Late King strike denies dogged Pilgrims a point

IT WAS cruel on Argyle that they were beaten by such a late goal at the Walkers Stadium on Saturday.

And what made it even more frustrating was that it came from a corner which the Pilgrims argued should not have been awarded.

But, that said, Leicester were still good value for their victory.

They dominated possession, played some fluent passing football and created a number of scoring chances.

Yet, they found the Argyle defence in resolute mood.

Centre-backs Kari Arnason and Shane Lowry, in particular, worked tirelessly, making several vital clearances and interceptions.

And the endeavours of the visitors seemed set to be rewarded with a hard-earned point.

That was until the fourth and final minute of stoppage time, at the end of the match when Leicester finally broke through.

The in-form Foxes were awarded a second successive corner, which was hotly disputed by Argyle.

Referee Danny McDermid ruled the ball had gone out of play off Pilgrims’ substitute Rory Fallon.

Argyle, however, claimed it had been headed wide of the goal by one of the City players.

Their protests were to no avail and the corner was curled into a congested penalty area by Leicester’s Nicky Adams.

The ball broke to Danny N’Guessan, whose low shot was blocked on the line by Argyle midfielder Alan Judge.

But it rebounded to City midfielder Andy King, who slotted into the net from inside the six-yard box.

That sparked scenes of elation among the home players and supporters.

But it was utter despair for Argyle, who had been on the brink of only their second clean sheet in 17 Championship matches this season.

Only seconds after play restarted, McDermid blew his whistle for full-time.

The Pilgrims had been that close to holding out for a draw and making it four matches unbeaten.

However, there only ever looked like one team was capable of winning the game, and that was Leicester.

Argyle lacked any attacking threat as Jamie Mackie, their ever-willing and menacing runner up front, was starved of service.

The Pilgrims’ four-goal top scorer hardly touched the ball in the first half.

Mackie did see some of the ball after the break, but he was not the factor he has been in recent matches.

Argyle could also not get Alan Gow or Judge, their other players capable of chipping in with goals, involved in the action enough.

The Pilgrims had to wait until the first minute of stoppage time at the end of the Championship clash before having their first shot on goal.

That was when Leicester’s under-employed keeper Chris Weale saved an angled drive from Mackie.

Otherwise, Weale had punched clear one corner in the first half, and that was about it.

Argyle manager Paul Sturrock opted not to include Fallon, fresh from his heroics for New Zealand, in his starting line-up.

Instead, Gow played behind Mackie – as he had done in the 1-0 defeat of Middlesbrough in the Pilgrims’ previous away game. Those tactics worked that day on Teesside, but Leicester easily contained Mackie and Gow.

Argyle, with midfielder Carl Fletcher returning from a one-match ban to captain the side, were forced onto the defensive from the outset.

Leicester’s top scorer Matty Fryatt latched onto a precise pass from his strike partner Martyn Waghorn in the fifth minute but fired wide.

Former Pilgrims’ loan signing Paul Gallagher, playing in midfield, then shot high and wide from 25 yards.

Leicester could not capitalise on their early dominance and, briefly, Argyle enjoyed some possession, without opening up the City defence.

However, the hosts soon regained their grip on the game, with Richie Wellens having a powerful shot parried by Romain Larrieu.

The Pilgrims’ keeper then made a smart, low save from Swiss defender Bruno Berner.

Arnason then headed against his own crossbar in the 26th minute, under pressure from Jack Hobbs, as he tried to put a free-kick from Gallagher behind for a corner.

There was another close call for Argyle on the strike of half-time.

Leicester captain Wayne Brown seemed certain to score with a close range header from Waghorn’s free-kick to the far post.

But Lowry got a block on the ball and it ended up in the side netting.

It was a superb piece of defending from Lowry, who has been excellent during his loan spell from Aston Villa.

Argyle were more comfortable, defensively, at the start of the second period.

And they had their first goal attempt in the 50th minute, when midfielder Jim Paterson saw his 25-yard shot deflect off Brown and fly over the bar for a corner.

Paterson was forced to leave the pitch on the hour mark, however.

He pulled up with a hamstring injury shortly after making a long run down the pitch and was replaced by Chris Clark.

Leicester had appeals for a penalty waved away by McDermid in the 64th minute.

Fryatt showed tremendous skill as he controlled the ball inside the penalty area and evaded challenges from Lowry and Karl Duguid.

Arnason then slid in to block Fryatt’s shot, and City claimed he had used a hand in doing so. McDermid thought otherwise.

Fallon replaced Gow in the 81st minute but still Leicester looked the more likely to break the deadlock.

Duguid, playing at right-back in the absence of the injured David Gray, made a magnificent headed clearance when Fryatt crossed into the penalty area.

Argyle were, by now, having trouble clearing their lines as Leicester pressed for a goal.

That led to a chance for N’Guessan in the 88th minute, when his low drive was smothered by Larrieu, with Gallagher ready to pounce on any rebound.

Duguid went off with a calf injury soon afterwards and Réda Johnson was sent on as his replacement.

Leicester then made one last push, and it led to King’s dramatic goal.

The Foxes moved up to third spot in the table as a result, while Argyle slipped to 22nd after their sixth defeat in nine away league games this season.