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Search forHappy days for Gallagher
Monday, October 06, 2008, 09:37
The Blackburn Rovers forward was recruited by the Pilgrims from the Lancashire club at the end of August, in a loan deal which will keep him in Devon until the climax of the season. His impact in an Argyle shirt has been rapid and very impressive.
The Scotland international scored the Pilgrims’ second goal in Saturday’s fine 4-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday – a result which elevated them to fifth place in the Coca-Cola Championship. The well-crafted close-range strike took his tally to four goals in only seven appearances for Plymouth.
“I’m delighted,” Gallagher said. “I’ve just wanted to play first-team football, and [Argyle manager] Paul Sturrock has given me the chance to do that here.
“I just want to be involved in the play as much as I can. If I’m not scoring goals, I want to set up goals and help the team win football games.”
Gallagher has seen Argyle rise from the foot of the Championship in rapid fashion in his short time at the club. “It has been remarkable, but we won’t get carried away,” he said. “It’s a tough division, and we’ve got to where we are by taking our chances as they’ve come along.”
The Pilgrims did that to good effect against the Owls – but he admitted that the win was not as easy as the scoreline might suggest.
“It was a tough game,” Gallagher insisted. “We knew it was going to be a tough game, when we looked at the weather. It could have been one of those games, but in the first half we played really, really well.
“Football’s a funny game,” the 24-year-old added. “As soon as you win a game, the belief comes back and you have confidence that you can keep winning games. The more you win, the more your confidence goes up.
“We’ve got a big squad now, and there are players like Steve MacLean, Simon Walton and Jason Puncheon who can’t even get on the bench. They’re quality players who the club paid a lot of money for, but the manager can’t change a team that keeps winning. There’s always competition, and nobody wants to give up their shirt.”
Gallagher has been ensuring that he stays in the team by scoring goals and by making them, in a role which sees him fill the gap in between target man Rory Fallon and the midfield quartet in Argyle’s side. He said: “That’s the position I’ve wanted to play in all my career. Managers haven’t always known what my best position is, but I’m playing in there and I’m scoring goals. I have played out wide quite a bit, you have to do a job for the team, but I’d rather play in there and try to create things.
“I’ve still got a job to do. I’ve got to get back on the deepest midfielder and try and block him off. Then, when we get the ball and break, defenders don’t want to come into the position that I’m in. It’s a good position for me and for the team, defensively and in attack. I’ll play there all season – no problem.”
Sheffield Wednesday manager Brian Laws was bemused by the margin of his side’s defeat.
“In terms of football, I thought we were the better team,” he insisted. “I’m shocked. People will look the score and say it was a drubbing, but our play didn’t suggest that.”
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