An impressive start to life on loan at Plymouth Argyle continued with a pivotal penalty save for Norwich City goalkeeper Remi Matthews.
The 23-year-old is in Devon on a week-to-week emergency loan due to injuries to all three senior keepers at Plymouth and has so far kept three clean sheets as Argyle have gone unbeaten during his four matches.
His save from Tony McMahon’s spot-kick with 10 minutes remaining made sure of a vital 1-0 win at Bradford for Derek Adams’ side, moving them off the bottom of the League One table.
“It’s not about me – it’s about the team,” Matthews said. “Of course, I made the penalty save, but that’s what I’m here to do. I’ve been brought in to make saves and hopefully help the team to win games.
“At the minute, that is what we have been doing, and all I can ask is for the team to keep doing what they are doing.
“The team has been excellent even before I got here. The problem has been that we haven’t been picking up results and luckily, at the minute, we are; you can see, from the last four or five games, we have been good.”
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Of the penalty, the Gorleston-born keeper added: “My honest opinion was that it looked soft, but the ref’s made his decision and you have just got to forget about it and start thinking about making the save which, luckily, I did.
“I had a guess. I saw (McMahon) have a little look the other way so I thought I’m maybe going to have a little step that way and go back the way he went. Sometimes it makes no difference – you just have to go with your instincts.”
The terms of Matthews’ loan require Argyle to prove that Luke McCormick, Robbert te Loeke and Kyle Letheren are still injured.
“Luke is doing all he can to get fit – of course he is,” the Canaries keeper added, speaking to Argyle’s website. “Once that happens, it’s time for me to go down the road and that’s just the way it is.
“When I first came in, I thought it was going to be one or two games; thankfully, for me, it’s been longer.
“From day one, I have enjoyed it since I have been here. The lads have been a different class. They have made me feel welcome; the fans have made me feel welcome. It’s a nice place to be and the atmosphere is excellent.”
• Watch a video of Matthews’ penalty save above
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