I've been trying to be optimistic about this season and now we're 8 games in hopefully the next 4 games will give us hope of establishing ourselves in the league and looking towards an automatic position come May.
After much debate I've been trying to look and think about what we may have or need to clamber out of the lowest tier in the Football League, Below I've listed the Champions of 01/02 the last time we romped to the league title and probably one of my favourite seasons watching Argyle, and the current squad.
Although man for man I feel we match up to that side I feel we have a way to go to emulate the record breaking greens that year in amassing 102 points, 27 Clean Sheets, Only conceding 28 Goals and maybe the only way people will start to trust and believe JS is if in May he is picking up manager of the year award as Sturrock did.
Also one thing I vividly remember is the fact we played pretty much with a solid 4-4-2 and giving Evans the chance of holding the ball up with the likes of Stoney or Marino to do all the chasing around and a whole squad chipping in with goals from defence to strikers.
The main problem for me is relying heavily on one man in Reid to score all the goals is a big ask.
On a positive note we had an ever present CB partnership in 01/02 in Coughlan and Wotton and this season an ever present partnership in Hartley and Nelson have started well so you never know.
Without IMO an box to box CM in Friio scoring 11 goals that season and creativity that this side clearly lacks I fear playoffs our best hope.
Plymouth Argyle 2001-2002 Plymouth Argyle 2014-2015
# NAME POS PREV CLUB APP SUB GOALS
1 Romain Larrieu GK Valence 51,0,27 23 Luke McCormick GK Oxford 9,0,0
23 Luke McCormick GK Youth 0,0,0 1 James Bittner GK Salisbury 0,0,0
26 Chris Adamson GK WBA 1,0,0
3 Jon Beswetherick LB Youth 27,7,0 16 Carl McHugh LB Bradford 9,0,1
7 Brian McGlinchey LB Gillingham 30,4,1 3 Ben Purrington LB Youth 0,2,0
5 Graham Coughlan CB Livingston 52,0,11 29 Peter Hartley CB Stevenage 9,0,1
15 Paul Wotton CB Youth 56,0,6 5 Curtis Nelson CB Youth 9,0,1
6 Craig Taylor CB Swindon 0,1,0 15 Paul Wotton CB Yeovil
25 Aaron Bentley CB Youth
2 David Worrell RB Dundee U 47,0,0 2 Kevin Mellor RB Crewe 9,0,0
24 Paul Connolly RB Youth 0,0,0 28 Anthony O'Connor RB Blackburn 8,0,0
14 Lee Hodges MF Reading 48,3,6 4 Lee Cox MF Swindon 6,2,0
12 Steve Adams MF Youth 44,8,2 6 Oliver Norburn MF Bristol 5,1,0
4 David Friio MF Valence 47,0,11 11 Dominic Blizzard MF Yeovil 2,1,1
8 Sean Evers MF Reading 4,5,0 19 Nathan Thomas MF Sunderland 0,4,0
11 Martin Phillips MF Portsmouth 42,2,8 17 Alex Bray MF Swansea 0,1,0
20 Jason Bent MF Col Rapids 19,6,4 24 River Allen MF Youth 0,4,0
22 Joe Broad MF Youth 1,7,0 8 Jason Banton MF Palace 8,0,0
25 Neil Heaney MF Dundee U 1,7,0 7 Lewis Alessandra MF Morecambe 8,0,1
9 Michael Evans ST Bristol R 34,9,7 9 Reuben Reid ST Yeovil 9,0,5
10 Ian Stonebridge ST Tottenham 34,14,9 14 Tyler Harvey ST Youth 3,2,1
21 Blair Sturrock ST Dundee 4,17,1 18 Matt Lecointe ST Youth 0,0,0
19 Marino Keith ST Livingston 13,12,9 10 Marvin Morgan ST Shrewsbury 2,5,0
16 Martin Gritton ST Porthleven 1,7,0 22 Deane Smalley ST Oxford 3,3,1
17 Kevin Wills ST None 15,7,0
18 Nicky Banger ST Dundee 4,7,2
19 Dean Crowe ST Stoke 0,1,0
Semper Fidelis.
