Middlesbrough Away today

...that's a long ol' poke innit?

EasyArgyle

Or RyanGreens.

Argyle have gone the way of the UK's air industry by launching their buy online and print at home TicketFast ticketing system. Just like purchasing an airline ticket and printing your boarding card, you can now buy Home tickets online and print out your ticket at home. This saves queuing up at the box office on matchdays or getting your tickets lost in the postal strikes. So another good initiative off the field, though not a new one as other TicketMaster affiliated teams are going the same way.

A Great Big Thumbs Up

Now beyond the superficial cat fighting that's been going on over the Thumbgate incident at Blackpool where Mrs Seip and Mrs Stapleton showed their support of husband and son-in-law whilst be was winning for the opposition whilst being paid to do so by the club he was playing against, who allowed that to happen, who the players did not like and have show their dissatisfaction during the Thumbs Up goal celebration verses Ipswich, which lead to Mrs Seip posting a defending article on Argyle Insider which many supporters think was ill-advised and has now cause more fractions in the club and guarantees that Seip will never return...

Does any other club air its dirty laundry so publicly?
Was Stack wrong to criticise the club and get shipped out as a bad egg?
Will Fletcher et al now follow him?

You Don't Deserve It

Been reading through a thread on a popular Argyle message board in which several posters state that Argyle will never get to the Premier League because the people of Plymouth don't deserve a Premier League club. Due mainly because they don't want to support the Pilgrims and even if riding high (well as high as Argyle have ever gotten) they still don't turn up.

Well I think comments like that do a great disservice to anyone who follows the Greens, basically it says that the last 100+ years of support were worth nothing, and today's supporters might as well pack up and go home as the dream should never ever come to fruition. But that's exactly what many have realised over the last 100+ years - their support is worth little as the club has never amounted to much, and continually looks like it never will.

If the people of Plymouth don;t want to follow Argyle then that's frankly their business, but those that do deserve something surely?

Better?

Plymouth Argyle 1 - 1 Ipswich Town

Well it wasn't three points against the bottom of the table team, though at second bottom whoppie woo, and it wasn't a loss, but did the New World's new world actually do anything? For one the bench was animated with Mariner bossing the players, ok sometimes they didn't listen, but the stupid mistake once again caused the downfall. And Sturrock's take on the situation? It was a zany game and we looked leggy at the end. Not much of a surprise there, though he did say 'no more zany defending' after Bristol. At least we can blame the referee again for this one, especially the red card incident. But Sturrock has bought himself more time, again - in fact judging by Todd's quotes he is definitely here for the duration no matter what.

The Way Forward

Official Club Statement following Friday's press conference states that all the club's coaching staff have not had their contracts renewed at the end of the season. Including Luggy's.

Paul Sturrock's contract expires at the end of the season and all options are still open as to what his relationship with the club will be then, or if any earlier change needs to be made during the season.

However Luggy is still in full charge for the rest of the season at least but there is possibility that he will move to a Director of Football role (though not called Director of Football) next year. The appointment of Mariner is just a building block on the way with the possibility for more ex-Argyle related people returning (Coughlan has been rumoured). All part of the New World 5 year plan (not to be confused with any other 5 year plan), because for one this includes a World Cup bid.

Something new or nothing new?

By the way, why are Argyle obsessed with the name Paul?

Was it Actually Summerfield's Fault?

Now that Summerfield has departed, along with Luggy's other backroom staff not having their contracts renewed, was it actually Summerfield's fault that we're in the position we're in?

For many of the games the dugout has been criticised as being very quiet with no action, Luggy regularly stood around with his hands in his pockets and from time to time Summers would be the one shouting the odds. Luggy has now said that he enjoys working with Mariner and not having to delegate training to another man. So Luggy basically left Summers to do all the training, and all the matchday work too. Did Summers also pick the teams? Who gave the talks at half time?

If so then this absolves Luggys of responsibility whilst making him seen the scapegoat for taking the flack for the team's bad performance. However as manager, is it not his responsibility to take responsibility?

Hear No, Speak No, See No...

The three monkeys of Todd, Stapleton and Gardener (and the rest) have collective mass blindness to all that's happening at Home Park. Their tenure so far, heralded as New World has been more Third World and have lost a lot of the Green Army. They have done their best to bring fans to the club with the ticket prices and buses etc, but quite frankly it's (as Alex Polizzi would say) putting a cherry on a turd. The looking ahead to 2018 is now farcical when the bread and butter of daily life has gone mouldy and it's hard to see how this is going to change.

No one - fans and media alike - seems to have the wherewithal to want to do anything collectively about it. The falling attendances at HP are a sign that people will no longer put up with it - and listening now to BBC Radio Devon's moan- oops! phone-in, the consensus of opinion is that Sturrock should go. Other clubs would be holding public displays by now (how long has the Ashley affair gone on at Newcastle?) and yet the Green Army sit on their hands in fear of being branded a bad supporter. (Mind you how close have the Toon Army come to getting Ashley out?). The Herald have used the angle of "growing pressure" on Sturrock for weeks with no outcome, are they running scared of being banished once again from HP? Likewise BBC South West and ITV West.

This article and last night's commentary by Rock Cowdrey show that the club cannot see further than the end of their noses, Sturrock's match reactions do the same thing whilst churning out the same mantra and excuses. And as for Mariner, the poor guy is probably wondering what the hell he's got himself in to. And it will be very unfair of the Green Army to pin all their hopes on him.

Sacked

Southgate, not Sturrock, from a team 4th from top because of falling attendances and a poor home form, whilst the cockroach who can survive a nuclear war in charge of a team at 23rd is able to continue his merry way and impose his way or the highway over new Head Coach, keep his woeful defence coach who is blamed for every match and just as poor goalkeeping coach who has done nothing to improve Le Keeper during his tenure at the Greens. Pantomime season is in full swing at Plymouth.

