Wael Al-Qadi hailed Joey Barton as a ‘genius’ as he insists he was the calmest man inside the Mem as Bristol Rovers pulled off one of the most unlikely promotions in their own and, most likely, English football history.
The Bristol Rovers owner watched on from his box in the centre of the West Stand as the Gas delivered, in his words, a ‘football miracle’ to overtake Northampton Town on goals scored and claim third place and the final automatic path into League One on the final day of the season.
It concluded a stunning run of 16 wins from 25 matches in 2022 after a first half of the season in which Rovers plummeted as low as 22nd in the table and Barton verbally tendered his resignation following the 3-1 defeat to Leyton Orient on September 18.