Coventry City 3
Doyle 36, 42, Tabb 66
Argyle 1
MacLean 82
THERE is still some wriggle-room left but there is every possibility that, when the Pilgrims' history of the 2008-09 season is written, it will have been seen to have turned on events between 3.36-3.42pm on March 22 at the Ricoh Arena.
Argyle went from being in total control of the game to losing it within seven shocking - in both senses of the word - first-half minutes.
That is the total time it took for relegation-threatened Coventry City midfielder Michael Doyle to score twice, and for the Pilgrims' promotion dream to potentially turn into a nightmare.
Up until then, there had been little threat to the Argyle goal, and plenty of pressure at the opposite end; the crowd was beginning to turn against their ain; half-time was within reach; and all was right in the world of Green.
Then came the moment that changed everything as Doyle tucked in to some buffet defending to net his first in the 36th minute.
Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it: six minutes later, Doyle was in the same place to take full advantage of Paul Wotton's horrible back-pass and double the lead.
A third, from Jay Tabb, midway through the second-half, gave the scoreline a one-sided look that simply had not seemed possible an hour earlier, and Steve MacLean's late retort was no consolation.
It did, however, rattle the home side sufficiently to show how easy the pickings might have been had it not been for those seven suicidal minutes.
Argyle manager Paul Sturrock had made just the two, enforced, changes to the side that had started the 1-1 Home Park draw against Watford seven days before, and, for the first time, selected all five Scots on the Pilgrims' books.
Jim Paterson had the unenviable task of filling the boots of the Pilgrims' most potent threat, left-winger Péter Halmosi, who was carried/sent off against the Hornets and thus missed the one game on two counts.
Record signing Steve MacLean was recalled to the starting 11 to partner Welsh international Jermaine Easter, the scorer against Watford, in place of the injured Rory Fallon, arguably the Pilgrims' most effective player in their last two games.
Elsewhere, Chris Clark and Wotton continued to keep central midfielder Lilian Nalis on the bench, alongside Hungarian cult hero Kristián Timár, whose new international status could not dislodge the Scottish-Dutch central defensive pairing of Russell Anderson and Marcel Seip
Also among the understudies, making a rare appearance on a first-team team-sheet, was Everton teenager Lukas Jutkiewicz.
Coventry manager Chris Coleman had effected two alterations to the side that had drawn 0-0 against Southampton at St Mary's seven days previously.
Leon was sitting out the first of a two-game suspension, and was replaced, not, as had been expected, by West Ham loan striker Zavon Hines, who started on the bench, but by Robbie Simpson. Simpson partnered Michael Mifsud, who has been in wretched form for Coventry but who netted five goals for Malta against Liechtenstein in midweek
The other change was on the left side of the midfield, where the more defensive-minded Julian Gray replaced Kevin Thornton.
Facing the Pilgrims for the second time this season was goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, who had kept a clean sheet against Argyle in his final game of a loan spell to Cardiff City on New Year's Day.
Since arriving at the Ricoh from Manchester City on a similarly temporary basis, he had kept two more blanks, against Southampton and - previously in his home debut - Sheffield Wednesday. The 2,000-plus members of the Green Army in town were hoping that the Sturrock connection would end there.
Within two minutes, Easter found himself in on goal as City centre-back Scott Dann failed to cope with Paterson's punt into a swirling lazy wind. Easter went down, somewhat theatrically, under a challenge from Schmeichel, who reacted angrily as the ball bobbled to safety.
Referee Richard Beeby arrived at the scene brandishing a yellow card, although whether it was to Easter, for a dive, or to Schmeichel for his obviously inherited gobbiness, or to both was not altogether clear.
The elements played their part in the game, with Argyle goalkeeper Luke McCormick, a son of Coventry, misjudging a sand-wedge into his box under no pressure. Fortunately, he was able to retrieve the cause.
The wind also played an assist in what was nearly the opener. When Gary Sawyer's shot from the edge of the area skewed off his left peg, everyone presumed the ball was heading wide for a goal-kick. The spin and the breeze kept it in play, however, and Paterson was able to cross low for MacLean, whose cleverly angled prod carried the ball only just wide of the post.
