Plymouth Argyle F.C.

Plymouth Argyle

Full name	Plymouth Argyle Football Club
Nickname(s)	The Pilgrims, Argyle, The Green Army[1]
Founded	1886, as Argyle F.C.
Ground	Home Park
Capacity	17,874[2]
Owner	James Brent
Chairman	James Brent
Manager	Derek Adams
League	League Two
2014–15	League Two, 7th
Website	Club home page
Home colours Away colours

Plymouth Argyle Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Plymouth, Devon. They have played in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system, since the 2011–12 season. They are one of two teams in Devon currently competing in the Football League, the other being Exeter City.

Since becoming professional in 1903, the club has won five Football League titles (one Division Two and two Division Three), five Southern League titles and one Western League title. The 2009–10 season was the club's 42nd in the second tier of English football. The team set the record for most championships won in the third tier, having finished first in the Third Division South twice, the Third Division once and the Second Division once.

The club takes its nickname, "The Pilgrims", from an English religious group that left Plymouth for the New World in 1620. The club crest features the Mayflower, the ship that carried the pilgrims to Massachusetts. Its main colours are dark green and white. The city of Plymouth is the largest in England never to have hosted top-flight football. They are the most southerly and westerly League club in England.

History

Stadium

Outside view of the Devonport Stand

The original ground of the professional club at Home Park was destroyed by German bombers during the Blitz on Plymouth in World War II. Having been rebuilt after the war, Home Park was largely demolished as part of an extensive process of renovation, and the first phase of a new stadium built by Barrs plc was completed in May 2002. The new Devonport End was opened for the 2001 Boxing Day fixture with Torquay United. The other end, the Barn Park End, opened on the same day. The Lyndhurst stand reopened on 26 January 2002 for the game against Oxford United. Plans are currently under discussion regarding the completion of the refurbishment of the ground with the replacement of the Mayflower stand. The ground is situated in Central Park, very near to the residential area of Peverell. Towards the end of the 2005–06 Championship season, the club decided to buy the stadium for £2.7 million from Plymouth City Council, releasing the ground from a 125-year lease. This purchase was concluded in December 2006.

In the summer of 2007, the club, having failed to persuade the UK authorities^[3] of the case for retaining a standing terrace, decided to add 3,500 temporary seats to the Mayflower enclosure,^[4] dropping the capacity to just under 20,000 from 20,922 (an exact figure is not yet available). In December 2009 it was announced that the stadium was to be one of 12 chosen to host matches during the World Cup 2018, should England's bid be successful.^[5] The then Argyle chairman Paul Stapleton stated that work on a new South Stand at Home Park would start in 2010. However, England failed to be chosen for the 2018 tournament, and Plymouth Argyle entered administration in March 2011. After selling the stadium back to the council on 14 October 2011 for £1.6 million,^[6] this project was in serious doubt.

The club was then taken over by local business owner James Brent, who submitted fresh plans to build a new Mayflower Grandstand with a 5,000 seating capacity, and an associated leisure complex. The plans include an Ice Rink with 1,500 spectator seats, 10 screen cinema complex with an iMax screen, 120 bedroom hotel, 4,200m sq retail units (A1 and A3). Planning permission for the project was granted on 15 August 2013. The development was due to commence in September 2013, with demolition of the old stand planned for late October 2013 after the Portsmouth home match. As of June 2015 the plans have been withdrawn, though planning permission still remains.

Rivalries

The club's traditional rivals are fellow Devon sides Exeter City and Torquay United; other rivalries exist with Bristol City, Bristol Rovers and Portsmouth (the Plymouth–Portsmouth game is known as the Dockyard Derby).^[7] Although the rivalry with Exeter City has been blunted for a while due to a difference in divisions, Argyle's relegation into League One, coupled with Exeter City's survival, reignited the tensions. A distinct rivalry arose between Argyle and Luton Town after inflammatory comments made by Joe Kinnear who was manager of the Hatters during the 2001–02 promotion season, although this mutual antipathy has now somewhat abated. Similarly, after the departure of Ian Holloway to Leicester City in November 2007 a noticeable mutual dislike arose, culminating in Argyle's 0–1 victory at the Walkers Stadium in early February 2008 although this mutual antipathy has now similarly subsided.^[8] In the 1990s, Argyle had a rivalry with Burnley as the Clarets beat them in a Division Two (now League One) play-off semi-final in 1994, and relegated them on the last day of the season four years later. However, the rivalry has subsided over the past few years, especially after Burnley's promotion to the Premier League in 2014.

Players

Current squad

As of 12 April 2016^[9]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 2 DF Kelvin Mellor 3 DF Gary Sawyer 4 DF Carl McHugh 5 DF Curtis Nelson (captain) 6 DF Peter Hartley (vice-captain) 7 FW Daniel Nardiello (on loan from Bury) 8 MF Josh Simpson 9 FW Reuben Reid 10 MF Graham Carey 11 MF Gregg Wylde 14 FW Jake Jervis 15 FW Tyler Harvey 16 DF Ben Purrington

No. Position Player 17 FW Ryan Brunt 19 FW Jamille Matt (on loan from Fleetwood Town) 21 GK James Bittner 22 MF Callum Hall 23 GK Luke McCormick 24 FW Louis Rooney 25 MF Ryan Lane 27 FW Craig Tanner (on loan from Reading) 28 DF Jordon Forster (on loan from Hibernian) 30 GK Cory Harvey 31 GK Vincent Dorel 32 MF Jordan Houghton (on loan from Chelsea)

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 18 FW Deane Smalley (on loan at Newport)

Retired numbers

• 12 – The Green Army (supporters)^[10]

Reserves

The club's reserve team, up to the end of the 2010–11 season, played in the Football Combination. The club also entered a team in the South Western League, but withdrew from that competition after one season in 2007. The club confirmed their withdrawal from the Football Combination on 27 June, alongside 18 other Football League clubs. The club will now arrange reserve fixtures on dates of their choice, rather than follow a fixture list.^[11]

The reserves' honours include the Southern League Championship in 1922, 1926, 1929, 1934 and its League Cup in 1933, 1934 and 1936; 1934 was the first Southern League Double.^[12]

'Development games' scheduled by the club are few and far and between, so Argyle entered a team into the South West Peninsula Football League for the 2015–16 season. Argyle's team was put into the West League, the 2nd tier of the league's pyramid, which takes up a structure like the Conference, with a West/East division. Argyle's team will play their home games at Bickleigh Barracks, home of the 42 Commando Royal Marines. The side will consist mainly of U-18 players, but will also include first team players who are on the fringes of the starting XI.^[13]

Player of the Year

Year Winner 1966 Johnny Newman 1967 Norman Piper 1968 Pat Dunne 1969 David Burnside 1970 Derek Rickard 1971 Jim Furnell 1972 Dave Provan 1973 Neil Hague 1974 Ernie Machin 1975 Paul Mariner 1976 Paul Mariner 1977 Neil Ramsbottom 1978 George Foster 1979 Fred Binney

Year Winner 1980 George Foster 1981 David Kemp 1982 John Sims 1983 Gordon Nisbet 1984 Gordon Staniforth 1985 Tommy Tynan 1986 Kevin Hodges 1987 Tommy Tynan 1988 Steve Cherry 1989 Tommy Tynan 1990 Nicky Marker 1991 Kenny Brown 1992 Dwight Marshall 1993 Steve McCall

Year Winner 1994 Steve McCall 1995 Marc Edworthy 1996 Mick Heathcote 1997 Chris Billy 1998 Martin Barlow Carlo Corazzin 1999 Mick Heathcote 2000 Paul McGregor 2001 Wayne O'Sullivan 2002 Graham Coughlan 2003 Paul Wotton 2004 Mickey Evans 2005 Paul Wotton 2006 David Norris

Year Winner 2007 Lilian Nalis 2008 Krisztián Timár 2009 Romain Larrieu 2010 Carl Fletcher 2011 Carl Fletcher 2012 Maxime Blanchard 2013 Onismor Bhasera 2014 Reuben Reid 2015 Luke McCormick

Noted former players

For details on former players who have a Wikipedia article, see: Category:Plymouth Argyle F.C. players.

Team of the century

For the centenary celebrations, an all-time best team of Plymouth Argyle players was chosen by fans of the club.^[14]

1		GK	Jim Furnell
2		DF	Gordon Nisbet
3		DF	Jack Chisholm
4		DF	Graham Coughlan
5		DF	Colin Sullivan
6		MF	Ernie Machin
7		MF	Kevin Hodges
8		MF	Johnny Williams
9		FW	Tommy Tynan
10		FW	Paul Mariner
11		MF	Sammy Black &
		MF	Garry Nelson

Manager: Paul Sturrock

World Cup players

The following players were chosen to represent their country at the FIFA World Cup while contracted to Plymouth Argyle.

• George Baker (1958)
• Rory Fallon (2010)

Club officials

Boardroom positions

Position	Name	Nationality
Chairman/Owner:	James Brent	English
Chief Executive:	Martyn Starnes	English
Director:	David Felwick CBE	English
Director:	Peter Jones	English
Director:	Richard Holliday	English
Director:	Tony Wrathall	English

Coaching positions

First Team

Position	Name	Nationality
Manager:	Derek Adams	Scottish
Assistant Manager:	Craig Brewster	Scottish
First Team Coach:	Paul Wotton	English
Goalkeeping Coach:	James Bittner	English
Head Physio:	Paul Atkinson	English
Physiotherapist:	Vicki Hannaford	English
Chief Scout:	Greg Strong	English

Youth Team/Academy

Position	Name	Nationality
Academy Manager:	Kevin Hodges	English
Head of Academy Coaching:	Kevin Nancekivell	English
Professional Development Phase Coach 17–21:	Shaun Taylor	English
Youth Development Phase Lead Coach 5–11:	Phil Stokes	English
Academy Goalkeeping Coach:	Rhys Wilmot	Welsh
Academy Physiotherapist:	Tom Hunter	English
Head of Academy Recruitment:	John James	English

Managerial history

1903 Frank Brettell 1905 Bob Jack 1906 William Fullarton 1907 Committee 1910 Bob Jack 1938 Jack Tresadern 1947 Jimmy Rae 1955 Jack Rowley 1960 Neil Dougall 1961 Ellis Stuttard

1963 Andy Beattie 1964 Malcolm Allison 1965 Derek Ufton 1968 Billy Bingham 1970 Ellis Stuttard 1972 Tony Waiters 1977 Mike Kelly 1978 Malcolm Allison 1979 Bobby Saxton 1981 Bobby Moncur

1983 Johnny Hore 1984 Dave Smith 1988 Ken Brown 1990 David Kemp 1992 Peter Shilton 1995 Steve McCall 1995 Neil Warnock 1997 Mick Jones 1998 Kevin Hodges 2000 Paul Sturrock

2004 Bobby Williamson 2005 Tony Pulis 2006 Ian Holloway 2007 Paul Sturrock 2009 Paul Mariner 2010 Peter Reid 2011 Carl Fletcher 2013 John Sheridan 2015 Derek Adams

Honours

Plymouth Argyle's list of honours include the following.^[15]

Honour	Number	Years
League
Football League Second Division Champions	1	2003–04
Football League Third Division Champions	2	1958–59, 2001–02
Football League Third Division Runners-up	2	1974–75, 1985–86
Football League Third Division South Champions	2	1929–30, 1951–52
Football League Third Division South Runners-up	6	1921–22, 1922–23, 1923–24, 1924–25, 1925–26, 1926–27
Football League Third Division Play-off Winners	1	1995–96
Southern Football League Champions	1	1912–13
Southern Football League Runners-up	2	1907–08, 1911–12
Western Football League Champions	1	1904–05
Western Football League B Runners-up	1	1906–07
South West Regional League Champions	1	1939–40
Domestic Cups
FA Cup Semi-finalist	1	1983–84
FA Cup Quarter-finalist	1	2006–07
Football League Cup Semi-finalist	2	1964–65, 1973–74

