2003–04 Plymouth Argyle F.C. season

The 2003/04 football season saw Plymouth Argyle regain a place in the second tier of English football for the first time in twelve seasons, Along the way to capturing the Division Two championship they accumulated 90 league points, 21 clean sheets and a club record of seven straight clean sheets whilst also losing arguably the most successful manager in recent history in Paul Sturrock to Southampton F.C.

Plymouth Argyle

2003–04 season
Manager	Paul Sturrock August–March Kevin Summerfield (caretaker) March–April Bobby Williamson April onwards
Division Two	1st
FA Cup	First Round
League Cup	First Round
Football League Trophy	Second Round (South)
Top goalscorer	David Friio (14 goals)
Highest home attendance	Queens Park Rangers (19,888) Away: Sheffield Wednesday (20,090)
Lowest home attendance	Wycombe Wanderers (4,298) Away: Colchester United (2,367)
Biggest win	7–0 Chesterfield (home)
Biggest defeat	3–0 Queens Park Rangers (away) 3–0 Tranmere Rovers (away) 4–1 Oldham Athletic (away)
← 2002–03 2004–05 →

Players

First-team squad

Squad at end of season^[1][2]

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

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK   FRA Romain Larrieu 2 DF   IRL David Worrell 3 MF   ENG Lee Hodges 4 MF   FRA David Friio 5 DF   IRL Graham Coughlan 6 MF   ENG Steve Adams 7 MF   ENG David Norris 8 MF   CAN Jason Bent 9 FW   IRL Mickey Evans^[notes 1] 10 FW   ENG Ian Stonebridge 11 MF   ENG Martin Phillips 14 DF   NIR Tony Capaldi^[notes 2] 15 DF   ENG Paul Wotton (captain) 16 DF   ENG Hasney Aljofree

No. Pos. Nation Player 18 FW   ENG Nathan Lowndes 19 MF   SCO Marino Keith 21 FW   SCO Blair Sturrock 22 DF   ENG Paul Connolly 23 GK   ENG Luke McCormick 24 DF   WAL Peter Gilbert^[notes 3] 25 DF   ENG Matt Villis 26 MF   ENG Andrew Watkins 27 FW   ENG Ryan Trudgian 28 DF   IRL Wayne O'Sullivan^[notes 4] 29 MF   ENG Marcus Martin 32 FW   ENG Stewart Yetton 34 DF   ENG Ryan Dickson

1. Evans was born in Plymouth, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally and made his international debut for the Republic of Ireland in October 1997.
2. Capaldi was born in Porsgrunn, Norway, but also qualified to represent Scotland and Northern Ireland internationally through his father and grandmother respectively and represented Northern Ireland at U-18 and U-21 level before making his international debut for Northern Ireland in March 2004.
3. Gilbert was born in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, but also qualified to represent Wales internationally and represented Wales at U-21 level.
4. O'Sullivan was born in Akrotiri, Cyprus, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally and represented the Republic of Ireland at U-21 level.

Left club during season

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

No. Pos. Nation Player 17 DF   NIR Brian McGlinchey (to Torquay United) 20 MF   ENG David Beresford (to Tranmere Rovers)

No. Pos. Nation Player 20 DF   COD Eugène Kangulungu (released) 31 GK   FIN Jani Viander (to Brentford)

