Western Morning News (Saturday)
LOWE ENJOYING MAKING ARGYLE BETTER
RYAN Lowe says he and his Plymouth Argyle players are enjoying the learning curve of being in League One. Lowe believes the Pilgrims, who were promoted last season, are ‘a good footballing team on our day’,
However, he knows their consistency levels have got to be better for them to compete at the top end of the table.
Argyle saw what it takes to be successful at League One level when they played Peterborough United at Home Park on Tuesday.
It was 0-0 at half-time, but Peterborough scored only 17 seconds after the restart and went on to win 3-0.
That result saw Darren Ferguson’s impressive take over as table-toppers, moving above Lincoln City, who drew 2-2 at home to Swindon Town on the same night.
Now it is the turn of Michael Appleton’s Lincoln to visit Home Park today and they are sure to provide another tough test for Lowe and his players.
Lowe said: “We got promoted to League One to play these good teams who are up there where we aspire to be.
“Yeah, they are good footballing teams, but we are a good footballing team on our day, as is proven.
“These are challenges for me, the football club, the players when you are playing up against these good teams who are setting the benchmark.
“Every day is a challenge, and it’s a challenge I look forward to, and so do my players.
“The games you are playing against these teams, they are good to be in. We are a good team on our day and that’s what we have got to show.”
Argyle dropped two positions to 12th in the table after Peterborough inflicted a first defeat in 10 league games on them.
Lowe was asked how far he thought his side was away from the standard of the top sides in the division, such as Peterborough.
He replied: “I would like to say not far, but we are a young squad. There’s five loan lads with us so they are not permanently ours at the moment.
“We have got some good lads ourselves. What we have got to do is, the likes of Peterborough have been there or thereabouts for the past few seasons and probably just hitting the bar.
“Lincoln have been there or thereabouts now for a couple of seasons.
“We know it’s a tough ask to get there, but you look at the teams who are below who should be there.
“This season for us, we want to keep collecting as many points as we possibly can.”
Lowe added: “Every day is a learning day, it’s a learning curve for us all. I would like to say we are not too far away but the consistency levels have got to be better.”
Finance, inevitably, is an issue too, which was a point raised by Lowe when he discussed Peterborough’s three impressive attacking players - Jonson Clarke-Harris, Siriki Dembele and Sammie Szmodics.
Lowe said: “I don’t like to keep mentioning stuff like this all the time, but you look at Peterborough’s front three they probably cost over £2.5 million, in signing the players, or what they are worth.
“Then there is the wages on top of that. You just can’t compete with that really until you get to bigger and better divisions.
“We know where we are at, we know what we have to do. Good luck to Peterborough, I hope they go on and get promoted to be fair.”
Second-placed Lincoln, who are a point behind Peterborough, are unbeaten in their last five league games, although three of them have been draws.
It was Lincoln who beat Lowe’s Bury to the League Two title in 2018/19.
Lowe said: “We had a couple of good games against them for Bury that year they went up as champions.
“We were catching them. I think they were 10 points clear at one point and it ended up being about four or three.
“It was a good challenge for us and we were pushing them all the way.
“Danny and Nicky Cowley did a fantastic job to get them where they got to, and Michael Appleton is continuing that now.
“They aspire to get to the Championship. Who’s to say that this year won’t be their year - hopefully after Saturday.
“In terms of what they are about and how they have gone about their business, I have got nothing but admiration for them.
“They are a good set-up, they have a good manager and have got some good players, and they might be ready to go and make that jump.