Pilgrims prosper despite a 'disastrous week' of injuries

TOM

- By CHRIS ERRINGTON

Cleverley said 'a disastrous week in terms of injuries' left Plymouth Argyle without four players for their away League One game against Doncaster Rovers last weekend.Despite having to deal with that series of blows in such a short space of time, the Pilgrims were still able to come up with a magnificent 5-1 victory at the Eco-Power Stadium, with Lorent Tolaj completing a hat-trick.

Owen Dale, on loan from Championship club Oxford United, has suffered the most serious of the injuries and faces a lengthy absence due to ankle ligament damage.

Julio Pleguezuelo had made four successive starts for Argyle after returning to action following a summer knee operation but he missed out against Doncaster.

Cleverley described the Spanish defender as having 'an angry knee' but the hope is that it is not a serious issue and Pleguezuelo could be back soon.

The same also applies to Jamie Paterson and 17-year-old Tegan Finn, who were ruled out of Argyle's third consecutive league victory, which moved them from 21st to 17th position in the table, by calf and hamstring injuries respectively.

The injury issue for Pleguezuelo has come at a time when another defender, Brendan Galloway, has left to play for Zimbabwe at the Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Morocco, with their first group game ending in a 2-1 defeat to Egypt. Galloway was an unused substitute.