Pete Shuttleworth urges Plymouth Argyle belief after three home wins

Wayne Rooney's assistant head coach says the largely young Pilgrims' squad will keep learning and developing

Assistant head coach Pete Shuttleworth believes Plymouth Argyle can compete with all the big teams in the Championship, and not just at Home Park but in away games as well.

Wayne Rooney's No 2 thought the last-gasp 2-1 home win against Blackburn Rovers on Saturday, when Morgan Whittaker scored in the seventh minute of added time, was an important step in the development of the largely young Pilgrims' squad.

It was a third consecutive home victory for Argyle, following defeats of Sunderland (3-2) and Luton Town (3-1), while they suffered narrow 1-0 defeats at West Bromwich Albion and Burnley during a run of five very challenging games.

Shuttleworth said: "We need to believe as a football club that we can do something in this Championship. Last year was fantastic staying in the league, and they did a really good job, and now we need to believe we can compete every week.

"We can go to Burnley, we can go to West Brom, we can go to all the big teams in the league. We are Plymouth Argyle and we can go anywhere and win games of football.

"We try to breed that in the week, we try to be very positive around the lads, we try to foster that togetherness that we can come out of situations. To see them be disappointed (by Blackburn's late equaliser) and to then go again and get that winning goal, fantastic. It can only help the group to keep building and keep growing.

"We are a young group as well, people forget that. People talk about other young teams in the league. We are a really young group, bar Joe (Edwards) obviously, who leads the group really well. They will keep learning and developing."

Shuttleworth was front and centre in a video clip of Argyle's backroom staff and substitutes all leaping around in celebration after Whittaker's dramatic winning goal against Blackburn.

He said: "I think my heart rate went through 300! It has happened the last few home games with last minute winners. I would love my heart just to stay nice and calm, and sit on the bench, but that's why we do it, that's why we are all here, that's why the fans come to enjoy them moments.

"That's what we work hard for in the week and that's what we live for, and if we can't celebrate them goals we are in the wrong profession. It's brilliant, celebrating with the staff, celebrating with the subs, who were all of the bench. It's a pure passion of seeing that goal go in and get what you deserved."

Shuttleworth continued: "Winning games anywhere is hard in the Championship. Sunderland were top, Luton came down from the Prem and Blackburn have had an excellent start, I think I'm right in saying they were unbeaten until midweek. So three good teams as well.

"There is also a tinge of disappointment we haven't got anything away at Burnley and West Brom, and that shows the confidence and the togetherness, and where we think we are as a team.

"We are delighted with the three home wins and we need to keep making sure this is a fortress but also we want to pick more points up away from home, and maybe on a different day had we taken a couple of chances we could have got something away as well. That's our ambition.

"That's the manager's drive. We are happy with three home wins but we could have had a few more points as well in this little block of games. We keep striving to be that team who can go anywhere and win."

The second international break of the season means that Argyle are not in action again until they travel to bottom club Cardiff City on Saturday, October 19.

Shuttleworth said: "We have got the lads in this week so we will foster that positivity around the group and we will keep them going, and make sure they know it's a long season yet. Our ambitions are higher than where we are in the league at the minute. We want to keep going and keep pushing them to win games of football.

"We will give them a little bit of a break to go and recover their bodies and then we will go into the next block of games. Let's hope we are sat here at the next international break and we have won three or four more games and we can see where we are in the table then."

The Green Army have certainly bought into the style of play adopted by Rooney ibn the opening two months of the Championship campaign, and Shuttleworth believes that helps too. Shuttleworth said: "The more togetherness you have at a football club - from fans, to the boardroom, to the staff, to the players, to people you meet in the shops in the community - the more you can do together.

"He loves it. He wants to be liked. He spent his whole career with fans shouting his name in a positive way, and the fans have been brilliant to him here. We can only thank them for that and hope we can keep that relationship going."

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