Plymouth midfielder Danny Mayor was replaced on the cusp of the interval during his side's emphatic 4-0 Carabao Cup first-round victory at Peterborough United.

Thankfully for the Green Army, they were already placed firmly in the ascendancy following Ryan Hardie's first-half brace, which meant that Ryan Lowe was faced with a much easier decision.

Understandably, he was not prepared to gamble with risk and acted quickly to haul off one of his key components, subsequently electing Ryan Law to enter the field as a replacement.

Law then slotted into the left wing-back berth, while Conor Grant switched into the vacant spot left in central midfield.

The Argyle boss has extinguished any lingering fears by issuing a key update on Mayor's current situation and admitted the decision to substitute the 30-year-old was a precaution, with the player complaining of a tight thigh muscle.

He supplied PlymouthLive with the full scope on his choice, stating: "He felt his right thigh was tight. I think it was from when he hit that screamer earlier on - I wanted to see that go in.

"He said he could stay on but I made the call to get him off. I think you saw me going mad to get him off the pitch.

"When you are winning 2-0, you would expect to go and win the game and I just got him off the pitch. He's fine, he walked on the pitch with the lads at the end.

"Hopefully it's just a little bit of fatigue because they have had a long journey to Rotherham, a long journey back and then a long journey up (to Peterborough)."

Lowe and co will be hoping to extend their momentum into the weekend, where they host Gillingham in their first League One home fixture of the season.

Both sides are looking for their first victories of the campaign, too, as Plymouth lost out 2-1 at newly-relegated Rotherham, while Gillingham claimed a respectable draw at home to Lincoln last Saturday.

It is hoped that Mayor will be fit for the upcoming clash, however, Plymouth will be able to call upon Ryan Broom again after the on-loan Peterborough playmaker was ineligible for last night's match.

The Verdict:

Overall, it is smart thinking from Lowe to preserve and protect arguably their star midfielder ahead of the challenging league schedule on the horizon.

Having appeared in all but two league fixtures last term, Mayor is evidently integral to how Plymouth set up and if there is a risk of being without the talented midfielder, it really is not a risk worth taking.

If they are to build upon an 18th placed finish the previous term, utilising Mayor in the middle of the park as much as possible will be key.