A RARE goalless draw, Argyle's first for 42 games, was the unlikely result of a high-grade Championship clash between two sides who, only a week earlier, had taken part in games in which ten goals were scored.

Much water has passed under a few bridges since then, however, and there was little to complain about with the result that will have neither entirely pleased nor entirely disappointed the camps of both sides as they go into the international break.

For all Leicester's rebuilding during the summer, they did not look like a squad a few million pounds better quality than Argyle's - good enough, though to deprive Home Park of a first home three points of the season.

Goalkeeper Romain Larrieu and centre-back Mathias Kouo-Doumbe paid the penalty for the previous weekend's defensive shortcomings at Barnsley, with Luke McCormick and Krisztián Timár retaining their places from the midweek side that won through to a Carling Cup third round tie at West Ham.

Argyle manager Ian Holloway finally found the persistent knocking on the door of striker Sylvan Ebanks-Blake too hard to resist, answering claims franked with seven goals in his last 11 games with a first Championship start of the new season for the former Manchester United man.

Leicester entered their second game of a taxing week without Clive Clarke, who had suffered a double heart attack in the dressing-room during half-time of Tuesday's eventually abandoned Carling Cup tie at Nottingham Forest.

Joe Mattock filled the place vacated by Clarke, who is thankfully recovering, owing his selection to the three men appointed by chairman Milan Mandaric to fill the boots of Martin Allen, sacked as manager on Wednesday night.

Argyle took up where they had left off against League One Doncaster the previous Tuesday, with Leicester's Hungarian goalkeeper Márton Fülöp denying fellow countryman Péter Halmosi's free-kick, before a crisp, zig-zag passing move ended with David Norris extending the Foxes' custodian.

More sweet passing, with Halmosi and compatriot Ákos Buzsáky to the fore, ended with Ebanks-Blake extending Fülöp a third time with a low rasper on the turn from the edge of the penalty area.

Leicester had few sights of the Pilgrims' goal in the opening quarter, and what half chances they had were dealt with fairly comfortably by a defence that had not progressed beyond 12 minutes in their three previous Championship matches without conceding.

Seip, especially, was a rock as he continues to cement his reputation as the keystone of the Argyle defence.

However, even he was impotent when Leicester right-back Bruno N'Gotty rounded off a period of visiting domination with a raking drive from 30 yards fired across the Argyle goal with McCormick not altogether sure whether it was destined to go wide of his right-hand post.

Largely, though, the first half was all Argyle. They nearly got the goal their domination deserved when Ebanks-Blake took Barry Hayles' pass on his chest with aplomb and drove in behind Patrick Kisnorbo, only to be denied a clear shot on goal by Gareth McAuley's last-ditch tackle.

Leicester made a double switch early in the second half, talking off Mattock and ineffective Dutch striker Mark De Vries for the little and large attacking duo of Carl Cort and Levi Porter, who fitted in on the left wing with Alan Sheehan dropping to left-back.

The visitors clearly had a notion for the three points and came close to taking the lead when McAuley got a powerful head on Porter's inswung free-kick to beat a flat-footed McCormick but clear the crossbar.

Argyle's riposte was a stinging drive from Buzsáky after some neat inter-passing down the right which was too hot for Fülöp to hold on to. Hayles, however, could not profit from the loose.

The chance for either side in quick succession at least stirred a crowd poor in both number and voice. Argyle responded positively and Lilian Nalis saw a fierce goalbound drive blocked rather painfully by Kisnorbo.

Ollie sent on Lee Hodges for left-back Gary Sawyer as it began to look increasingly likely that, at best, a single goal would settle the outcome of a game which was gradually opening out.

Iain Hume, who Leicester had pushed up front instead of the equally ineffective Dudley Campbell, started to cause a few problems for Argyle's central pairing, and one shot from the Canadian was not far wide of the mark.

Nalis bowed out of the action, clearly hurt, to be replaced by Jimmy Abdou, as Ollie kept his striking options the same until the last four minutes, when Fallon replaced Hayles.

The New Zealander came as close as anyone to nicking a win when Hodges' whipped-in left-wing cross was near to finding his forehead. Not, though, near enough.

Argyle (4-4-2): 23 Luke McCormick; 2 Paul Connolly, 5 Krisztián Timár, 19 Marcel Seip, 18 Gary Sawyer (17 Lee Hodges 71); 7 David Norris, 4 Lilian Nalis (26 Nadjim Abdou 77), 8 Ákos Buzsáky, 16 Péter Halmosi; 9 Sylvan Ebanks-Blake, 10 Barry Hayles (capt, 14 Rory Fallon 86). Substitutes (not used): 11 Nick Chadwick, 13 Mathias Kouo-Doumbe.

Booked: xx

Leicester City (4-4-2): 21 Márton Fülöp; 4 Bruno N'Gotty, 5 Gareth McAuley, 3 Patrick Kisnorbo, 23 Joe Mattock (22 Levi Porter 52); 7 Iain Hume, 6 Stephen Clemence (capt), 14 James Wesolowski, 16 Alan Sheehan; 10 Dudley Campbell (8 Radostin Kishishev 68), 20 Mark De Vries (9 Carl Cort 52). Substitutes (not used): 2 James Chambers, 31 Paul Henderson.

Booked: Mattock 37.

Referee: Paul Taylor (Hertfordshire).

Attendance: 11,850 (877 away).