OKEHAMPTON Argyle put in a superb display on Tuesday, September 24 to progress to the second round of the Devon St Lukes Challenge Cup with a 2-0 away win at Western League side Brixham, writes Charlie Bond.
This was a very entertaining game, with great football on show and both sides fighting hard.
Argyle took the lead early on when Dan Koita ran into the box and fired the ball into the top right corner of the net. Brixham fought back and Jack Arthur had to be alert to keep his goal intact before Argyle increased their lead when Koita ran onto a poor back-pass, rounded the Brixham keeper and tapped the ball home for 2-0.
Just before the break, Josh Coles had the chance to further extend the advantage from the penalty spot but his effort from 12 yards was saved.
The second half may have been an end-to-end affair but there was no further scoring and Argyle took the opportunity to give their substitutes a run out.
This was a great win for Argyle and sees them move into the second Round to be played on Wednesday, November 6. Their opponents are not yet known.
Next, on Saturday 28, Okey returned to league action with a trip to second-from-bottom Middlezoy Rovers.
This should have been an easier game for Argyle but as can so often happen, the match turned out to be a banana skin and resulted in a 2-2 draw.
With the rest of the top five, this is two vital points dropped in their quest for the league title.
Argyle dominated the first half but failed to convert their possession into goals and went in at the interval only 1-0 up, a strike from the in-form Dan Koita, assisted by Craig Penberthy, making the difference.
Jamal Bokhammas was removed at the break due to injury and Jake Rowe came on in his place.
Tensions amongst the travelling fans were eased when Koita completed his brace on 78 minutes, after strong work from Josh Robins and Josh Coles.
This should have been game over but Middlezoy pushed forward and Argyle didn’t shut them down quickly enough. With a minute of normal time left, the deficit was halved and then Jordan Lovibond nipped in to fire home a shock equalizer at the death, leaving Okey both devastated and shocked at what had just happened.
Argyle are on the road again next, visiting Bovey Tracey AFC in the league on Saturday, October 5 with a chance to redeem themselves and bounce back quickly. This fixture will, as usual, kick off at 3pm in South Devon.