The former Plymouth Argyle captain out to stop them getting first away win

Plymouth Argyle will continue the search for their elusive first away Championship win of the season against Derby County, the 2023/24 League One runners-up, at Pride Park on Saturday.

Among those out to stop them from getting it will be a defender who began his professional career at Argyle in 2010 and went on to become one of their youngest-ever captains during a six-season stint at Home Park which saw him make a total of 246 appearances.

Curtis Nelson's last game for the Pilgrims was the League Two Play-Off Final against AFC Wimbledon in May 2016 when he led the team out at Wembley. They were beaten 2-0 and he went on to reject a new contract.

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Nelson joined Oxford United that summer, still only aged 23, but the clubs could not agree a fee for him so it was decided by an independent tribunal that he would cost the U's an initial £200,000, with a further £80,000 based on appearances.

The defender had three seasons at Oxford and then spent time with Cardiff City and Blackpool before joining Derby in the summer of 2023, signing a two-year contract.

It will come as no surprise to those of the Green Army will recall Nelson's dependability that he has played all 60 of their league games since the start of the 2023/24 campaign.

Nelson played every single minute of their 46 League One games last term, as part of a defence which kept 22 clean sheets and conceded just 37 goals. He is now the only ever present for the Rams in the Championship, after making his 14th successive start this season in the 2-1 win away to Coventry City on Wednesday night.

At the age of 31, Nelson is fast closing in on 600 career first team appearances, which is testament to his ability and durability, and it all started for him at Argyle.

Released by Stoke City in 2009, he joined Argyle's youth set-up and was given his first team debut as a 17-year-old apprentice by manager Peter Reid as a substitute for American midfielder Anton Peterlin during a 1-0 League Cup first round defeat at home to Notts County on August 10, 2010.

He signed his first professional contract that October and was picked to play for England under-18s, while the Pilgrims were a League One club destined for administration and relegation, and was chosen as their young plauer-of-the-year.

Nelson experienced Argyle's darkest of days as they twice flirted with dropping out of the EFL completely and was then part of their revival, initially under John Sheridan and then Derek Adams.

Had Argyle beaten Wimbledon at Wembley maybe he would have stayed at Home Park. Instead, Nelson moved on. However, he gave excellent service to the club during some very challenging times and has gone on to have a fine career in the EFL, mostly in the Championship.

Nelson is not the only former Argyle defender in Paul Warne's Derby squad. He is joined by Sonny Bradley, who played 96 times for the Pilgrims between 2016 and 2018 and was a key part of their team when they were promoted as League Two runners-up in his first season.

Bradley left for Luton Town and spent five seasons with the Kenilworth Road club, also becoming their captain, before joining Derby in 2023. Now aged 33, the centre-back has been limited to just one start and two substitute appearances in the Championship this term, although he did play as a second half substitute against Coventry.

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