Pre-season

Matches

St Blazey v Plymouth Argyle

15 July 2003	St Blazey	0–1	Plymouth Argyle	Blaise Park, Cornwall
			Evans

Tiverton v Plymouth Argyle

17 July 2003	Tiverton	1–3	Plymouth Argyle	Ladysmead, Devon
			Keith  Wotton

SV Wacker Burghausen v Plymouth Argyle

23 July 2003

SV Wacker Burghausen

1–0

Plymouth Argyle

SC Schwanenstadt v Plymouth Argyle

26 July 2003	SC Schwanenstadt	0–0	Plymouth Argyle
		45 Minute Match

FC Astra Giurgiu v Plymouth Argyle

26 July 2003	FC Astra Giurgiu	1–0	Plymouth Argyle
		45 Minute Match

SV Bad Ischl v Plymouth Argyle

28 July 2003	SV Bad Ischl	1–1	Plymouth Argyle
			Beresford

Plymouth Argyle v Charlton Athletic

30 July 2003	Plymouth Argyle	2–2	Charlton Athletic	Home Park
	Friio  Wotton

Plymouth Argyle v West Bromwich Albion

2 August 2003

Plymouth Argyle

0–0

West Bromwich Albion

Home Park

Saltash United v Plymouth Argyle

4 August 2003	Saltash United	0–5	Plymouth Argyle	Kimberley Stadium, Saltash
			Lowndes   Coughlan   Beresford

Last updated: 5 November 2014
Source:Greens on Screen

Football League Division Two

Matches

Plymouth Argyle v Grimsby Town

9 August 2003 1	Plymouth Argyle	2–2	Grimsby Town	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Keith   32' Coughlan   51' Capaldi		Boulding   28' Anderson   64' Barnard   Cas	Attendance: 9,590 Referee: L Cable

Rushden and Diamonds v Plymouth Argyle

16 August 2003 2	Rushden and Diamonds	2–1	Plymouth Argyle	Nene Park, Irthlingborough
15:00	Lowe   54' Jack   56' Mills		Capaldi   77'   Friio	Attendance: 4,045 Referee: B Knight

Plymouth Argyle v Stockport County

23 August 2003 3	Plymouth Argyle	3–1	Stockport County	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Keith   21' Hodges   23' Bent   28' Norris   Evans		Beckett   43' Goodwin   Gibb	Attendance: 7,594 Referee: Eddie Ilderton

Chesterfield v Plymouth Argyle

25 August 2003 4	Chesterfield	1–1	Plymouth Argyle	Saltergate, Chesterfield
19:45	Brandon   50' Mark Allott		Friio   66'	Attendance: 4,089 Referee: Mark Clattenburg

Plymouth Argyle v Brighton

30 August 2003 5	Plymouth Argyle	3–3	Brighton	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Coughlan   19' Stonebridge   81' Friio   89' Wotton   Evans		Connolly (o.g.) Butters   36' Knight   73' Roberts   Hart	Attendance: 9,289 Referee: M Fletcher

Brentford v Plymouth Argyle

6 September 2003 6	Brentford	1–3	Plymouth Argyle	Griffin Park, London
15:00	May   27' Fieldwick   Roget   89'		Stonebridge   9' Evans   58'   84'	Attendance: 5,688 Referee: Steve Tomlin

Plymouth Argyle v Luton Town

12 September 2003 7	Plymouth Argyle	2–1	Luton Town	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Evans   82' Friio   90' Wotton		McSheffrey   58' Coyne   Showunmi	Attendance: 9,894 Referee: Anthony Bates

Peterborough United v Plymouth Argyle

16 September 2003 8	Peterborough United	2–2	Plymouth Argyle	London Road, Peterborough
19:45	Arber   pen' (27) Clarke   81' Legg   Shields		Wotton   pen' (10) Capaldi   84'	Attendance: 4,183 Referee: R Pearson

Wrexham v Plymouth Argyle

20 September 2003 9	Wrexham	2–2	Plymouth Argyle	Racecourse Ground, Wrexham
15:00	Lawrence   28' Jones   Pen' (42) Whitley   Edwards		Norris   31' Capaldi   49' Wotton	Attendance: 3,945 Referee: Michael Ryan

Plymouth Argyle v Barnsley

27 September 2003 10	Plymouth Argyle	2–0	Barnsley	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Coughlan   38' Evans   75'		Gallimore   Fallon	Attendance: 8,695 Referee: Richard Beeby

Plymouth Argyle v Bristol City

27 September 2003 11	Plymouth Argyle	0–1	Bristol City	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Evans		Peacock   27' Butler   Lita	Attendance: 13,923 Referee: P Armstrong

