The Hawthorns

Saturday 21st September 2024 -  15:00
West Brom
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Plymouth
Key Events

Albion v Plymouth match pack home graphic with both club badges on and an image of Alex Mowatt smiling at the camera wearing a home shirt pointing to the badge

Unbeaten West Bromwich Albion host Plymouth Argyle in the Sky Bet Championship on Saturday afternoon (ko 3pm).

The Baggies have made a storming start to the season, picking up 13 points and four victories from their opening five matches, keeping three clean sheets in the process. 

It's officially the club's best beginning to a league campaign this century and Carlos Corberán's men will be hoping to hold on to top spot - a position they climbed up to with last weekend's 3-0 win at Portsmouth. 

Visitors Plymouth, managed by England and Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney, earned their maiden triumph of the new term last Saturday, defeating high-flying Sunderland 3-2 in dramatic fashion. 

This fixture ended 0-0 last October, but the Baggies then went on to claim a 3-0 win at Home Park in February.

Alex Mowatt and John Swift applaud Albion fans at The Hawthorns
The Albion have been very impressive so far

Follow the action LIVE

Supporters can listen to live audio commentary of Albion's encounter with Plymouth Argyle on Saturday.

Audio passes are available to purchase here.

Gez Mulholland and former Baggie Andy Johnson will provide live commentary, with coverage starting at 2.50pm.

Details for video streaming on WBA TV will be available here from Friday morning onwards.

Supporters are kindly asked to direct any questions or complaints about WBA TV or WBA Radio to wbatvsupport@streamamg.com.

The club are unable to answer queries about WBA TV or WBA Radio sent to fans@wbafc.co.uk or myalbion@wbafc.co.uk.

Regular updates will also be posted across the club's social media channels throughout the day.

WBA Matchday

The visitors 

Plymouth Argyle secured their Sky Bet Championship status on the final day of the 2023/24 campaign and they'll be hoping for a far less dramatic term this time around.

The Pilgrims, who were promoted to this level from Sky Bet League One at the end of the 2022/23 season, will be targeting safety once more, but will be determined to seal it much sooner than match 46. 

They've made a steady start, collecting five points from their opening five games. They drew two and lost two of the first four, but earned a thrilling 3-2 triumph over Sunderland in front of their own supporters last weekend, with Joe Edwards bagging a 93rd-minute winner after the Black Cats had equalised with just four minutes remaining. 

Wayne Rooney was appointed boss in late May. The 38-year-old had a challenging spell at Birmingham City last season and will be completely focused on earning positive results with the Home Park outfit on a regular basis. 

Prior to his time with Blues, Rooney managed both Derby County and DC United over in the United States of America. 

Wayne Rooney wearing a Plymouth coat with a cap
Wayne Rooney brings his side to the Shrine on Saturday

One from the history books

Slovakian defender Marek Cech scored twice in Albion's 3-1 victory over Argyle in the Championship in September 2009.

His first was an absolute screamer in front of the Smethwick End!

Watch both of his efforts in the video below.

The last five at The Hawthorns

Albion 0-0 Plymouth Argyle 

October 2023, Sky Bet Championship

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Albion 3-1 Plymouth Argyle

September 2009, Coca-Cola Championship

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Albion 3-0 Plymouth Argyle

March 2008, Coca-Cola Championship

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Albion 2-1 Plymouth Argyle 

January 2007, Coca-Cola Championship

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Albion 2-5 Plymouth Argyle

April 1993, Division Two

Kyle Bartley fights for the ball with several Plymouth defenders
The two teams played out a goalless draw at The Hawthorns last season

The stats

Albion are unbeaten in their last eight games against Saturday's guests, winning six and drawing two. The Baggies have scored at least two goals in six of those eight matches and in seven of the last nine versus Plymouth. The last Argyle victory over Albion was a 5-2 triumph at The Hawthorns in a Division Two clash in April 1993. 

The Baggies have kept four clean sheets in their last five meetings with Plymouth, and in all of the last three.

Argyle boss Wayne Rooney played against Albion 19 times during his time as a professional footballer. He was on the winning side in 12 of those meetings, scoring seven goals and supplying six assists. 