1 Minute

Bristol City 3 - 1 Plymouth Argyle

It took 1 minute from watching Sky Sports News and seeing that Argyle were 1-0 down to walking in the other room to relay the news, coming back and finding them at 1-1 then repeating it all again for 3-1 down. Now obviously it didn't happen that quickly, and SSN obviously hadn't updated every graphic quickly, but there was a minutes hope there followed by a resignation of fate that has become so familiar. There really is no reason to say anything because it is all blatantly laid before us and most can see except for the board and Luggy himself, but hey Paul Mariner the Nu-Saviour is here and my god is a lot of hope riding on him. The poor guy.

Happy Mariner

Argyle have confirmed that ex player, Paul Mariner will be appointed Head Coach following his resignation from his US job. Tricky one to see what one earth is going to happen here and why. Sturrock is still in over all charge, and has blamed everyone except himself resulting in Summerfield's departure. Though defensive coach John Sloop Blackley should really have gone too. So how will Mariner coming in doing things Sturrock's way help at all?

Marcel Seip

Will never play for that man again and is delighted to have scored on Saturday. And in all honesty, I can't blame him. He's been expunged from Argyle's official site already and he's only on loan. Hopefully should Sturrock go he may consider staying for the new man.

Blame it on the Boogie

Don't blame it on my tactics, don't blame it on my substitutions, don't blame it on my man management skills, don't blame it on me, blame it on the coach trip. That's right the professional players who should be at the peak of fitness got tired on the 10 hour journey to Blackpool and following what must have been a night on the town rather than an early night, were too tired to bother to play football. Well fuck me Sturrock, some of the older element of Coach 1 have more stamina than your boys, don't give us that shit as we have to make the same journey to every away game.

As sure as Eggs is Eggs

Blackpool 2 - 0 Plymouth Argyle

Well you can't get much more fucked than this can you? Useless Sturrock allowed a loan player to score a goal against us verses the ex manager. As sure as the sun rises every day the odds were on for a big loss and so it happens. Back to usual losing ways and ain;t happy at all that the one who should be gone is still here. Let's see what crap he comes out with in tomorrow's (today's!) press.

1st Managerial Casualty

The axe has fallen on the first managerial role at Argyle this week with Kevin Summerfield given the chop when his contract will not be renewed at the end of the year. Summerfield has been Luggy's number 2 since 2001 at Southampton, Wednesday, Swindon as well as Argyle. Sturrock will continue to be in charge, which will annoy a number of Argyle fans as surely he should bear the brunt of criticism first, though it is rumoured that Summers sacking is pathing the way for Paul Mariner's return to the club in a managerial position next year. Summerfield Snr's departure will now put a light on Summerfield Jnr's position at the club too, especially as he is currently out on loan and not a fan's favourite.

A Little bit of Spice

Sturrock says that Seip HAS to play against us on Saturday 1) to give the game an added edge; 2) because he'd never have gone on load if the clause to not play was not removed; and 3) he hasn't played many games and playing for the Seasiders will allow interested parties to have a look at him.

So
1) given that the game is against Argyle's worst enemy (sic) I hardly think it needs an edge, given that Holloway has taken Blackpool to the top of the table whilst Sturrock has dropped Argyle like a stone.
2) why the hell has he gone on loan in the first place? A part from a severe dislike by Sturrock, a fall out in the dressing room, he is now the second most hated man at Home Park (sic). Especially as our Centre Backs are now all injured.
3) Seip's a gonner as soon as there's an offer.

Basically a load of bull.

Hope in Hell

Well it seems that England (Wales, Scotland) have only put in a half arsed attempt at a bid for the 2018 World Cup. FIFA have already got their guns out at the FA that England has no "God given right" to host football and the FA seriously need to raise their game. Not really surprising, FIFA don't really like the UK. Even so, it takes the sparkle off any Back the Plymouth Bid. 2018 is a pipe dream for Argyle at the moment in the setting up of a South West bid to host the games that no one else wants, key being Argyle's new all singing and dancing stadium with buttons on.

2018 has, on the face of it, appeared to be concentrating the board's efforts on the finishing of Home Park, and there doesn't seem to be a hope in hell that Plymouth, even if England are successful, will get anything out of the tournament at all. Therefore, finishing the grandstand, with a view to adding on should be the main focus. But even before that, survival in the Championship is more important.

The Last Laugh?

And so another international break and where are we?

22nd in the table, 2 consecutive wins and the arch nemesis the next opposition. The name that gets stuck in the most ardent fan's throat - Holloway. The man who is, apparently, to blame for all the ills at the club is going through, the mess Sturrock had to rebuild meaning he hasn't had enough time to build his team yet. The man who loved and dumped within 24 hours for more money and the chance of working in the Premier League (no, not Sturrock when he left for Southampton - that's completely different didn't you know). And how we laughed when he took them down and got sacked. A right royal party.

Now he's the manager of Blackpool and has worked his magic into a failing team to lift them to 9th position. Plus, he now had Marcel Seip on loan, who is allowed to play against us. Who will have the last laugh?

More Lives than a Cat

Plymouth Argyle 2 - 1 Scunthorpe United

And once again Sturrock proves he has more lives than a cat with the second win in a row just when you thought it was endgame; it's going to be very hard justifying sacking him now we have "turned the corner". It also once again proves green tints are always correct. Mind you it's 'blood and snotters' that have been Luggy's by-word for success and it appears that wins born out of ugly football are working once again, though we're not out of the relegation zone yet, the Greens are edging ever higher to now occupy 22nd place. All that is clear is that to lose is not acceptable in such a precarious position, and Sturrock is coming up with the goods. By hook or by crook.