Plymouth v Swansea Competition - Sky Bet Championship Venue - Home Park Date - 14 October 2023 Kick off - 3:00pm Following their third consecutive Championship victory - when they beat Norwich 2-1 - next up for Michael Duff’s steadily improving Swansea squad is a visit to Plymouth. On Wednesday evening, the Swans made it 3 Championship wins on the bounce as Bashir Humphreys' fine late goal secured a dramatic 2-1 victory over Norwich. On-loan Chelsea defender Humphreys thumped home a volley after Norwich failed to clear a corner. The 20-year-old's first senior goal was, in some ways, tough on Norwich, who missed numerous opportunities as they dominated much of the second half. The Swans had gone ahead early on as Jamal Lowe's cool finish saw him score for the third successive game. However, Norwich levelled midway through the first period thanks to Gabriel Sara's header, before Adam Idah wasted the best of the visitors' chances after the break. Victory represented another step forward for Michael Duff, who had been under pressure after failing to win in his first seven league games as Swansea's head coach. The previous evening, Millwall secured their first away win in the Championship since the opening day of the season as they inflicted a rare home defeat on Plymouth Argyle. Argyle had the best of a goalless first half as ex-Swan Morgan Whittaker, Bali Mumba and Kaine Kesler-Hayden all tested Bartosz Bialkowski in the Millwall goal. Duncan Watmore should have put Millwall ahead soon after the restart as his close range effort was saved by Conor Hazard's legs before the forward set up Zian Flemming to calmly put the Lions in front. Millwall defended their lead well before securing victory in the seventh minute of stoppage time as Flemming dispossessed Kesler-Hayden before playing in George Saville to score. The defeat was just a fourth home loss in 28 games for the Pilgrims going back to the start of last season - a record that was the best in the EFL. It sees Millwall jump above Plymouth into 14th place in the Championship as the hosts drop to 16th position, with the Swans ‘wedged’ between them in 15th. The first meeting between the two teams took place in January 1921 and overall the Swans have played the Pilgrims on 84 occasions, winning 34, losing 32 and drawing 18. The teams last met in a League Cup 2nd Round match when the Swans ran out 4-1 thanks to a Morgan Whittaker hat-trick - no wonder Plymouth was keen to sign him! Lewis Smith will be the man in charge on Saturday. This will be only the second time that Smith has taken charge of a Championship match. He was handed the season finale between Watford and Stoke City in May at the end of a standout campaign spent working mostly in the National League. His performances in the fifth tier of the football pyramid earned him the opportunity to oversee a conference play-off semi-final game between Woking and Bromley, and a handful of League One and League Two fixtures, before he was put in charge of the Hornets' home match with the Potters. During his rise through football pyramid, he also took charge of a number of Premier League 2 matches. This season, Lancashire-based Smith has overseen 11 matches; five in League One, four in League Two and two Carabao Cup ties. Across those games, he has handed out 50 yellow cards and one red card. On Saturday, he will be assisted by Ian Cooper and Alex James. James Bell will be the fourth official. Turning to the my prediction for Saturday, Morgan Whittaker will undoubtedly score but, despite this, I think that the Swans will run out 2-1 winners.
You're becoming increasingly optimistic Taff, I like it. Is it fair to say that the team are coming round to Duff's methods? Plymouth 0 Swansea 3
I’m often in a positive state of mind: I’m positive that we are going to win or I’m positive that we are going to lose ….
Hah! You've all been suckered into a positive frame of mind Anyway... gawd knows. And that's my final offer.
Josh Tymon comes into the Swansea City starting line-up in the only change for this afternoon's Championship clash at Plymouth Argyle. The defender starts as Ben Cabango misses out, with the centre-half not having recovered from the hamstring injury he suffered against Norwich in midweek. Tymon's promotion to the starting line-up sees Nathan Tjoe-A-On come onto the bench for the visitors. Carl Rushworth continues in goal, with Tymon joining Bashir Humphreys, Harry Darling and Josh Key in the Swansea back four. Skipper Matt Grimes and Charlie Patino are paired together in midfield, with Jamal Lowe, Liam Cullen and Jamie Paterson operating ahead of them. Jerry Yates leads the line for the Swans, while the hosts include former Swansea players Morgan Whittaker and Luke Cundle in their starting XI. Swansea City: Carl Rushworth; Josh Key, Harry Darling, Matt Grimes (captain), Jerry Yates, Jamal Lowe, Jamie Paterson, Josh Tymon, Charlie Patino, Liam Cullen, Bashir Humphreys. Substitutes: Andy Fisher, Jay Fulton, Mykola Kuharevich, Nathan Tjoe-A-On, Kyle Naughton, Liam Walsh, Harrison Ashby, Ollie Cooper, Cameron Congreve. Plymouth Argyle: Conor Hazard, Bali Mumba, Macaulay Gillesphey, Jordan Houghton, Julio Pleguezuelo, Dan Scaar, Matt Butcher, Joe Edwards (captain), Ryan Hardie, Morgan Whittaker, Luke Cundle. Substitutes: Callum Burton, Mickel Miller, Mustapha Bundu, Lewis Warrington, Finn Azaz, Tyreik Wright, Adam Randell, Ben Waine, Kaine Kesler-Hayden.
