TOM Cleverley pulled no punches as he reflected on a dramatic late draw for Plymouth Argyle, insisting his side must learn to produce a complete performance after Bim Pepple’s last-gasp equaliser denied Wycombe Wanderers all three points in League One.

Speaking after the 1-1 draw at Home Park on Monday evening, Cleverley described the contest as “a game of two halves” and accepted responsibility for Argyle’s slow start.

“I thought Wycombe sustained a level throughout the game that we fell below of first half,” he said. “It’s my job to find out why that is and make sure we don’t see it again. Second half we were clearly above their level. Five more minutes and we would have gone on to win the game.”

Wycombe took a deserved lead in the 11th minute when Dan Casey headed in at the far post from Jack Grimmer’s deep cross. Argyle struggled to impose themselves before the break, managing just three shots and failing to register an effort on target.

Cleverley admitted his side lacked intensity and purpose in possession, adding: “I’m not one who wants to see my team playing short passes in the bottom third if it has no purpose.”

The Argyle head coach revealed his half-time team talk was brutally honest. “No beating around the bush – it’s not what is needed now,” he said. “We are in a position we don’t want to be. The players reacted very well and that trust between us is important.”

Argyle emerged transformed after the interval, pinning Wycombe back and racking up 13 shots, five of them on target. Cleverley felt his side controlled the game despite frustration at the visitors slowing the tempo. “Second half I thought we completely dominated it and there was only one team going to win,” he said.

That dominance was finally rewarded in the fourth minute of stoppage time when substitute Bim Pepple rose highest to head home Matty Sorinola’s corner. It was Pepple’s second league goal of the season and a crucial one for Argyle.

“I thought Bim did great,” Cleverley added. “He held the ball up, ran channels and brought his team-mates into the game. He’s a real presence in the box and that was a massive goal for the football club.”

The result was not enough to stop Argyle from dropping back into the League One relegation zone again at the mid-point of the 2025/26 campaign, in 21st position and below arch rivals Exeter City on goal difference.