All good things must come to an end and Bristol Rovers' eight-game unbeaten run was halted with a chastening 4-2 defeat to Derby County at Pride Park on Saturday.
A dismal first-half display was to blame as David McGoldrick showed his class with a clinical hat-trick that ultimately put the game beyond Rovers' reach, but this defeat should only take a glint from the shine of an excellent month from the Gas.
Lessons must be learned from an error-strewn 45 minutes, but throughout October Rovers have built a platform to tackle the rest of their seasons. An injury-plagued start to the campaign left them playing catch-up, and the job is far from finished, but Joey Barton's side have made tremendous strides in results and performances since taking a point from Exeter City on October 1.
The fixture list was daunting and after impressive performances against League One leaders Plymouth Argyle and third-placed Sheffield Wednesday to pick up a pair of draws, they stumbled in the final game of a taxing week. Barton said he still saw positives to take from Saturday's performance, but the bigger picture is the body of work built over the month and it is clear that Rovers have dramatically improved as a team.
Saturday proved they are clearly not immune to mad moments culminating in a dreadful first half, but after next Saturday's FA Cup game against Rochdale, Rovers can return to league action with the confidence built this month.
First-half horror show
At a big stadium where the fans can have a significant influence on matters on the pitch, the absolute priority has to be giving away nothing cheap in the opening stages, but Rovers were guilty of doing that not just once but multiple times in a woeful first half.
James Gibbons' risky fifth-minute pass that played Luca Hoole into trouble, allowing Nathaniel Mendez-Laing to steal in and release McGoldrick clear on goal, set the tone for 45 minutes when the Gas repeatedly played their way into trouble. A second goal followed soon after with the Gas losing the first contact at a corner, allowing James Collins to tap in unmarked at the back post.
With the attacking weapons in their side, it was key that Rovers gave themselves a chance. They have a higher number of goals in their games than anyone else in the division with 27 for and 31 against and they have the tools to dig themselves out of a hole.
So conceding a third goal after 24 minutes and in tame fashion once again, with McGoldrick showing his nous to roll the comparatively inexperienced Luca Hoole in the box before thumping the ball into the roof of the net, must have been so disappointing for the Rovers manager.
Still, Rovers showed they are always in games and in the 35th minute, Bobby Thomas continued to show he can be a big threat at set plays, slamming the ball into the roof of the net after Josh Coburn's header was stopped on the line. But Thomas was the next man to play his way into trouble at the other end, taking an unnecessary chance in trying to play his way out when McGoldrick put him under pressure.
McGoldrick snared possession and showed his class with a brilliant finish that befitted a former Premier League striker, but once again the cause of the goal was avoidable for Rovers. Antony Evans' penalty in the final minute of stoppage time gave them a glimmer of hope for the second half, but Derby were content to sit back and saw out their win with relative ease.
Who knows how the game would have played out if Rovers had not fired not one but a handful of shots into their own foot at Pride Park, but they gave themselves next to no chance with an out-of-character first-half horror show.
The enforced change to the defence, with the impressive Lewis Gibson out with a groin injury and Hoole – who Barton says is short on confidence – replacing him, clearly did Rovers no help at all. Suddenly, they looked fragile and without composure when playing out from the back.
But with James Connolly returning and with Gibson hopefully back soon, Rovers will be confident that this was a blip – a bad day at the office to end a tough week against the league's elite. They have certainly banked enough credit of late for Gasheads to believe that is the case, too.
The big picture
Nine games, five wins, three draws and one defeat – any Gashead would have taken that offering and ran at the start of the month after such a difficult start to the season.
Admittedly, two of the wins are in the low-priority EFL Trophy, but the performances throughout the month have been hugely encouraging. MK Dons, Cambridge United and Cheltenham Town, all teams that have comparable ambitions to Rovers this season, have been beaten and Barton's Gas went toe-to-toe with Argyle and the Owls, who are gunning for a place in the Championship next term.
Many of Barton's have found the confidence to know they can cut it at this level and a platform for the rest of the season has been built after a concerning 10 games. The defeat at Derby leaves a slightly sour taste at the end of a very good run.
In that time, several pieces of the puzzle appear to have been inserted. Gibson and Thomas have the makings of a good partnership at the back with Connolly back from injury at Pride Park to show his quality with a strong second-half cameo.
Lewis Gordon was below par on Saturday, but in recent weeks he has shown improvement in his game, as has Ryan Loft who has hopefully only briefly had his momentum halted by a groin injury. Josh Coburn and Aaron Collins are in the goals, Antony Evans has found some form and Jordan Rossiter has established himself in the blue and white quarters after his summer move from Fleetwood Town.
