Ryan Taylor fires Plymouth to win over Walsall

Posted Tuesday, January 02, 2018 by PA

Plymouth soared away from the League One basement with a 1-0 home win over Walsall thanks to Ryan Taylor's thumping 67th-minute strike.

Target-man Taylor fired Argyle ahead with an instinctive left-foot strike after Ruben Lameiras' mazy run was halted by a sea of Saddlers defenders on the edge of the box.

A minute before, Walsall goalkeeper Mark Gillespie did well to deny danger man Graham Carey with a brilliant diving save.

Gillespie had also turned Carey's 25-yard free-kick around his post after seven minutes as in-form Argyle - now unbeaten in six - started on the front foot.

Carey then skimmed the top of the net with an audacious 25-yard lob.

Saddlers target man Amadou Bakayoko missed a golden opportunity to put his side ahead on 28 minutes but only managed to scoop Liam Kinsella's through ball into the arms of Remi Matthews.

Matthews had to punch Erhum Oztumer's 45th-minute inswinging corner off his goal-line.

Argyle started the second half well with Gillespie forced to punch away Carey's 30-yard free kick and also dive low to collect a Lameiras angled drive.