Andy Mangan was left "gutted" as Bristol Rovers shipped a late equaliser on an eventful afternoon to draw 2-2 against Fleetwood Town at the Mem, with Gas manager Joey Barton sent to the stands.
First-team coach Mangan – Barton's right-hand man – handled press duties after the manager was sent off by referee Robert Madden in stoppage time before Fleetwood equalised. He said he did not know why the referee produced a red card.
Shaun Rooney, the pantomime villain of the afternoon after winding up opponents and home fans alike, put the Cod Army ahead with a clinical finish in the 14th minute, although Rovers' defending left plenty to be desired.
But a change in shape for the Gas at half time changed the game, moving to a back three to match Fleetwood's setup, and Josh Coburn and Aaron Collins struck to put Rovers ahead. Fleetwood looked like they might sink under the wave of momentum at a raucous Mem, but Rooney popped up with the equaliser in the ninth minute of stoppage time after seven were signalled, glancing an unstoppable header beyond James Belshaw.
A few minutes before, Barton was shown a straight red card by Mr Madden. The manager was seen waving his arms before he was given his marching orders, but Mangan does not know why the referee came to the decision.
"I don’t know, I don’t think there was anything untoward," Mangan said. "I was pretty close towards him and I think the referee has got a bit heated.
"I saw the yellow card in his hand and out of nowhere he brings out the red card. I’m not sure why that happened, I’ll have to speak to Joe, but the level of the performance in the second half, we should be really proud and take confidence from that.
"We’ve had a really good week in training and the lads have taken on a lot of information. We went into a lot of detail and for the lads to perform like that in the second half, especially after the week’s training we’ve had, we’re so proud of them. On another day we get the three points, today we haven’t."
Mangan was eager to stress the positives in Rovers' performance despite the disappointing conclusion. He acknowledges they need to tighten up parts of the game, but he is pleased with the direction of the team regardless of giving away a late goal.
"We feel like we’re moving forward," he said. "We had a tough start in the league with a right few injuries which we had to contain, but those lads are coming back and we’ll have more back next week.
"Ryan Loft is back next week, Paul Coutts isn’t too far away, and hopefully Harry Anderson isn’t too far away, so the squad is looking healthy.
"We’re very tactically fluid as well. We can play a back three, we work very hard in training and can play a back four, so we must be a nightmare to prepare for to be honest.
"Loads of positives today. We dominated the ball in the second half. Can we create even more? That would probably be the demand that we place on it. Gutted, but we move forward."
SIGN UP: To receive our free Rovers newsletter, bringing you the latest from the Mem
READ NEXT:
