One of England’s finest. Not many clubs can say they have been managed by England’s greatest goalkeeper and record appearance holder. In fact, only one can and that’s Plymouth Argyle. Peter Shilton had a glittering career that saw him capped by his country 125 times, play at three World Cups, become and English champion, a European champion twice and play over 1000 Football League games. In 1992 he became Argyle manager and oversaw one of the most remarkable periods in the club’s recent histo...

“We’ve got Carey…” The one we’ve all been waiting for. Graham Carey is a modern great of Plymouth Argyle. His skill, ability to score world class goals and importance to the team that won promotion in 2017, will always be remembered by Argyle supporters. From growing up in Dublin and leaving home as a teenager to chase the dream of being a footballer, this incredibly talented sportsman was destined for greatness. And although not always being a smooth journey. A career which includes pl...

The Train Daddy. Did you know, there is an Argyle fan who has managed most of the largest train networks around the world? Well, there is. And his name is Andy Byford. Having grown up in the South Hams, Andy was sucked into the allure of Home Park in the early 1980s. As he entered adulthood, one of his other loves, trains, became the new obsession. Andy worked his way up at the London Underground before getting the authority and reputation that would make him desirable to all the big train ne...

Just a roofer from Liverpool. Growing up in Liverpool one of the main sources of entertainment for children is kicking a ball around. It’s a football mad city. Whether you’re a red or a blue, football dominates. For a young Craig Noone the dream of becoming a professional seemed to be slipping away. Released from Wrexham at the age of 17 he became a roofer and ploughed his footballing furrow in the local non-league scene. His big break came when Paul Sturrock saw enough in him to be classed a...

The perennial promotion winner. Keith Hill had a self-confessed ‘happy home’ when he was growing up in Bolton in 1970s and you can certainly see those grounded values in the way he approaches football. Whether that be as a player at Blackburn ~rovers in his early days, helping the side to the top tier, at Home Park with Argyle and helping them to promotion via the play-offs at Wembley, or even as a manager at Rochdale AFC, guiding them two the highest league position. The happy go lucky Lanca...

From Paris to Plymouth. There won’t be many players who would have enjoyed the career that Mathias Kouo-Doumbe did. And it was a career that almost didn’t get started. Growing up in the football hotbed that is Paris, an obsession with the was game was always going to happen. But Mathias quicky shone. Despite his obvious quality, his feet were kept firmly on the ground by his parents who refused to let him join the much-famed Clairefontaine football academy and Monaco as a teenager. He would s...

Argyle Fives on kits. On Friday, 25th April, it is the Bobby Moore Fund for Cancer Research UK's annual Football Shirt Friday campaign. And as we have done for the last couple of years, Argyle are proud to support it. Therefore, the Argyle Fives team of Charlie Price, Rob McNichol and Kevin Nancekivell got together to discuss their favourite football shirts from Argyle history. Obviously, we all bleed green, but what shade of green? Do you prefer stripes or block colour? What about green and ...

The team behind the man. Any good Head Coach will tell you; they can’t be successful without the team behind the scenes. When Miron Muslic arrived at Home Park, he was lucky to have the likes of Kevin Nancekivell and Darryl Flahavan, two experienced coaches, already in place. However, he needed some familiar faces around him for his first job in England. He turned to two men who helped him build success in Belgium in the shape of fellow Bosnia Adin Osmanbasic and Englishman Eddie Lattimore. B...

Late to the game, but worth the wait. Many people, by the age of 25, would have given up on the dream of becoming a professional footballer. And in fact, Dwight Marshall was also in that camp. Failed trials at Crystal Palace and Sheffield United meant he had started a career in the ‘real world.’ However, an invitation to Cornwall to play in a pre-season tournament for Plymouth Argyle changed his life. Manager David Kemp offered him a deal right there and then and he went on to bec...

Crossing the divide. Growing up in Surrey, there is little chance that Jamie Mackie would ever have imagined he would be embroiled in two of the fiercest rivalries in England. Well, he was, and he somehow comes out of it pretty well. As a teenager he broke into a Wimbledon side that was struggling financially and, when the decision was made to move the club to Milton Keynes, 18-year-old Jamie went. Three years later, he found himself as one of the top scorers in the Conference, with Exe...

A table of redemption. When he arrived at Home Park in what could have risen to be a club record fee, there were incredibly high hopes for Simon Walton. He broke into his boyhood Leeds United side as a teenager, had almost 100 games at Championship level under his belt and was supposed to be part of a rebuild job that would take Argyle forward. Fast forward just a couple of months and he was wanting out. A combination of bad performances, lack of professionalism and falling out with the manag...

The voice of Home Park. From last minute winner, to promotions, penalty shootout wins and semi-final triumphs, Gary McLean has been there for all of them, over the last 15 seasons. For an outgoing Argyle fan who always had a love for being a showman, being the stadium announcer has to be up there as a dream job. In 2010, the club was looking for someone new to take the mic and Gary was the man to get Home Park ready for matchday’s ever since. He’s seen big cup ties, semi-final wins, last minu...

