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Search forSturrock's sole aim is victory
Saturday, October 04, 2008, 10:00
Sturrock's Plymouth Argyle side take on Sheffield Wednesday this afternoon. The Scotsman was manager of the Owls from September 2004 until October 2006. They were in 14th place in League One when he was hired, yet within a year he had steered them into the Championship by way of a promotion play-offs triumph.
Sturrock did well to keep Wednesday away from relegation danger in 2005-06, but he was dismissed in the early weeks of the following campaign. You won't find many people on the blue and white side of the 'Steel City' who regard that as a fair decision, but the Argyle manager is not about to admit to holding any grudges.
"Sheffield Wednesday are a fantastic football club, with a fantastic fanbase," Sturrock said. "I enjoyed every minute as manager there, and they gave me the best day in football [the 2005 League One play-off final win over Hartlepool United] I've ever had. It was a special day.
"I'm looking forward to seeing the players and staff I know, but the important thing is to make sure they go away with no points." The Pilgrims have not beaten the Owls at Home Park since March 2004, when Sturrock supervised a 2-0 win by the men in green – and then told the club's directors after the game that he was off to Southampton.
After his brief stay in Hampshire, the Scotsman took the helm at Hillsborough. Sturrock was in charge of the South Yorkshire side when they gained a 2-1 win at Plymouth's ground in August 2006. Ian Holloway was Argyle's manager by then, and he fared no better last season when Brian Laws brought the Owls to Devon.
Wednesday came from behind to gain another 2-1 win at Home Park in November last year. Sturrock knows that it is about time his current club got the better of his former employers in front of their own fans. The Argyle boss said: "They like this stadium. Their results have proved that in the past – they've won their last two games here."
Laws, Sturrock's successor as manager of the South Yorkshire side, spent last season involved in an ultimately successful battle to avoid relegation. Hillsborough has been a happier place so far this term, with the Owls flying high in fifth place in the Championship.
"They're going very, very well," Sturrock admitted. "They're coming off a two-game winning streak. They look a very strong team, with a lot of honest players. They've got excitement up front, with a bit of pace, and it doesn't surprise me to see them doing well."
Roughly half of the Owls' current side were in Sturrock's squad when he was in charge at Hillsborough - and one member of the Wednesday team is a player who was signed by the Scotsman for Plymouth as well as for the Sheffield club.
Left-back Peter Gilbert is back in business after two years of injury problems, and he played in Tuesday's 1-0 home win over Nottingham Forest and in last Saturday's 2-1 success at Charlton Athletic. He is a doubt for today's game, however, due to a hamstring strain.
Gilbert, who was a member of Argyle's 2003-04 Second Division title-winning team, might have found himself back at Home Park this year. Sturrock enquired about him before he signed Jim Paterson in January, and again this summer before Chris Barker came to Plymouth. The latter case prompted the Owls to make a complaint about an alleged illegal approach.
One of the defenders who Sturrock did manage to sign this year has quickly become a key member of Argyle's rearguard. Northern Ireland Under-21 international Craig Cathcart, who was borrowed from Manchester United on a half-season loan in August, took over from the suspended Krisztian Timar in the middle of the Pilgrims' back four at Watford last month. The 19-year-old did well in a 2-1 win that night – and Timar has been unable to reclaim his place in Sturrock's starting XI.
The Scotsman said: "Craig has put a partnership together [with Marcel Seip], which I think was very important at the time. He and Marcel have done very well, and he's definitely developing in the right direction. He has ability and skill on the ball, but he does still need to develop the strength factor to cope with the aerial threat in this league.
"He hasn't let us down in any way," Sturrock added, "and there's a good thing about people from Manchester United. You only have to tell them things once. I talked to him after his debut [in the Carling Cup defeat at Luton Town in August] about the battle, the power and the pace of League football, and he has never looked back."
ARGYLE winger Dan Smith's one-month loan deal with Morecambe will not be extended after it expires next week. The Cornishman has made two appearances as a substitute for the League Two club. Morecambe manager Sammy McIlroy said: "Dan is a young lad who has definitely got something. He was a good lad to have around and trained really well, but he probably needs to bulk himself up a bit to make himself an even better player."
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