Sliding Doors

Every one has a Sliding Doors moment or two (or more!) in their lives, that's why Red Dwarf said we had parallel universes, but anyway the history of Argyle is characterised by so many Sliding Doors moment that that Tube train will probably break down at the next stop signal.
So many what ifs? over the Championship season.
What if Holloway had stayed?
What if Stapleton has gone for it?
What if Sturrock never came back?
What if Pulis never left?
What if Williamson wasn't sacked?
What if player a b c d e f g h i j k never got sold?
What if they never bought the ground?
What if there weren't as many what ifs?

Always the Bridesmaid

So Holloway has achieved his dream to manage in the Premier League, and with tinpot Blackpool too, a team with half a stadium and (until recently) crowds and money less than Argyle. There are still jilted lovers in the Green Army who call for the man's head on a silver platter for the way he treated the club; if he had stayed it could have been us. But he didn't. Whose ambition didn't match whose? Who (eventually) went up and who (eventually) went down? It took time, but the truthsayer's predictions came true and the family silver is still being sold off (though Ollie can take the blame for Buszacky, and did he really try that hard to stop it happening?). So the bridesmaid is now the bride who must be as chuffed as a badger in the mating season.

Dusty Bin

It's the sale of the century - own your own piece of the old cow field for just £40!. I've seen better clumps of grass on Dartmoor.

Quite Predictable Really

Jamie Mackie's the first out the door for relegation beleaguered Argyle, gone to QPR for an undisclosed - 500k - fee (and Exeter get a percentage of that). Certainly not surprising, certainly not going to be the last. Mackie is being derided by the Green Army on certain messageboards as being a poor player. But you can et your bottom dollar that with Warnock and a good squad behind him, the top scored 09/10 with 9 to his name, will be banging them in left right and centre for someone else. Such is the Argyle way.

Exciting Times

You may be able to poke your enthusiasm with a wet flannel but there are changes afoot at Argyle that should get the brain, if not the heart, racing.

New Pitch

The new pitch is going in at Home Park right this minute. A sore needed improvement to the playing surface has been apparent for who can remember how long. Though it may not be ready till a few weeks after the season has started. Oops

New Manager

There should be a new manager incumbent at Home Park soon (imminently?), well certainly by the start of pre-season. Hopefully. Who will it be? Will be be the right guy who is able to raise the Titanic and put the 5 year plan back on track? Will he be given enough investment? Who knows?

New Investment

Maybe

New Match Day Announcer

Fitz has gone - want to have a go yourself? Applications on the back of a post card please.

New Shirt

End of May (allegedly) (if you want it) (if you can afford it)

New old rivalries

Exeter, Yeovil, Rovers. Lovely. (for the TCE)

New cheerleaders with very low cut tops, big boobs and no pants

Well people can have a dream?

Crudgie In

So keeper coach Crudgington has been given the role as Chief Scout. A man who has presided over, for the most time, two keepers who have shown little improvement in the flaws. And a man who coached a keeper who was kept out of the team by a loanee (who had his faults but fought hard to change those). A Chief Scout is supposed to have an eye for potential, an ear to the ground and eyes everywhere. At the moment I severely doubt Geoff's abilities in these areas. Is this a sign of thrifty savings from the club?

Mariner Out

After persisting so long with Sturrock long after it was proved to be in vain, Argyle brought in 'head coach' Mariner to see out the season (and turn it around (with no success)). The title 'head coach' has been leading up to the point in time now when Argyle are seeking a new manager. A manager who will be able to, not only ensure at least survival, if not success, in the League One, but put the Greens back on the road to the 5 year plan aspiration.

Mariner and Carver really haven't set the footballing world alight, aside from a slight upturn in fortunes over the festive period, so to rely on them to take us into League One would not be the best plan, thus a permanent manager is a good way to go. Yet he has to have the right backing and finances to do so. That remains to be see.

Which also beings me on to Crudgie.

We've gone down

Don't give a shit
We're going back to the Chamiopnship.

Positivity
!
?

Beautiful, Argyle

Plymouth Argyle 1 - 2 Peterbrough United

Oh fantastic, round of applause, I admire everyone's stoicism in the face of regelations, the work effort against the bottom team, a fantastic way to go out of the season on a hight, show em what you were made of.

Like fuck!! What a shambles and fucking waste of time. Well that sums up the season really, a steaming pile of manure that shows that the Greens are pathetic no hopers. I don't really want to go off on one again, but this sums up the shite that has been fed Argyle supports since promotion into the Championship. Bouncebackability? Sinkinglikeastoneability.

Going out in Style

Nottingham Forest 3 - 0 Plymouth Argyle

Well if you're going to drop then better to go down not giving a damn. A woeful performance that is just one more of a pathetic season, but is no longer worth getting wound up about because it made no difference to anything. Except the difference between how much 'they' the club and players want it verses 'us' the supporters. At the end a very poor showing of support for the support sums up how little the professionals care for those that sustain and support them. Plus, Mariner has now fallen out of the zone and is really just as bad as Sturrock. Whatever he managed to to in the immediate take over has unravelled and cannot be sustainable into next season. His job is not secure apparently, but who would be best to handle such a tainted product?

Luggone

After months of waiting Paul Sturrock has finally left to pursue his career in management. Mixed emotions for the man who managed to lead the club through one promotion and right up to another, but then lead them back through relegation. There is no denying that his second tenure was dire whilst his first was great. Legend or Leg End.

Welcome Home

Plymouth Argyle 0 - 2 Newcastle United

Relegated. And to be honest who didn't see that coming for a long time? Since the promotion into the CCC maybe? So League One next season (and maybe more, would that team make any impact on L1?), the spiritual home of Plymouth Argyle, 3rd tier, well no actually. A part from a few drops to the 4th tier, Argyle yo-yo between 3rd and 2nd.