There are more injuries on the list than Barton would like, but on the whole, the big picture is a promising one.
Particularly with the Gasheads in tow. A packed away end of 3,100 was an amazing sight at Pride Park. They drowned out the blaring music on the PA system, outsang the home supporters and did their team proud.
Connolly's back but the injury list grows
Barton spoke of taking the positives after the game, and surely atop that list was Connolly's return from a back injury that had sidelined him for two months.
Connolly spoke to the press after the game and his disappointment at the result was obvious, but it was blended with the personal delight of being back in action after a long layoff.
Connolly replaced Hoole 10 minutes into the second half and he was instantly assured and the defence was calmed. The game plan at Derby was to play out from the back and the Welshman would have been so valuable in doing that in the first half, but Rovers rightly did not take any risks.
Thomas and Gibson have done an excellent job in recent weeks, but Connolly will be pushing hard to regain the starting spot he cemented in last year's run to promotion until the stress fracture in his back was discovered in late August.
Connolly will surely start for the Gas against Rochdale in the FA Cup in six days' time. He came through 35 minutes unscathed against the Rams and quickly found a rhythm. Provided he completes a fully 90 without issue, he will then be back in the running for the visit of Fleetwood Town to the Mem next month.
Scott Sinclair's 35-minute runout will also be encouraging for the manager. The winger had made a pair of brief appearances from the bench since returning to his boyhood club, but this runout was his longest by a distance and Rovers will hope he is fully up to speed soon. There were promising signs in this appearance, including a darting run that ended with Rovers' best effort of the second half, a deflected shot that was well saved by Joe Wildsmith.
But after an improved run of fortune with injuries of late, the list is lengthening again. Paul Coutts – whose composure was sorely missed – has an ankle issue that could sideline him for several weeks and the Gas are proceeding cautiously with John Marquis' knee issue. Gibson, Loft and Harry Anderson all have muscle issues and they will not be rushed back. Josh Grant is out for the season after knee surgery,
Swift returns for Gibson, Loft and Anderson will make a big difference, strengthening the starting XI and the bench, but the manager will be eager to see no more names added to the injury list in the meantime and no risks will be taken against League Two opposition next Saturday.
A rite of passage
It was a tough day for all of Rovers' defenders, but Barton identified Hoole and a dip in form for the 20-year-old. He was not the only one, but there were mistakes from the defender and he suffered at the experienced hands of McGoldrick before he was taken off 10 minutes into the second half.
"I feel for Hooley, he’s lost a bit of confidence and he’s been shuffled about," Barton said. "You’ve got to expect with young players that there is going to be a dip.
"When they’re 25/26, you expect them to be more consistent, but when you work with younger players you have to expect there is going to be a bit of fluctuation in their performance.
"Unfortunately for Hooley, he’s having a bit of a tough time at the minute and I think today we had to play him. James wasn’t ready to play 90, Alf I don’t think is ready and Hooley sits in that next slot.
"I was hoping today would be a chance for him to regain that confidence, but we haven’t defended well enough as a team and Hooley’s confidence at this moment in time hasn’t got any higher."
Hoole's position is a common one. It is essentially a rite of passage for young defensive players in particular to have a sophomore slump. He was excellent in Rovers' promotion campaign last year in what was his maiden full season in the first team.
This year, his place has not been guaranteed with the arrival of James Gibbons and the changes in shape. As a result, the Wales under-21 international has played a lot of different roles with varying levels of familiarity, with left centre-back in a back four on Saturday being the most foreign of all.
But Hoole mustn't get downhearted. As a League Two promotion winner and a Wales under-21 international, he has achieved so much at a young age. As Barton said, variance in form and confidence is par for the course in a position where mistakes are magnified and more likely to be defining for the outcome of games.
But the academy product has shown more than enough in his time in the first team to prove to himself that he is capable and can come out the other side of this difficult run as a stronger and more seasoned player.
Good timing
After such a strong run and one disappointing performance, it feels like a good time for Rovers to switch focus to the FA Cup. The League One campaign is gruelling and it has already taken its toll with the number of injuries.
Obviously, Rovers will be desperate to beat Rochdale and get into the hat for the second round, but it will also be an opportunity for Barton to freshen things up and manage his squad.
There may not be wholesale changes, but after a tricky three-game week and a shortened turnaround between the trips to Hillsborough and Pride Park, Barton has a chance to rest those who need it and get one or two fringe players into the action.
And for the next fortnight, the Gas have full training weeks without games, which seems ideal for a squad that is starting to pick up injuries after a challenging and congested run of fixtures.
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