The Baggies are unbeaten in their last six regular Sky Bet Championship matches and could win four games in-a-row for the first time since a run of four between December 2022 and January 2023.

Josh Maja heads into the weekend as the division's top scorer with five goals. All five have come away from home. Only one of his six strikes for the Baggies has come at The Hawthorns (Leicester City in December 2023). 

No second-tier team has collected more points than Albion's 119 since the start of 2023. The Baggies have won 34 games during that period. 

An image of Josh Maja celebrating his goal against Portsmouth
Albion are on the hunt for a fifth win in the league in their opening six games on Saturday

The ticket details

General admission tickets for Saturday’s Sky Bet Championship fixture against Plymouth Argyle (ko 3pm) have now sold out – but seats remain available to purchase from the ticket exchange. 

The Ticket Exchange allows season ticket holders to list their seat for resale – increasing the opportunity for supporters to be at games, while reducing the number of empty seats at The Hawthorns. 

Season ticket holders will receive a credit, equivalent to the pro-rata cost of their match ticket, minus a £1 selling fee, when their seat is sold. 

Click here to buy or sell a seat for this weekend's match.

A general view of an Albion fan cheering at a game

For the fans

Supporters of both the Baggies and Argyle with a valid match ticket can enter the Fan Zone for free from midday onwards.

A wide range of entertainment will be on offer including inflatable games for junior Baggies, Tom from West Brom playing live music, special visits from both Baggie Bird and Boilerman and the live screening of Sunderland against Middlesbrough in the Sky Bet Championship early kick-off!

Fans can also take advantage of plenty of food and drink options, so head on down and soak up the pre-match atmosphere!

A general view of Albion fans celebrating at Portsmouth

An image of Josh Maja, Uros Racic and Darnell Furlong celebrating a goal against Plymouth

Albion extended their unbeaten 2024/25 Sky Bet Championship campaign with a hard-earned 1-0 win against Plymouth Argyle on Saturday afternoon.

Josh Maja’s second-half strike secured all three points at The Hawthorns, meaning the Baggies have claimed five victories from their first six fixtures.

The result means it’s their best start to a campaign after this many league games since 1992/93 under former boss Ossie Ardiles.

Carlos Corberán’s men are back in action next weekend, travelling to Sheffield Wednesday’s Hillsborough.

An image of Josh Maja and Tom Fellows celebrating their goal against Plymouth

The boss made one change to his starting XI, bringing in Uros Racic for his full debut - Jayson Molumby missing out.

Albion certainly had the better of the opening 32 minutes - hitting the post an incredible three times - initially through Karlan Grant’s powerful effort and then via long-range Alex Mowatt and John Swift attempts. Tom Fellows also saw a shot well held by Daniel Grimshaw.

Down the other end Argyle’s best chance came when the Baggies’ defence were caught napping, allowing Morgan Whittaker to steal possession and shoot. However, Alex Palmer was on hand to make a strong stop. The goalkeeper, who had a spell down in Devon a few years ago, then made another decent save to deny Darko Gyabi moments later.

The Baggies did think they had broken the deadlock in first-half stoppage time after Maja tapped home - only to look across and see the assistant referee’s flag up for offside.

An image of John Swift hitting the post against Plymouth

Palmer was in action again at the beginning of the second period to palm away Whittaker’s drive as the visitors had a decent early spell.

But Albion saw it through and managed to net the opening goal on 62 minutes. Maja - who else - finished off a fantastic, flowing move, getting on the end of Racic’s cross and netting his sixth of the season.

An image of Josh Maja celebrating his goal against Plymouth

Corberán’s men soon had created opportunities to get another, notably Ajayi having a header saved and Bartley nodding inches over, before Racic’s dink was thwarted, too.

The head coach introduced Jed Wallace for Albion appearance No.100, alongside a variety of other changes during the half.

And they saw out the victory, as well as a third consecutive clean sheet, to remain table-toppers and continue their strong start.

Albion: Palmer; Furlong, Bartley, Ajayi, Heggem; Racic (Diakite 71), Mowatt; Fellows (Wallace 71), Swift (Diangana 64), Grant (Johnston 64); Maja (Dobbin 79).

Substitutes: Cann, Holgate, Frabotta, Styles.

Attendance: 25,574 (2,120)