The Owls haven’t won away at Plymouth since 2009, but a first half display showed signs of promise at Home Park as Danny Röhl’s side took it to the hosts and were the better of the two sides for sustained periods.
But they contrived to find themselves 2-0 down after a nightmarish end to the first stanza, Mustapha Bundu rifling home a freekick before Pol Valentin’s mistake let Morgan Whittaker double their lead.
The second half saw Plymouth take control, and another Owls error in midfield led to Ryan Hardie making it three, and now the rock bottom Owls find themselves 11 points adrift of safety - it’s not even November yet.
Here’s how we rated the players on a torrid, wet night in Devon:
9. John Buckley - 5
The midfielder was really busy in the first half, nipping at the heels of Plymouth at every opportunity and helping with the high press. A solid showing before the two goals - and was then taken off at the break. | Steve Ellis / UGC
10. Josh Windass - 5
Played a big part in Wednesday’s promising first half showing and tried to get things moving in the second half too, but to no avail. Had one really good chance that he couldn’t keep down. | UGC / Getty Images
11. Lee Gregory - 5
Had Wednesday best chance of the first half after being found in the box by Musaba, but couldn’t keep his strike down. Worked really hard in the press and dropped into play to try and get things ticking. | UGC / Steve Ellis
12. Michael Smith - 3
Barely had a sniff in the second half after being brought on for Buckley, but a lot of that wasn’t his fault. Worked hard but had barely any service. | UGC / Getty Images