Hands On, Looking Up

Former Wolves Link Up By The Sea

Mike Stowell heads contentedly for the dressing rooms at half-time on Saturday, with Plymouth two up.

Three Plymouth wins in four games have given Mike Stowell an extra spring in his step as he furthers the first-team education of a former Molineux youngster.

The experienced goalkeeper coach is a month into his first full season in Devon and getting to know two new signings in his position after last season’s top two picks moved on.

Most notably, established first-choice Conor Hazard joined Wycombe in the summer and Argyle responded by signing Murphy Cooper from QPR for an undisclose fee.

Wolves Heroes were present as a guest of Mike’s on Saturday when Cooper kept his third clean sheet of 2026-27 in a handsome win against a Barnsley side for whom he played 28 games on loan last season.

But our attention was also grabbed by the discovery that Plymouth’s substitute keeper was James Storer, a youngster whose only senior start to date was in the 4-2 Carabao Cup defeat at home to Coventry last month.

Until the close season, the 21-year-old former Republic of Ireland under-19 international had eight years at Wolves and played 31 games on loan for Morton last season in being named their young player of the year.

We trust both will shine in their time at Home Park, where the 3-0 weekend victory lifted Tom Cleverly’s side into the League One top six.

Their rise from the bottom half of the table ensured that the curve remains very much upward after they were rooted to the bottom rung last December, in obvious danger of going down.

Stowell’s time at the club with a boss he knew as a loan player at Leicester began in the autumn with six successive defeats before the tide turned spectacularly.

Job done….Argyle keepers Murphy Cooper (bending) and James Storer (left), both dressed in yellow, flank their keeper coach at full-time.

A wonderful run in the second half of the season, primarily in away games, lifted them rapidly up the standings and they ended the campaign only a point outside the play-off places.

This time, they have won three, drawn one and lost two of their six League games as well as recording a cup win at home to Exeter, the Devon rivals who beat them in the former Wolves man’s first game in the dug-out.

By coincidence, Cooper’s Barnsley debut was in a 3-1 win at Plymouth 13 months ago.