Preview: Plymouth Argyle vs Doncaster Rovers - prediction, team news, lineups

Fresh from their EFL Trophy semi-final loss in midweek, Doncaster Rovers travel to Home Park for a League One clash with Plymouth Argyle on Saturday afternoon.

Rovers are out for revenge against the Pilgrims after suffering a heavy 5-1 home defeat in the reverse fixture at the Eco-Power Stadium in December.

Match preview

After winning three League One games in a row in the middle of February, including a surprise 5-2 home triumph over leaders Cardiff City, Plymouth have since suffered back-to-back away defeats to Luton Town and Rotherham United.

A ‘lacklustre’ display in a 2-1 loss at Luton in the quarter-finals of the EFL Trophy was followed just four days later by a narrow 1-0 league defeat to relegation-threatened Rotherham, a result that left head coach Tom Cleverley feeling “really disappointed".

Nevertheless, Plymouth have only lost three of their 11 games in League One since the turn of the year and a late push for the playoffs cannot be entirely ruled out, as they currently sit 12th in the table and seven points behind the top six with a game in hand.

Most teams would welcome a return to home soil, but the Pilgrims have the joint second-worst home record in the division this season, with only basement club Port Vale (12) accumulating fewer points than Cleverley’s side (21). In contrast, Plymouth have the joint third-best away record this term (25 points).

Despite their poor home form, Plymouth should back themselves to beat Doncaster this weekend, as they have prevailed in four of their last five meetings with Rovers, winning each of their last three and scoring 10 goals in the process.

Doncaster head into Saturday’s contest on the back of losing 1-0 at home to Stockport County in the EFL Trophy semi-finals on Tuesday night, with an early first-half strike from Oliver Norwood denying Rovers the opportunity to progress to Wembley.

Head coach Grant McCann made nine changes to his lineup and admitted after the match that County were “too good” for his side, especially in the first 45, while he also rued a lack of a cutting edge from his players in the final third after they registered just two shots on target across the 90 minutes.

Four days before losing to Stockport, Doncaster were beaten 4-0 at home to Cardiff in League One. This was their 16 defeat of the season in the third tier and leaves them sitting 18th in the table, just three points above the relegation zone with 13 games left to play.

A return to winning ways could prove challenging for Doncaster this weekend, given that only four League One teams have lost more away games than Rovers (10) this season and only three sides have conceded more away goals than McCann’s men (30).

Their recent record against Plymouth also leaves a lot to be desired, and they will now be looking to avoid losing a fourth consecutive match against the Pilgrims for the first time since a four-game losing run between 2009 and 2017.

Plymouth Argyle League One form:

Plymouth Argyle form (all competitions):

Doncaster Rovers League One form:

Doncaster Rovers form (all competitions):

Team News

Plymouth quartet Conor Hazard, Mathias Ross, Brendan Wiredu and Lorent Tolaj all missed the defeat to Rotherham last time out due to injury and are set to remain in the treatment room along with Bradley Ibrahim.

Julio Pleguezuelo and 17-year-old Tegan Finn will be assessed after picking up knocks against Rotherham, while there is hope that on-loan Huddersfield midfielder Herbie Kane can return from a hamstring problem this weekend.

Thirty-five-year-old captain Joe Edwards could be tasked with operating in midfield once again, having previously made the majority of his appearances this season at right-back, while 11-goal Aribim Pepple is expected to lead the line.

As for Doncaster, it remains to be seen whether Everton loanee Frankie Okoronkwo will be fit to return to the matchday squad as he continues to build-up his fitness following a hamstring injury.

McCann is set to revert to his strongest possible lineup, with the likes of Thimothee Lo-Tutala, Neill Byrne, Jack Senior, Robbie Gotts and Luke Molyneux all pushing for a recall.

Owen Bailey is Doncaster’s top scorer this term with 14 goals and he is expected to return in midfield, while Brandon Hanlan is likely to start up front at the expense of 40-year-old Billy Sharp.

Plymouth Argyle possible starting lineup:

Ashby-Hammond; Harding, Pleguezuelo, Mitchell, Sorinola; Curtis, Edwards, Boateng, Patterson; Oseni, Pepple

Doncaster Rovers possible starting lineup:

Lo-Tutala; Sterry, Pearson, McGrath, Senior; Molyneux, Clifton, Bailey, Gotts, Middleton; Hanlan

We say: Plymouth Argyle 2-1 Doncaster Rovers

Both teams are in need of a victory to build momentum for a positive end to the campaign. Plymouth will be considered slight favourites given their recent record against Doncaster and we are backing the home side to come out on top in a contest that should see goals at both ends.

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