Joey Barton believes the support of Bristol Rovers fans gives his team "something special" with another big away following expected at Rochdale on Saturday.
Around 2,000 advanced tickets have been sold for the game at Spotland, Rovers' penultimate match of the season with their hopes of promotion still alive. Barton's Gas are sixth in League Two, two points adrift of the automatic promotion places, but their season has not always been this way.
For months, Rovers were struggling to climb out of the bottom half of the table. Their form may have dramatically improved but the dedicated backing of supporters on the road has been a constant. Crowds in excess of 2,000 were taken to Swindon Town and Port Vale, with several other big away followings over the course of the season. There have been multiple sell-outs at the Mem this season, too.
That support has not gone unnoticed by Barton, who wants to reward Gasheads with a successful end to a memorable season.
"We’ve benefitted enormously from the fantastic support we’ve had all season," he said. "I said that even when we weren’t doing well. There were times when they held us accountable because they knew they’d travelled in their numbers and we didn’t want to disappoint them or let them down.
"Gradually as the season has built and the momentum wave has built, the rapport between players and fans has grown enormously.
"The fact they’ve travelled the length and breadth of the country speaks volumes because, without them, I don’t think we’d have been anywhere near as successful as we have in recent months. I look back to the Swindon game when we weren’t riding the crest of a wave and I think there were three-odd-thousand there. That was a real momentum shift for us. I think back to Walsall, I think back to Exeter away when we were dreadful and the Gasheads haven’t come up short for the group in any match.
"They’ve travelled in ridiculous numbers, given such good support to the players and all we want to do is keep making them want to be at games, keep making them travel in the numbers they are and keep making the noise they do because they are proud of the players who are pulling on the quarters.
"For me, we want to give them success and a great football team. Without them, we’re just another football club, we’re just another team. With them, they give us something special and we witnessed that last time out at Port Vale.
"I’m hoping on Saturday they are there in their numbers again and I’m hoping we can give them another really good, positive performance and hopefully take maximum points."
Rovers were closing in on 2,000 tickets sold for Saturday's game on Thursday evening. Rochdale are yet to confirm if pay on the day will be available.
The Gas need other results to go their way if they are to sneak into the top three, but a win at Spotland would go a long way to clinching a place in the play-offs.
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