Records

Club records

• Record attendance at Home Park: 43,596
  • vs Aston Villa, Second Division, 10 October 1936.
• Joint Record victory: 8–1
  • vs Millwall, Second Division, 16 January 1932, Home Park.
  • vs Hartlepool United, Second Division, 7 May 1994, Victoria Park.
• Joint Record victory: 7–0
  • vs Chesterfield, Second Division, 3 January 2004, Home Park.
• Record League defeat: 0–9
  • vs Stoke City, Second Division, 17 December 1960.
• Record FA Cup victory: 6–0
  • vs Corby Town, FA Cup Third round, 22 January 1966.
• Record FA Cup defeat: 1–7
  • vs Tottenham Hotspur, FA Cup First round Replay, 19 January 1910.
• Record League Cup victory: 4–0
  • vs Portsmouth, League Cup Second round, 9 October 1973.
• Record League Cup defeat: 0–6
  • vs West Ham United, League Cup Second round, 26 September 1962.
• Most League points (2 for a win): 68
  • Third Division South, 1929–30.
• Most League points (3 for a win): 102
  • Third Division, 2001–02.
• Fewest League points (2 for a win): 27
  • Second Division, 1967–68.
• Fewest League points (3 for a win): 41
  • Championship, 2009–10.
• Most League goals: 107
  • Third Division South, 1925–26.
  • Third Division South, 1951–52.
• Most goals in a season: 33
  • Jack Cock Third Division South, 1926–27.
• Most goals in one match: 5
  • Wilf Carter vs Charlton Athletic, Second Division, 27 December 1960.
• Fastest five goals
  • Argyle defeated Chesterfield 7–0 at Home Park to record their joint biggest win. In the process they also broke the English record for the fastest five goals scored in a professional game–after just 17 minutes. The goalscorers were: Lee Hodges (4 minutes), Tony Capaldi (11 minutes), Nathan Lowndes (12 & 17 minutes) and David Friio (16 minutes). Friio went on to complete his hat-trick, scoring in the 36th and 89th minutes. Football League Second Division, 3 January 2004.

Seasons

Most appearances

#	Name	Argyle career	Appearances	Goals
1	Hodges, KevinKevin Hodges	1978–1992	620	87
2=	Black, SammySammy Black	1924–1938	491	184
2=	Wotton, PaulPaul Wotton	1995–2008 2012–2015	491	66
4	Craig, FredFred Craig	1912–1915 1919–1930	467	5
5	Williams, JohnnyJohnny Williams	1955–1966	448	55
6=	Hore, JohnnyJohnny Hore	1965–1975	441	17
6=	Jones, PatPat Jones	1947–1958	441	2
8	Evans, MichaelMichael Evans	1990–1997 2001–2006	432	81
9	Leslie, JackJack Leslie	1921–1934	401	136
10	Russell, MosesMoses Russell	1914–1915 1919–1930	400	6

Most goals

#	Name	Argyle career	Goals	Appearances	Goal/game ratio
1	Black, SammySammy Black	1924–1938	184	491	2.668
2	Carter, WilfWilf Carter	1957–1964	148	275	1.858
3	Tynan, TommyTommy Tynan	1983–1985 1986–1990	145	310	2.137
4	Leslie, JackJack Leslie	1921–1934	136	401	2.948
5	Tadman, MauriceMaurice Tadman	1947–1955	112	253	2.258
6	Vidler, JackJack Vidler	1929–1939	103	256	2.485
7	Burch, FredFred Burch	1906–1915	92	239	2.597
8	Hodges, KevinKevin Hodges	1978–1992	87	620	7.126
9	Bowden, RayRay Bowden	1927–1933	85	153	1.800
10=	Dews, GeorgeGeorge Dews	1947–1955	81	271	3.345
10=	Mickey Evans	1990–1997 2001–2006	81	432	5.333
12	Bickle, MikeMike Bickle	1965–1971	71	179	2.521

