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.
