For the third year in succession, Bristol Rovers failed to get beyond the first round of the Carabao Cup. That in itself is not a huge problem with Joey Barton's priorities understandably fixated elsewhere, but Tuesday's 1-0 defeat to Crawley Town showed plenty of room for improvement ahead of a challenging three-game run in League One.
Roves were in control for the vast majority of the contest at Broadfield Stadium, but their efforts were undermined by a combination of sloppiness, profligacy and a disjointed feel to the attack.
Former Rovers man Tom Nichols was the match-winner, profiting from a couple of slices of luck after what appeared to be a handball by a teammate in midfield sent Crawley surging forward. Then a rebound fell kindly for him to tuck the ball into an empty net 17 minutes from time after James Belshaw kept out his first effort.
