Joey Barton has made it his personal mission to get Bristol Rovers to the Premier League before rivals Bristol City, but admits the Gas have a lot of catching up to do to overtake their neighbours in the south.
Rovers beat Oxford United 1-0 on Saturday to move into third in the early League One standings, having won two of their opening three games since returning to the third tier under Barton’s watch.
With City 23rd in the Championship, just three places separate the sides in the pyramid - the closest the two teams have been for years, albeit with a division still in the way. Although that’s against the backdrop of the soon-to-be 22-year gap, with October 28, 2000 being the last time Rovers were above the Robins in any league standings.
