Plymouth Argyle owe a lot to former Birmingham City favourite and current Cardiff City U23s chief | OneFootball

Darren Purse played a huge part in keeping the Greens in the EFL when times were tough at Home Park

While they are riding high in the Championship right now, there will still be plenty of Plymouth Argyle fans that are haunted by their side’s near-death experience just over a decade ago.

The club was on its knees after being financially mismanaged, and quickly dropped from the second tier to the fourth in the blink of an eye, before fighting for their entire EFL existence altogether.

While there was plenty of uncertainty off the field, there wasn’t much joy on it, with five consecutive seasons finishing 21st or below really testing the resolve of even the most ardent members of the Green Army.

This was a time when the club needed leaders when they crossed the white line, and in Darren Purse they got a player who set the standards in the dressing room during his year with the club.

Darren Purse helps steer Plymouth Argyle clear of non-league danger

Having made a name for himself for his no-nonsense approach at Birmingham City and Cardiff City during his time as a player, Purse was entering the twilight of his career as he made his way to Home Park, with plenty of game-time amassed in his 34-year-old legs.

The big-time bruiser would often strike fear in the hearts of the opposition during a career which saw him play in the top five tiers of the English game, as well as a fleeting stint in Finland.

With Premier League experience during his time at St Andrew’s, the wily campaigner was exactly the sort of player that was needed to steer the old ship Mayflower to calmer shores after his arrival in November 2011, with the Greens on the rocks and fearing for their lives.

The well was dry, and the lights were only just staying on at Home Park at the time, with many expecting a third straight relegation after opening the season with just two wins in their first 18 league matches.

But hope started to emerge after Purse’s arrival, with his debut coinciding with a 4-1 win over Northampton Town, with a shaky defence suddenly starting to look a whole lot more secure with a leader at the back.

An early red card at Hereford aside, Argyle benefited from an elder statesman among their youthful side at that time, with these young saplings thrown together to achieve a miracle mission at the start of the campaign.

A new year started with new belief, and suddenly the green shoots of hope started to appear. Losses were turning into draws, and draws were turning into victories, with belief starting to grow that an impossible survival push could become reality.

Purse even got in on the act to net the third in a 4-0 defeat of Accrington Stanley in February, as the most improbable run of just four defeats in 20 league matches took hold.

Suddenly, Argyle were getting the rub of the green, but after their dreadful start to the season even their newfound invincibility hadn’t got them out of the woods until the final few days of the campaign, as Hereford and Macclesfield came a cropper.

Carl Fletcher’s side had achieved the impossible with a bunch of waifs and strays and Purse as their leader. They were far from steady ground in the long run though, with another tough campaign on the cards the season after.

Darren Purse earns captaincy before Port Vale departure

Fletcher rewarded the most senior member of his playing squad with the captain’s armband that summer, with everyone at Home Park expecting another tough slog of a season at the bottom of the second tier.

And so it proved, with the financial situation no closer to being resolved, although Purse continued to play with professionalism, even as results nosedived between October and November.

A run of one win in 14 league games spelled out the situation that was ahead of the Greens once again, and by the time the Pilgrims had earned another taste of three points, their captain was nowhere to be seen, while Fletcher had also been given his P45.

Argyle seemingly had no choice but to transfer-list one of their main assets as the reserves in their bank account continued to dwindle, with a move to Port Vale agreed in the first week of January, with things about to get a whole lot tougher in the south-west.

As they waved goodbye to their leader, the Pilgrims knew they had to dig deep for the remainder of the campaign, with yet another miracle escape seeing supporters celebrate on the pitch at Rochdale, as John Sheridan steered the side to safety in one emotional roller-coaster of a season.

Stints in non-league followed his move to Vale Park, before Purse returned to familiar surroundings once he had hung up his boots, having taken a role as Cardiff City’s under-23 boss, where he still works to this day.

In their hardest times, heroes were born. Purse was one of those Pilgrims that the Green Army will forever be thankful for. They are the reason they still have a club to support. The success of today is built on the survival of yesterday, where their veteran leader lit the way.