Argyle 1 Burton 1: Match report

ARGYLE discovered just why Burton Albion will win promotion from Sky Bet League 2 this season as the division’s leaders smuggled a point away from a tight game at Home Park.

However, thanks to a poetically just equaliser from Carl McHugh – his first league goal of the campaign – four minutes from time, whether the Pilgrims will follow them up still remains an anxious possibility.

As well as being inarguably decent footsoldiers, Burton on this occasion followed the Napoleonic requirement of generals – their first-half goal, from debutant Kevin Stewart, was aided by a massive deflection off a Pilgrim limb. Which just happened to belong to McHugh.

Argyle will at least know that their three remaining home fixtures – against Mansfield, Wimbledon and Tranmere – should provide a lesser test than that provided by Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink’s well-oiled Brewers.

Since, in all likelihood, they will need to win all three to claim a place in the post-season play-offs, that may be no bad thing.

Argyle manager John Sheridan gave a Football League debut to new loan signing Gethin Jones, whose only previous taste of senior football had been one minute of Europa League action earlier this season with parent club Everton.

The Welsh Under-21 captain slotted in at right wing-back, replacing the injured Anthony O’Connor in the only change to the side that had begun the previous Saturday’s 3-0 demolition of Cheltenham.

The scorer of the third goal at Whaddon Road, Charlton striker Zak Ansah – the other Pilgrims’ incomer in the final week of the March loan window – again started on the substitutes’ bench, alongside the recovered Kelvin Mellor and Ben Purrington.

The leaders’ line-up showed two attacking changes from the side that had drawn 1-1 against Stevenage on a gluepot of a pitch at the Pirelli Stadium, with loan players Stewart, of Liverpool, and Denny Johnstone, of Birmingham, replacing Stuart Beavon and Dutchman Abdenasser El Khayati.

Yong Jones did not take too long to announce himself to the Green Army, linking sweetly with Lewis Alessandra on the right flank before cutting into the penalty area and obliging Burton goalkeeper Jon McLaughlin into making a rushed save at the foot of his near post.

Burton’s response was the stuff of champions’ elect and needed disciplined work from the division’s best defence to prevent them taking the lead.

First, Curtis Nelson executed a perfectly timed sliding challenge from behind to deny Matt Palmer from capitalising on a lovely wrong-footing pass by former Pilgrim Damien McCrory.

That led to a corner by Lucas Akins which central defender Shane Candsell-Sherriff met with a full-blooded header that beat Luke McCormick for pace. Fortunately for McCormick, and everyone Green, the last line of defence, the diminutive Bobby Reid, performed sterling sentry duty on the far post and headed the ball to safety.

Burton had a double let-off when birthday boy Peter Hartley launched a ball from deep for Rueben Reid to run on to. The Pilgrims’ leading scorer beat his markers but was beaten to the by McLaughlin, who clearly handled the dropping ball outside his area. His misdemeanour, though, was not apparent to the officials.

The luck remained with the visitors as they took the lead a few minutes later. Stewart’s shot from 30 yards was probably destined for goal only in his own mind before it smacked into McHugh’s outstretched leg and looped over McCormick. Even then, the ball needed the assistance of a post before it crossed the goal-line.

Argyle responded positively. Jason Banton, making his first Home Park start since mid-September, poached the ball from Burton captain John Mousinho, who then hauled him down. The head Brewer was twice fortunate in that he received only a yellow card and Banton clipped the resulting free-kick narrowly wide.