Plymouth Argyle started their pre-season with a clash against non-league outfit Plymouth Parkway, and they came out as comfortable 5-1 winners.
They would then ramp up the intensity with a 7-0 away victory over Saltash United, with Niall Ennis and Ryan Hardie each netting braces alongside goals from Conor Grant, Panutche Camara and Rhys Shirlie.
Ryan Lowe’s side took on their first league opposition in the most recently friendly, drawing 1-1 away against Bristol Rovers as Aaron Collins equalised for the hosts with a penalty after Luke Jephcott had put the Pilgrims ahead with a spot kick of his own.
The League One outfit now face another step up in calibre of opposition in pre-season, and they will hope to step up to the challenge as they continue to prepare for the upcoming season in England’s third tier with half an eye on the playoff places.
Swansea continued their pre-season preparations with a friendly against Newport County on Wednesday, in a game played over two 60-minute matches behind closed doors.
A Liam Cullen brace saw them take a 2-0 lead before the break, and Ben Margetson, Yan Dhanda and Joel Latibeaudiere all found the net in the second half to see them come away with an impressive 5-0 win.
After an important and productive run out, Steve Cooper’s men will hope to build heading into their first official 90-minute game in front of a crowd, as they aim to prepare to lodge another promotion bid in the upcoming season.
The Swans came agonisingly close to returning to the Premier League last year, as they finished fourth in the Championship and defeated Barnsley 2-1 on aggregate in the playoff semi-final to book a tie with Brentford at Wembley.
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That game would not go according to plan for Cooper’s men, though, as early goals from Ivan Toney and Emiliano Marcondes killed the Welsh outfit off before the half-hour mark, with the game finishing 2-0.
They will be desperate to go one better this year, and will hope to prepare in the best possible way with a strong pre-season campaign
