It was said as a slight aside, but it’s also illustrative of the slightly unique position the Bristol Rovers defence finds itself in. At 24, and with 72 appearances in League One, Alfie Kilgour is the most experienced centre-back at the club, and by some distance.
Kilgour is four starts into his comeback from a long-standing knee problem that wrecked his participation in Rovers’ promotion campaign, reducing the defender to just 14 sporadic appearances as he underwent two operations that he admits created not just intense physical challenges but also quite profound mental ones.
Now back among the first-team squad on a regular basis, as opposed to an increasing association with the medical staff, Kilgour is trying to play his way back into form, match fitness and familiarity in a new central defensive unit.