Argyle looked the more composed and clever of the two teams, enjoying the bulk of the possession, but still had to be on their guard against City breakaways. Anderson's slip allowed Simpson the chance to fire in a shot from the left edge of the penalty area, but McCormick got down well to repel the ball with his legs.
Then more persistence down the left from Paterson led to a chance for Gary Teale, whose shot span horribly away from goal.
The Pilgrims' pressure told on the Coventry defence in the shape of two free-kicks in dangerous situations outside the edge of the box. Bizarrely, although the awards were given to Argyle, on both occasions they incurred the wrath of Beeby who lectured Easter for his reaction to not being allowed to play on, and booked MacLean for taking the second set-piece before his whistle.
The first free-kick saw Wotton send in a stinger that the wall saw off; the second - eventually - saw Paterson curl one over Schmeichel but on to the roof of the net.
Having enjoyed so much of the game, it was somehow inevitable that Coventry would take the lead, and they did after their most sustained attack of the game, switching the ball from one side to the other before the ball landed at the feet of Doyle, who coolly placed a shot past the chronically underemployed McCormick.
Five minutes later, Doyle doubled his, and Coventry's haul. The goal came from a swift City break after a poor attempted pass back from the centre of the field by Wotton, making his 399th starting appearance for the Greens, sold Anderson horribly short.
Tabb galloped into the green acres behind a side on the attack and crossed for Doyle to slide the ball home easily. No-one's heart will have cracked more than that of the proud skipper whose error proved so costly.
How the game had got away from the Pilgrims so quickly was almost incomprehensible.
The Coventry side that emerged for the second half was unrecognisable from the jittery unit that they had been until Doyle's double.
Tabb cut in from the left and then Mifsud did likewise from the right to fire in shots that were not all that far off target, and Simpson, too, had the back four back-pedalling.
Then, as the rain joined the Sky Blues (Blue sky? Now there's a laugh) in pelting into the Pilgrims' faces, Clark cleared Dann's header from a corner off the goal-line.
Argyle clawed their way back up the field and saw one or two promising attacks falter at the last, but, even so, the feeling persisted that Luggy needed to change things.
When he did, bringing on Timár for Anderson, Jimmy for Clark, and Jamie Mackie for Sawyer, it was in the wake of Coventry's third, which came when Argyle lost sight of the diminutive Tabb and allowed him to poke home relatively untroubled.
Six-word sentence time in this report.
Much too cold for anything else.
No feasible way back from there.
MacLean swept home Mackie's helpful knock-down.
Five wins in a row now.
Possible or just a forlorn dream?
Well, we did it last season.
A similar burst is needed now.
Coventry City (4-4-2): 32 Kasper Schmeichel; 16 Isaac Osbourne, 26 Scott Dann, 5 Elliott Ward, 4 Danny Fox; 21 Jay Tabb, 6 Stephen Hughes (capt), 8 Michael Doyle, 25 Julian Gray (29 Kevin Thornton 61); 17 Michael Mifsud (9 Zavon Hines 87), 24 Robbie Simpson. Substitutes (not used): 28 Gary Borrowdale, 33 Andy Marshall, 38 Richard Duffy.
Argyle (4-4-2): 23 Luke McCormick; 2 Paul Connolly, 21 Russell Anderson (5 Krisztián Timár 68), 19 Marcel Seip, 18 Gary Sawyer (25 Jamie Mackie 68); 7 Gary Teale, 6 Chris Clark (26 Nadjim Abdou 68), 15 Paul Wotton (capt), 3 Jim Paterson; 9 Steve MacLean, 36 Jermaine Easter. Substitutes (not used): 4 Lilian Nalis, 37 Lukas Jutkiewicz.
Booked: Easter 2, Sawyer 15. MacLean 31, Paterson 71.
Referee: Richard Beeby (Northamptonshire).
Attendance: 18,775 (1,835 away).
