Bristol Rovers retained their momentum last week with four points from six in the bag. Leyton Orient were dispatched, Exeter City were held and the Gas’ good form continued.
The Rovers train rolled into the capital on Tuesday having built up a head of steam in Stevenage. And they ensured their stay in East London was all but a brief stop en route towards the top seven. This time, 880 passengers were on board and there was no stopping their party. Gasheads were in fine voice, Rovers were in fine form and their destination is starting to resemble the play-offs.
You only have to look at the attendance to see that something is building at Rovers. Although Wael Al-Qadi generously laid on free coaches, it was amazing to see such strong support and the noise we created was incredible. Gasheads sang from first to last and were rewarded with three valuable points.
The only surprise was the inclusion of Antony Evans from the off. Although necessitated through Nick Anderton’s illness, what a change that was to the line-up. His right foot is a wand and it was a wave of magic from said wand that handed Rovers the lead. With quality like that, you just can’t leave him out of the team.
Harry Anderson, deputising at left-back, was outstanding. A neutral would have had no idea he was playing out of position. He is unrelenting in his commitment and tenacity and his pace just sets him apart from others. Wherever he plays, you get maximum effort and an almost guaranteed solid performance.
I felt we were smart about how we managed the game. Rovers didn’t underestimate Orient’s threat and managed the flow of the game well. They held off their advances, got into the game then pounced when Orient were most vulnerable. The second goal came in quick succession and knocked the stuffing out of them. Then all that was left was for the Gas to protect what they had.
It was tougher than most expected in the second half. It’s easy to forget the quality of players in their team given their poor form. It was a lack of confidence from Orient’s forwards that helped Rovers to three points though, with several golden opportunities squandered. An in-form striker would have bagged a couple, but you won’t find a Gashead who cares about that.
Rovers showed a different side to their game on Tuesday and they were dogged and disciplined in their approach. Resolve and tenacity was the order of the day and they did a good job of protecting their lead. That is a new string to our bow and will be so important for us in the run-in.
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The anticipation for the Exeter game was high, with the sell-out coming shortly before kick-off. Although it was a reduced capacity with new standing regulations, the atmosphere was brilliant as Gasheads soaked up some much-needed sun on the terraces. That very fact we sold out is a real sign of something special building here.
What a feeling that must have been for Luca Hoole, scoring his first goal for the club in front of a packed Thatchers Terrace. Having come through the ranks of a club to score a vital goal that really matters in the context of our season will have him pinching himself. For me, his goal is a sign of the development in his attacking game. If there was one criticism of him earlier in the season, it was his performance in forward areas. He’s answered that criticism emphatically now and will get a huge boost in confidence from scoring.
It was a great game of football to watch for both sets of fans. Both sides play attractive football and effectively cancelled each other out. It was a fair result and one that both sides will be happy with. Rovers owe a lot to a late Josh Coley miss, but perhaps this cancelled out no penalty being awarded for an early handball by Exeter.
There is more to come from Rovers too. What we saw against Exeter was good but I think the players know they have even more in them. That says two things to me.
Firstly, we are getting good results whilst we are still developing as a team and when players aren’t at their best. Take Evans for example, who had a tough battle in the middle of the park but still produced the goods, coming up with an assist for Hoole’s goal. Grinding out results is the hallmark of a good team.
Secondly, the prospects of this team are exciting. We have shown we have the ability to play well, but the more this team plays together the more it will grow. The cohesion we showed against Stevenage can be repeated more frequently, we can become more clinical and we can win more regularly too. That takes a lot of hard work, but the standards Barton has instilled around the club will help that.
Both games last week were markers of our progress. Against Orient, we showed that our performance levels are miles ahead of the dismal performance in the previous game against them in September. Drawing with Exeter, one of the best footballing sides in the division that had hammered us twice earlier in the season, shows we are now a cut above what we used to be.
Our progress is further highlighted in our confidence levels too. That we were frustrated not to win shows belief in our abilities. We know we are good enough to beat anyone on our day and we are now consistently delivering positive results. It looks as though the Oldham game could have been a reality check to the players, helping guard against complacency and showing that victory is not a foregone conclusion against any team this season.
It is within Rovers’ grasp to reach the play-offs now. We’re eight points from third-placed Tranmere with two games in hand on them. It won’t be easy, with six games against play-off and promotion hopefuls between now and the end of the season. But Barton and Rovers will see that as an opportunity to take points off their rivals and seize the initiative from them. Form is on our side too and we've taken the joint-most points in the division since the turn of the year. If Rovers can sustain that then they will back themselves to make it into the top seven.
Onto Tuesday night then and a game against Barrow that we will back ourselves to win. It won’t be easy though and Barton will be under no illusions on that. Often teams struggling at the bottom of the table represent the toughest of challenges. Barrow are fighting for their survival and will give everything to take something from the game. Rovers though will hope to continue the trend of making up for earlier results in the season and take all three points this time out.
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