What did the Greens make of their latest foray in the 2nd division football pyramid? Consolidation and relegation. Apart from maybe the earliest years, was there ever a time that you could say the Pilgrims went for it? The closest being the end of the Holloway years and we all know what happened then. The same as always. A lot of bottling it. During this time Argyle have managed to lose 2 good managers and a lot of supporters, hire, fire and loan a lot of players, break the record signing bank on several occasions - mostly to crap players - waste a lot of money on not very much and cause so much hot air that could have powered a third world country.

There certainly hasn't be much ambition from anyone at the club, unless it's directed away from the pitch. Today the board's first statement after relegation was that the World Cup bid was still in the running and the south stand will be developed. OK, I''ll allow the stand as that has been on the back burner for years, but it has always been a team v ground issue - money again. To run a so called established CCC team on a shoestring whilst earning a pretty penny for your back pocket does not work, and has not worked, and will not work. Though now there probably is no choice but to cut costs again.

But there have been ups and downs throughout Argyle's life and there will be forever more to come unless the club goes to the wall. So someday there will be another up and the cycle will start again. Though the team at the moment are not likely to challenge next season for promotion. The lack of anything in the net is what got them to this point, not even mentioning the non existent midfield and dodgy defence. So, if they can't score goals, which is what it's all about, then they won't win games. Simple as. What are the odds for next season?

Congratulations

To those who said we'd go for it
To those who kept faith in the wrong people
To those who put every 'not a proper fan' down
and To those who love terracing

Season Tickets

The details of season tickets for next season have been announced today. Along with the decision to close down the Mayflower terrace, this means there is a difference price structure to work out:


Premium seating is defined at that between the penalty areas in the Lyndhurst (blocks 6 through 14), Grandstand (seats 6 through 151) and the Mayflower Reserved seating. To compensate for the loss of unreserved seating Blocks 17 and 18 in Zoo Corner will be unreserved, but the £15 tickets are being eliminated making the cheapest wholesale ticket to adults £20, an increase of £5. Plus the cheapest wholesale season ticket is now £360, compared to £275 last season (early bird special). So Argyle have decided to effectively increase the price for less of a product (ground and footballing wise). Note too that no new concession season tickets are allowed to be bought for premium areas. A smart move by the accountants in the board room who already complain there's too few people coming in the gates

Ticketing FAQ

Is he or Isn't he?

So, has Sturrock finally been cut loose or not?

The Herald say they believe he no longer has dealings with Argyle, but Argyle have made no statement to either.

The Price of Failure

Three games of the season left and unless there is a miracle, Argyle will be spending the foreseeable future in League One. There has already been much speculation about what this will mean for the club, namely

- a loss of at least £2m in sponsorship money from television deals
- difficulty in maintaining a squad on such high wages
- increased difficulty attracting players to the club
- a fall in gate and sponsorship money
- the potential closure of the Mayflower terrace due to the cost of hiring the seating

Argyle made a loss of near £3m last financial year and saw a transfer embargo put in place due to debts. The loss of revenue and high outgoings next season could cripple the club. The World Cup bid, pitch replacement, hire of facilities for training at Marjon, and plans to finish the stadium (although this one has been cleverly handled as it is now PAHL who will be footing the bill and leasing the ground back to PAFC) are outgoings that may be ill afforded. Though the club has been here before, and some may say is returning to its natural level, we shall just have to wait and see.

Pissed off

Plymouth Argyle 0 - 2 Middlesbrough
Watford 1 - 0 Plymouth Argyle

There's no point posting really on here whilst I've been in the mood I have. I'm sure people don't really want to be hearing the crap I could spout, but the Watford game sums up how diabolical Argyle have been this season. How can a must win game warrant a defensive line up that never had a shot on goal and didn't even get near the opposition goal until 10 minutes before the end! Pathetic!

And now Argyle are finally getting rid of the man who brought them here with Sturrock leaving. My God, how he has tarnished his reputation in the club. There are those who will see the legend in him no matter what and those who will consider him the biggest pile of shite around, but Luggy's second term was a disaster for the club and leave so many mixed emotions for the Green Army that, like Holloway, will run deep for many years. In his wake he leaves Mariner and Carver, whose positions are not guaranteed, doing a job that is poisioned. No matter what they do it won't be good enough.

Oh and Spurs lost to Pompey. FFS. And refereee you're a cunt.

Slow and Lingering

Plymouth Argyle 0 - 2 Middlesbrough

Back to the same old ways following the win on Saturday, and this time it included missing a penalty. What a waste of the only chance in the game to recover anything. A pitiful home performance again and lacked any cutting edge. Four games of the season left, Peterborough confirmed as relegated, and a slow lingering drawn out death left for the Greens, including probably confirmed relegation in front of the TV cameras.
Happy days.

Goodness Gracious

Doncaster 1 - 2 Plymouth Argyle

And that one wasn't seen coming either. WP's stoppage time header saw the Rover stream out of the Keepmoat, but still safe in the knowledge that Argyle are going down. A scrappy game that once again saw Stockdale pull off too many saves to keep the Donny out of the net for the remainder of the game despite a very deep sitting defence. Not really a game to shout about, in fact the stadium was very quiet for most of the game; is this just prolonging the agony?

Elephants Climbing Trees

Plymouth Argyle 0 - 0 Barnsley

Finally this match was finished, and what an anticlimax with that score. This game was MUST WIN and MASSIVE, but a draw sees no benefit. So, maybe a musical interlude would suffice?

Down down deeper and down...

Oh and I saw an advert today that featured an elephant climbing a tree. But like Argyle climbing the league really. No plausible.