It was a frantic game that required a last-gasp Sean Raggett goal to rescue a point for Pompey at Fratton Park.
And while Danny Cowley conceded it was far from a perfect performance from his troops, he was pleased with plenty of aspects.
A fourth consecutive League One defeat looked on the cards when Ryan Hardie raced clear to notch his second goal of the night with 10 minutes remaining.
His first just after the break had cancelled out an early free-kick from Lee Brown that ensured the hosts enjoyed the perfect start.
But Raggett popped up in the final few seconds to grab the equaliser that Cowley felt Pompey deserved.
The Blues boss said: “It was an important goal because when you lose three games on the trot, you have to try to stop that negative momentum.
“I thought our first half performance was excellent and I was really pleased with a lot of the things I saw.
“We played with much more energy and intensity, only to concede an equalising goal from absolutely nowhere.
“Plymouth carry danger on the counter-attack, but it’s an individual error – which happens in football – and we’re a little fragile at the moment in terms of confidence.
"We’re a new group that’s building relationships and you sometimes need nights like this to bring people closer."
“That moment was going to test our mettle, although I was quite pleased with our response, even if it was an erratic and inconsistent display after the break.
“The bit that I did like was when we went behind – and it was an awful goal to concede – there was fight around the stadium and the crowd were magnificent.
“That showed the character of this club and we went right to the end, showing that it’s hard to beat someone who never gives up.
“This is a proud city and football club. It was only a point on this occasion, but in the future that might be worth more.
“We’re a new group that’s building relationships and you sometimes need nights like this to bring people closer.”
Cowley switched to a 3-4-1-2 system against Argyle in a bid to make his side more dangerous in attack.
He explained: “We didn’t get it right on Saturday, but we wanted left-footed balance and the only way we could get that was with a back three.
“But we also wanted two forwards up there because we were looking to carry a bit more goal threat than we have been.
“We created a lot of chances and probably should have scored more than two than we got, while the attitude and effort was perfect, even if the performance wasn’t.”