Wycombe Wanderers v Plymouth Argyle

4 October 2003 12	Wycombe Wanderers	0–0	Plymouth Argyle	Adams Park, High Wycombe
15:00	Vinnicombe			Attendance: 5,708 Referee: Mike Thorpe

Plymouth Argyle v Tranmere

11 October 2003 13	Plymouth Argyle	6–0	Tranmere	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Friio   7' Wotton   38' Gilbert   45' Keith   49' Evans   56'   Norris   79'		Gray   Taylor	Attendance: 7,610 Referee: Andre Marriner

Port Vale v Plymouth Argyle

18 October 2003 14	Port Vale	1–5	Plymouth Argyle	Vale Park, Stoke-on-Trent
15:00	Keith   35' Friio   38'   72' Adams   45' Wotton   46'		Burns	Attendance: 5,786 Referee: Lee Probert

Sheffield Wednesday v Plymouth Argyle

22 October 2003 15	Sheffield Wednesday	1–3	Plymouth Argyle	Hillsborough Stadium, Sheffield
19:45	Reddy   84' Smith   Holt		Friio   22'   64' Wotton   pen' (46) Norris	Attendance: 20,090 Referee: G Laws

Plymouth Argyle v Blackpool

25 October 2003 16	Plymouth Argyle	1–0	Blackpool	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Keith   42' Coughlan   Adams		Southern   Douglas   55' Bullock	Attendance: 12,372 Referee: Steve Tanner

Plymouth Argyle v Oldham

1 November 2003 17	Plymouth Argyle	2–2	Oldham	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Wotton   17' Friio   43' Evans   50'		Beharall   10'   63' Sheridan   43' Murray   76'	Attendance: 11,205 Referee: M Warren

Queens Park Rangers v Plymouth Argyle

15 November 2003 18	Queens Park Rangers	3–0	Plymouth Argyle	Loftus Road, London
15:00	Gallen   35'   75' Thorpe   72' Bean			Attendance: 17,049 Referee: Trevor Parkes

Plymouth Argyle v Hartlepool United

22 November 2003 19	Plymouth Argyle	2–0	Hartlepool United	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Keith   45' Lowndes   48'   Coughlan   Aljofree   Norris			Attendance: 9,000 Referee: Iain Williamson

Colchester United v Plymouth Argyle

29 November 2003 20	Colchester United	0–2	Plymouth Argyle	Layer Road, Colchester
15:00	Capaldi   4' Keith   11' McCormick   Connolly   Gilbert   Hodges   Wotton			Attendance: 4,332 Referee: Kevin Wright

Swindon Town v Plymouth Argyle

13 December 2003 21	Swindon Town	2–3	Plymouth Argyle	County Ground (Swindon), Swindon
15:00	Fallon   80' Parkin   90'   Robinson     90'		Capaldi   13' Norris   76'  Keith   90' Wotton	Attendance: 9,374 Referee: B Curson

Plymouth Argyle v Notts County

20 December 2003 22	Plymouth Argyle	3–0	Notts County	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Lowndes   28' Evans   79'   82'		Fenton   Bolland   Caskey	Attendance: 9,923 Referee: R Olivier

AFC Bournemouth v Plymouth Argyle

26 December 2003 23	AFC Bournemouth	0–2	Plymouth Argyle	Dean Court, Bournemouth
15:00	Feeney   Cummings		Wotton   22' Norris   40'	Attendance: 8,901 Referee: Richard Beeby

Plymouth Argyle v Brentford

28 December 2003 24	Plymouth Argyle	2–0	Brentford	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Capaldi   48' Lowndes   63' Connolly   Coughlan		Kitamirike   Roget     42'	Attendance: 17,882 Referee: P Prosser

Plymouth Argyle v Chesterfield

3 January 2004 25	Plymouth Argyle	7–0	Chesterfield	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Hodges   4' Capaldi   11' Lowndes   12'   18' Friio   15'  36'  88'		Davies	Attendance: 13,109 Referee: Keith Hill

