Plymouth Parkway commenced their pre-season schedule with a 4-0 win at Willand Rovers on Saturday afternoon, with Jack Crago, Tom Purrington and Joe Belsten all getting on the scoresheet for the visitors at Silver Street.
Finishing 10th in the Southern League Premier Division South last term, the aim for Parkway in 2023-24 will be to push towards a place in the top five and ultimately earn promotion to National League South.
Lee Hobbs’s men were impressive at their Bolitho Park home during the 2022-23 campaign, collecting 39 points from 21 matches and losing just four times.
A packed-out crowd will be hoping to earn a shock result against their Championship counterparts on Tuesday night – last summer’s clash between the two sides ended in a 2-2 draw, with Billy Palfrey and Ben Seymour making the net ripple for Parkway.
Plymouth Argyle are back in the Championship for the first time since the 2009-10 term after being promoted from League One as deserved champions ahead of second-placed Ipswich Town.
The Tractor Boys of East Anglia scored more and conceded fewer than Steven Schumacher’s Argyle over the 46-game campaign, but Plymouth managed to break the 100-point barrier to secure their first league title in 19 years.
There have been some notable departures from Home Park so far this summer, with 12-goal forward Niall Ennis viewing an offer to join former Premier League winners Blackburn Rovers too good to turn down.
The likes of Finn Azaz and Morgan Whittaker have returned to their parent clubs after successful loan spells, and it feels as if Argyle need to act decisively in the transfer market to give themselves a chance of avoiding an immediate return to the third tier.
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Plymouth Parkway are expected to name a similar team to the one which started against Willand Rovers on Saturday, meaning captain Ryan Lane and Henry Wilson should retain their spots in the XI.
Hobbs included four trialists in the matchday squad which comfortably won at Silver Street last time out – it remains to be seen whether any of that quartet will be part of the manager’s long-term plans this season.
As for the visiting Plymouth Argyle, 16-year-old Freddie Issaka scored his first senior goal in the win over Hearts last time out, and Schumacher will be keen to give the England youth international another opportunity to impress at Bolitho Park.
