Pilgrims starting to recover from loss to Exeter

CLEVERLEY SEES SIGNS THAT THE CONFIDENCE IS COMING BACK

- By CHRIS ERRINGTON

TOM Cleverley has seen signs in the last two games that Plymouth Argyle are finally starting to recover from their Devon derby hangover.

The Pilgrims were easily beaten 2-0 by Exeter City at St James Park on October 23 in what was a morale-sapping experience for their largely youthful squad and they have lost four more matches in three different competitions since then.

They have included a 3-1 League One defeat at Huddersfield Town on Saturday, when it was goalless until they conceded on the stroke of halftime, and the 1-0 Vertu Trophy loss to Bristol Rovers at the Memorial Stadium on Tuesday night.

Argyle had only 10 players for virtually all of the Southern Group B game after a very early red card for defender Kornel Szucs and were beaten by Rovers after a last-gasp goal in the fourth minute of added time when goalkeeper Luca Ashby-Hammond dropped the ball from a corner.

Cleverley said afterwards: “It’s the way it has been going. To have a man sent-off after two minutes, game plan out the window, so then it becomes about reshuffling the pack quickly and players’ resilience, application, honesty, pride to wear the shirt. We saw all those things tonight.