Grimsby Town v Plymouth Argyle

10 January 2004 26	Grimsby Town	0–0	Plymouth Argyle	Blundell Park, Grimsby
15:00			Gilbert   Aljorfree   Friio   Hodges	Attendance: 5,007 Referee: Eddie Evans

Plymouth Argyle v Rushden and Diamonds

17 January 2003 27	Plymouth Argyle	3–0	Rushden and Diamonds	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Coughlan   47' Stonebridge   58' Wotton   90'		Bignot   59'	Attendance: 13,021 Referee: Clive Penton

Stockport County v Plymouth Argyle

24 January 2004 28	Stockport County	0–2	Plymouth Argyle	Edgeley Park, Stockport
15:00	Friio   29' Coughlan   62'		Gibb   Lambert	Attendance: 6,608 Referee: Paul Robindon

Brighton v Plymouth Argyle

31 January 2004 29	Brighton	2–1	Plymouth Argyle	Withdean Stadium, Brighton
15:00	Benjamin   12' Knight   34' Watson		Lowndes   88'	Attendance: 6,379 Referee: Phil Joslin

Plymouth Argyle v AFC Bournemouth

7 February 2004 30	Plymouth Argyle	0–0	AFC Bournemouth	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Capaldi		Buxton   Cummings	Attendance: 13,371 Referee: B Knight

Tranmere Rovers v Plymouth Argyle

17 February 2004 31	Tranmere Rovers	3–0	Plymouth Argyle	Prenton Park, Tranmere
19:45	Dadi   19'   52' Hume   23'		Aljofree   Norris	Attendance: 7,948 Referee: M Cowburn

Plymouth Argyle v Port Vale

21 February 2004 32	Plymouth Argyle	2–1	Port Vale	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Phillips   80' Stonebridge   90' Capaldi   Aljofree		McPhee   53' Pilkington   Paynter	Attendance: 13,371 Referee: B Knight

Blackpool v Plymouth Argyle

28 February 2004 33	Blackpool	0–1	Plymouth Argyle	Bloomfield Road, Blackpool
15:00	Evans		Stonebridge   54' Adams   Aljofree	Attendance: 7,253 Referee: Scott Mathieson

Plymouth Argyle v Sheffield Wednesday

2 March 2004 34	Plymouth Argyle	2–0	Sheffield Wednesday	Hillsborough Stadium, Sheffield
19:45	Evans   7' Coughlan   77' Connolly		Geary   Barry-Murphy   Quinn	Attendance: 17,218 Referee: Andy Penn

Notts County v Plymouth Argyle

6 March 2004 35	Notts County	0–0	Plymouth Argyle	Meadow Lane, Nottingham
15:00	Keith		Bolland   Scoffham	Attendance: 8,057 Referee: Nigel Miller

Plymouth Argyle v Swindon Town

13 March 2004 36	Plymouth Argyle	2–1	Swindon Town	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Keith   11' Evans   84' Friio		Gurney   75' Mooney   90'	Attendance: 16,080 Referee: P Walton

Plymouth Argyle v Peterborough United

16 March 2004 37	Plymouth Argyle	2–0	Peterborough United	Home Park, Plymouth
19:45	Lowndes   55' Wotton   pen' (79) Connolly		Arber	Attendance: 13,110 Referee: Joe Ross

Luton Town v Plymouth Argyle

20 March 2004 38	Luton Town	1–1	Plymouth Argyle	Kenilworth Road, Luton
15:00	Coyne   42' Holmes   Howard   Nicholls   46'		Adams   90' Friio	Attendance: 8,499 Referee: Graham Salisbury

Plymouth Argyle v Wrexham

27 March 2004 39	Plymouth Argyle	0–0	Wrexham	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Norris   Lowndes   Evans		Morgan   56' Ferguson   90'	Attendance: 12,275 Referee: P Taylor