Sponsorship

The club's current sportswear manufacturer is Puma, having signed a contract in 2011 to take over from Adidas.^[16] The club's main sponsor is WH Bond & Sons, a company specialising in agriculture, who signed an agreement to sponsor the club in the summer of 2011 to take over from Ginsters.^[17] Shirt sponsorship was not introduced by the club until 1983.^[18] Beacon Electrical were the first company to have their name on the shirt of Plymouth Argyle, but it lasted just one season. Ivor Jones Insurance was the next sponsor and their agreement with the club lasted for two seasons. National & Provincial (now merged with Abbey National) were sponsors for the 1986–87 season before the club signed an agreement with the Sunday Independent which would last for five seasons. Rotolok Holdings plc became the club's major sponsor in 1992, which was owned by then Pilgrims chairman Dan McCauley. This lasted for six seasons before the club linked up with local newspaper the Evening Herald. Between 2002 and 2011 the club was sponsored by Cornish pasty-makers Ginsters.^[19]

Period	Sportswear	Sponsor
1975–1976	Umbro	None
1976–1978	Pilgrim
1978–1980	Bukta
1980–1982	Adidas
1982–1983	Pilgrim
1983–1984		Beacon Electrical
1984–1986		Ivor Jones Insurance
1986–1987		National & Provincial
1987–1990	Umbro	Sunday Independent
1990–1992	Ribero
1992–1996	Admiral	Rotolok
1996–1998	Super League
1998–1999	Errea	Evening Herald
1999–2002	Patrick
2002–2003		Ginsters
2003–2005	TFG
2005–2009	Puma
2009–2011	Adidas
2011–2014	Puma	WH Bond
Present	Puma	LTC Powered Access

See also

• West Country derby

References and notes

Special thanks to BBC Devon: http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/devon/hi/people_and_places/history/newsid_8303000/8303515.stm

1. "Plymouth Argyle". The Football League. 10 June 2011. Retrieved 23 February 2012.
2. "Plymouth Argyle". The Football League. 10 June 2011. Retrieved 23 February 2012.
3. No Standing Room | Plymouth Argyle. Pafc.premiumtv.co.uk. Retrieved 25 August 2011.
4. Sit, See and Hear | Plymouth Argyle . Pafc.premiumtv.co.uk. Retrieved 25 August 2011.
5. "Plymouth wins bid to host World Cup matches". This is Plymouth. 17 December 2009. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
6. BBC News | Plymouth Argyle Home Park stadium deal agreed Retrieved on 2 November 2011,
7. Fanning, Evan (28 January 2008). "Portsmouth 2 Plymouth Argyle 1: James keeps Pompey's hopes afloat". The Independent (London). Retrieved 25 August 2011.
8. Fanning, Evan (11 February 2008). "Leicester City 0 Plymouth Argyle 1: Holloway mulls legal action over Plymouth comments". The Independent (London). Retrieved 25 August 2011.
9. http://www.pafc.co.uk/team/player-profile/
10. "Number 12". Plymouth Argyle. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
11. "Reserve withdrawal". Plymouth Herald. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
12. Edwards, Leigh (1993). The Official Centenary History of the Southern League. Halesowen: Paper Plane Publishing. p. 54. ISBN 1-871872-08-1.
13. "Argyle home SWPL games at Bickleigh Barracks". Plymouth Herald. Retrieved 10 June 2015.
14. "Plymouth Argyle's Team of the Century". BBC. Archived from the original on 18 August 2004. Retrieved 18 August 2004.
15. Achievements. Greensonscreen.co.uk. Retrieved 25 August 2011.
16. Adidas Agreement. Pafc.co.uk. Retrieved 25 August 2011.
17. Perfect Partners. Pafc.co.uk. Retrieved 25 August 2011.
18. Historical Kits. Historical Kits. Retrieved 25 August 2011.
19. "Ginsters extend Plymouth Argyle sponsorship". Football Shirt Culture. 19 April 2009. Retrieved 9 August 2015.

External links

• Official website
• Plymouth Argyle archive
• Plymouth Argyle at the Football League official website
• BBC Sport – Club news – Recent results – Upcoming fixtures – Club statistics
• Sky Sports – Club news – Fixtures & results – Club statistics – Video
• ESPN – Club news – Fixtures & results – Club statistics – Squad statistics