Plymouth Argyle boss Paul Sturrock is preparing to lose on-loan Aston Villa defender Shane Lowry.

Sturrock doesn't believes Villa manager Martin O'Neill would allow him to sign Lowry permanently, but he hopes the loan deal can be extended to the end of the season.

"I wouldn't expect to have a chance of signing him permanently," Sturrock told the Plymouth Herald. "I have to find out where he is in the (Aston Villa) pecking order.

"But I do feel we have benefited his career and I think there is no harm in him being with us until the end of the season."