Barnsley v Plymouth Argyle

3 April 2004 40	Barnsley	1–0	Plymouth Argyle	Oakwell, Barnsley
15:00	Birch   81' Betsy   Neil   Shuker		Norris	Attendance: 9,266 Referee: Mark Clattenburg

Plymouth Argyle v Wycombe Wanderers

10 April 2004 41	Plymouth Argyle	2–1	Wycombe Wanderers	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Coughlan   39' Evans   80'  Hodges		Tyson   5' Nethercott	Attendance: 14,806 Referee: D R Crick

Bristol City v Plymouth Argyle

13 April 2004 42	Bristol City	1–0	Plymouth Argyle	Ashton Gate, Bristol
19:45	Peacock   85' Roberts   Doherty		Bent	Attendance: 19,045 Referee: R Pearson

Oldham Athletic v Plymouth Argyle

17 April 2004 43	Oldham Athletic	4–1	Plymouth Argyle	Boundary Park, Oldham
15:00	Johnson   34'   61' Owen   42' Eyres   45' Murray   67'		Wotton   51'   53'	Attendance: 6,924 Referee: M Cowburn

Plymouth Argyle v Queens Park Rangers

24 April 2004 44	Plymouth Argyle	2–0	Queens Park Rangers	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Evans   81' Friio   86' Hodges		Padula   Ainsworth   Gallen	Attendance: 19,888 Referee: Paul Durkin

Hartlepool v Plymouth Argyle

1 May 2004 45	Hartlepool	1–3	Plymouth Argyle	Victoria Park (Hartlepool)
15:00	Boyd   11' Westwood   Williams		Hodges   12' Lowndes   42' Tinkler   og' (48)	Attendance: 7,437 Referee: Anthony Leake

Plymouth Argyle v Colchester United

8 May 2004 46	Plymouth Argyle	2–0	Colchester United	Home Park, Plymouth
15:00	Friio   17'   62' Norris   47'		Brown   Bowry	Attendance: 19,868 Referee: A R Hall

Last updated: 8 November 2014
Source:Soccerbase

FA Cup

Matches

Northampton v Plymouth Argyle

8 November 2003 Round One	Northampton	3–2	Plymouth Argyle	Sixfields, Northampton
15:00	Walker   37' Hargreaves   60' Asamoah   83' Sampson   Trollope		Friio   32' Stonebridge   63' Evans	Attendance: 4,385 Referee: L Cable

Last updated: 9 November 2014
Source:Soccerbase

League Cup

Matches

Colchester United v Plymouth Argyle

12 August 2003 Round One	Colchester United	2–1	Plymouth Argyle	Layer Road, Colchester
19:45	Fagan   22'   Pinault   40'   Brown   Stockley		Evans   24' Gilbert   Capaldi   Keith	Attendance: 2,367 Referee: Joe Ross

Last updated: 9 November 2014
Source:Soccerbase

Football League Trophy

Matches

Plymouth Argyle v Bristol City

14 October 2003 Round One	Plymouth Argyle	4–0	Bristol City	Home Park, Plymouth
19:45	Keith   10' Lowndes   45'  86' Gilbert   55' Capaldi		Butler   Doherty	Attendance: 4,927 Referee: D R Crick

Plymouth Argyle v Wycombe Wanderers

4 November 2003 Round Two	Plymouth Argyle	2–2	Wycombe Wanderers	Home Park, Plymouth
19:45	Coughlan   22' Evans   34'		McSporran   8'  15' Johnson   Branston   90'	Attendance: 4,298 Referee: B Curson
Note: (Wycombe Win 4–2 On Penalties)