The latest episode of the Argyle Podcast is ready for you to listen to! An Argyle team led by former player David Norris and Under-18s Head Coach Jamie Lowry will head Stateside this summer to take part in The Soccer Tournament (TST) in North Carolina. TST, a 7v7 event with a $1million winner-takes-all prize will be played at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, NC, from June 4-9. Argyle’s full squad will be announced in due course but will feature former players and futsal stars and be overseen fo...

A perfectly imperfect career. Jamie Ness was a big deal in the youth ranks at Rangers. He was one of a crop of youngsters, alongside future Pilgrim Gregg Wylde, who were highly thought of and tipped to go to the top. And while it didn’t go totally to plan, Jamie made himself a bit of a cult hero. Injuries blighted him throughout his career. After a stunning introduction to the Ibrox fans, with a 40-yard piledriver against bitter rivals Celtic, injuries and the club going bust meant he had to ...

The Blissett family name. If your name is Blissett, you’re a striker and you’re trying to make a name for yourself in football, there is no doubt conversation will quickly turn to the great Luther Blissett and that is exactly how life turned out for Nathan. Every new club he joined, every person he met, the second question to him was always ‘are you related to Luther?’ and the answer, ‘yes.’ Nathan grew up not knowing about his uncle Luther until he saw the name on Soccer AM in the early 2000...

Argyle Fives on festive matches – Festive Fives Every fan enjoys football over the festive period. The traditional Boxing Day matches always produce a unique atmosphere and quite often a lot of goals. In the 40s and 50s games would be played back-to-back against the same side. Local games usually get arranged for this time of year and there is a freshness around the New Years Day fixtures. Goals, Christmas jumpers, thrilling comebacks, huge wins, managerial sackings; they have all taken plac...

Bursting onto the scene At 14 he was playing at Twickenham for England juniors, at 16 he was making his Argyle debut and at 44 he is still turning out on a Saturday for Plymouth True Blues. Lee Phillips packed a lot into a relatively short time at Argyle. He was thrust into the limelight as a teenager, becoming the youngest player to play for the club in 1996. A quick and powerful striker, it was clear to see why he was so quick to make an impression. He had to wait for his first goal, that c...

“…not a bad ball in…” Few Argyle players have experienced as much as Mark Patterson did in his four years at Home Park. Having arrived from Derby Country and once again teaming up with Peter Shilton, Pato experienced a playoff semi-final defeat, then relegation to the basement division and a subsequent promotion at Wembley, where he also claimed the assist. A North East lad, who played out his dream with Newcastle United legends helping him along the way. Bob Stokoe, Pop Robson and Arthur Cox...

“Both ends that is all…” Kevin Wills will forever go down as a legend of South West football. Maybe more fondly remembered by Truro City supporters for his double, scoring at both ends, in the FA Vase final triumph in 2007. But he also won promotions with both Torquay United and Plymouth Argyle. Joining the Greens in the late 90s, Willsy made his breakthrough in 1998 as an exciting forward. Despite never quite making it as a regular during his time at Home Park, he was an integral part of Pau...

The next Trevor Francis. Well, it didn’t quite turn out like that for George Foster, but he certainly has no complaints about his career. The Plymouth born, football mad kid who grew up watching the sides of the late 1960s got his big chance against the player he was always likened to. Being thrust on to try and deal with one of the best forwards in the country, in a position you’re not accustomed to would probably faze most people, not George, it was a challenge. He went on to captain Argyle...

Football, cricket, triathlon – in that order. What does it take to become one of Wayne Rooney’s most trusted people within football? Well, ask Pete Shuttleworth. Since their first meeting at Derby, Wayne as a player and Pete as a Performance Analyst, they have pretty much been at each other’s side, wherever they have gone around the world. Pete’s journey to becoming an Assistant Coach to one of the most recognisable figures in football is far from straightforward. He has trodden the unusual p...

He’s a superstar. Three time Olympian and rowing gold medallist Greg Searle is somewhat of an inspiration. After winning gold with his brother in 1992, bronze in 1996 and narrowly missing out in 2000, he was not content and 20 years later was back in a boat, at the age of 40, winning another Olympic medal. From being inspired by his history teacher to being the best in the world and with a couple of marathons and triathlons in between, Greg Searle certainly is a bit of a superstar – oh and he...

Argyle Fives on best partnerships. If Mariner won’t get you, Raffery will. One of the deadliest striking partnerships in Argyle's history and there have been quite a few. In the latest episode of the Argyle Fives series, Charlie Price, Kevin Nancekivell and Rob McNichol try to narrow down all of the legendary partnerships into a condensed list of five. Strikers, defenders, midfielder, coaches and even commentary teams. There are so many fond memories uncovered in this particular episode. ...