Where ex-Plymouth Argyle star Jimmy Spencer is playing now may surprise you | OneFootball

The striker is currently fighting for promotion in the sixth tier, seven years after leaving Home Park

Jimmy Spencer’s time at Plymouth Argyle was a frustrating one for both player and team, with injury hampering the striker’s time at the club and limiting his impact on the pitch.

A valuable target man who could hold the ball up and provide an intricate link with his teammates, the former Huddersfield Town man netted three times in 25 appearances during the 2016/17 season, as Argyle earned promotion out of League Two.

While he may not have been a regular on the scoresheet, the attacker made some key contributions across the season, with his selfless performances helping his teammates thrive under Derek Adams’ tutelage.

But seven years on from his departure from Home Park, the attacker is still proving his worth lower down the football pyramid, as he spearheads a non-league promotion charge in the sixth tier.

Jimmy Spencer’s Plymouth Argyle career

Argyle had just missed out in the League Two play-off final when Spencer joined the club, and right from the off, the Greens were eager to make amends in the following campaign.

With the likes of Jake Jervis and Jordan Slew ready to pounce on any service given to them, Spencer’s role - which he shared with Ryan Taylor - proved invaluable in starting attacks, with the ball sticking to his feet like glue when played forward.

A flick-on here, and neat touch round the corner there, the forward was an intrinsic piece of the puzzle when fit and firing, and got his first league goal for the club in a 2-0 win over Leyton Orient in the September.

The forward made it two in two with the opener against Yeovil Town four days later, as the momentum continued to build around Home Park, with the feeling starting to rise that a very special season could be on the cards.

Albeit, that would have to be without Spencer, with November seeing him dislocate his ankle, leaving him on the sidelines until February, although he still managed to play his part in the final stretch to see the Pilgrims over the line, and even grabbed the final goal of the season in a 1-1 draw with Grimsby Town.

But no sooner had he arrived and got the job done, than Spencer was on his way once again, with a move to Mansfield Town coming that summer, before dropping into non-league in the summer of 2019 with Farsley Celtic.

Jimmy Spencer’s Curzon Ashton promotion push

Since then, Spencer has made the move to the Tameside Stadium to join Curzon Ashton, with the Nash currently sitting top of the sixth tier, with the likes of Scunthorpe United, King’s Lynn Town and Kidderminster Harriers all trailing in their wake.

As club captain, the striker is leading by example in his current surroundings, and recently signed a new contract with the club until the summer of 2027, which proves just how coveted he is by his employers.

As ever, goals aren’t always the be all and end all of the 33-year-old’s game, with a brace on the opening day not followed up in the league until late November, when he grabbed the only goal of the game against Southport to keep the momentum going at the top of the table.

The festive period brought out the best of the frontman with a run of three goals in as many games, with that Southport strike being followed up by goals against Chorley Town and South Shields, as the FA Cup first round competitors sit as high as they ever have done in their history.

Argyle fans will know full well that Spencer doesn’t let a defender have a quiet moment all game; whether he is battling for an aerial duel or chirping away trying to get a reaction even when the ball is elsewhere, and that relentlessness seems to win out more often than not.

They continue to ride high as it stands, and Spencer could be the first man to ever lead the club into the fifth tier if the sun continues to shine on Curzon Ashton, and there will likely be one or two with a green tint wishing their former striker well for the rest of the campaign.