Last updated: 9 November 2014
Source:Soccerbase

Notable events

• 22 October 2003: Plymouth Argyle defeat Sheffield Wednesday 3–1 at Hillsborough to go top of Division Two.
• 24 October 2003: Argyle receive performance of the week award for their 5–1 victory over Port Vale.
• 1 November 2003: Paul Sturrock named Division Two Manager of the Month for October.
• 6 November 2003: David Friio announced as Division Two player of the month for October.
• 23 December 2003: Paul Sturrock signs a four and a half year contract with Argyle.
• 26 December 2003: Paul Wotton scores Argyle's 5000th League goal in a 2–0 victory over AFC Bournemouth. Plymouth Argyle become the first League side to score 50 goals in that season.
• 2 January 2004: Paul Sturrock named Division Two Manager of the Month for December.
• 3 January 2004: David Friio scores the first hat-trick for Argyle since Paul McGregor in March 2000.
• 6 January 2004: Paul Sturrock named as winner of the second quarter of the League managers Association's Tissot Managers' Performance League.
• 17 January 2004: Billy Rafferty and Paul Mariner make a guest appearance at Home Park. Argyle played Rushden & Diamonds on that day and won 3–0.
• 5 February 2004: Graham Coughlan announced as Division Two player of the month for January.
• 19 February 2004: The club's first retail outlet in Plymouth city centre opens. The club also unveils next season's away kit – the first to be voted for by fans.
• 2 March 2004: Plymouth Argyle complete the second "double" over Sheffield Wednesday in their history, by beating them for a second time in the season. Argyle won the match 2–0.
• 3 March 2004: Paul Sturrock agrees personal terms to take over as Southampton manager.
• 4 March 2004: Sturrock is unveiled by Southampton as their new manager at a press conference.
• 17 March 2004: The club announces that next year's away kit will be white, instead of tangerine, due to supporter demands.
• 27 March 2004: One hundred former Argyle players returned to Home Park for the game against Wrexham.
• 31 March 2004: Tony Capaldi becomes the first Plymouth Argyle player to win a cap for a home nation since Dave Phillips (Wales) in 1984. Capaldi plays for Northern Ireland.
• 10 April 2004: It becomes mathematically certain that Plymouth Argyle will achieve promotion or a play-off place, following a 2–1 win over Wycombe Wanderers.
• 20 April 2004: Bobby Williamson is unveiled as the permanent successor to Paul Sturrock, following much speculation about the managerial vacancy.
• 24 April 2004: A 2–0 win over Queens Park Rangers hands Argyle both promotion and the Division Two title.
• 6 May 2004: Graham Coughlan is named as the Division Two player of the season.
• 8 May 2004: Mickey Evans is announced as the club's player of the season and Luke McCormick as the most promising player as decided by fans. Plymouth Argyle are presented with the Division Two trophy after their 2–0 win over Colchester United
• 17 May 2004: Paul Sturrock is named as the Division Two manager of the season for his efforts at Argyle.
• 21 May 2004: The club holds its centenary ball to celebrate the previous season. The Plymouth Argyle team of the century, decided by supporters, is announced.

Transfers

Out

Date	Player	Transfer	To	Fee
12 September 2003	Brian McGlinchey	Three month loan	Torquay United	-
24 September 2003	Joe Broad	Sale	Torquay United	Free
2 October 2003	David Beresford	One month loan	Macclesfield Town	-
4 November 2003	David Beresford	Sale	Tranmere Rovers	Free
9 January 2004	Jani Viander	Sale	Brentford	Free
13 January 2004	Brian McGlinchey	Sale	Torquay United	Free
1 June 2004	Martin Phillips	Release	-	-
1 June 2004	Jason Bent	Release	-	-
1 June 2004	Eugene Kangulungu	Release	-	-
1 June 2004	Wayne O'Sullivan	Release	-	-
6 July 2004	Matthew Villis	Season loan	Torquay United	-
30 July 2004	Ian Stonebridge	Sale	Wycombe Wanderers	Free

References

^[3]

1. "FootballSquads - Plymouth Argyle - 2003/04".
2. "GoS-DB Season".
3. "2003/04 Championship Season". Greens On Screen. Greens On Screen. Retrieved 10 November 2014.