams is ‘the ability to win ugly when not playing well’ then is the opposite the case with relegation candidates - ‘the ability to play well (relatively) and get nothing out of a match’? I really hope not, as that seems to be the pattern for Argyle at the moment. Having attended every match at Home Park this season - and used my iFollow subscription to watch subsequent footage of every minute of every away game so far - I find it difficult to conclude that they are really playing badly enough to be languishing at the bottom of the league.
Now, before the pitchforks and flaming torches come out I will hastily say that obvious failings in defence and the clear inability to hit the target often enough would seem to suggest otherwise. BUT every match I have seen has moments of control, style, shape and domination by an Argyle side that is comprised of players who appear to be passionately fighting for the cause. Of course, those moments are not yet sufficient enough to merit a succession of three pointers. Instead, we seem to be scrabbling about, vainly hoping that our fortunes will change and we can turn things around, much like last season.
In many ways yesterday’s performance typified the pattern of our season so far (and, for that matter, a mirror image of this time last season). A lot of endeavour, moments of class and threat (normally involving Joel Grant, and the TLC triumvirate following the second half substitutions) but despite the huffing and puffing, no points (or even goals) on the board. Having followed Argyle for over half a century (bloody hell!) I am well used to repeatedly poor and mediocre spells where the feeling is that the team could play until midnight without scoring. Those times are invariably associated with sad, no-hope teams and/or a poor management structure and/or in-fighting at board/owner level. I certainly don’t get that feeling here. Yes, the team is struggling to find its rhythm but that’s happened at key stages in every single one of Derek Adam’s seasons. What is equally the case, however, is that he has, by whatever means, managed the peaks and troughs to consistently confound the naysayers. Whether that’s through management skills and talent, pure luck or sheer bloodymindedness, he has improved season upon season. I am not one to go on blind faith alone but sooner or later (sooner, please!) things have got to turn around and a jammy deflection or a goal off someone’s backside could be the catalyst to a complete reversal of form - which, as we know, is temporary, whereas class is permanent. Fingers firmly crossed...
