For a Bristol Rovers team that have conceded nine goals across a three-game losing streak, the thought of a homegrown defender thriving elsewhere is a difficult thing to digest. No doubt Gasheads glanced frustratedly at their phones on Saturday after the defeat to MK Dons and noticed Alfie Kilgour had scored again for Mansfield Town.
In two starts since leaving the Mem for Field Mill last month, centre-back Alfie Kilgour has scored two fine – and crucial – goals and earned rave reviews for his displays at the heart of Nigel Clough's back three. It is no more than the 24-year-old deserves after a challenging end to his time with his boyhood club.
For so long, it appeared Kilgour was on course to be a first-team pillar for a decade after so impressively emerging from the academy, cementing his place as a crucial player in Graham Coughlan's team in 2019/20. At that time, any doubt about his Rovers future stemmed from the possibility of him being snapped up by teams at a higher level, rather than drifting out of contention.
His good form continued after Coughlan's sudden departure – coincidentally to Mansfield – at the midway point of that season. Ben Garner was not getting a tune out of the squad he inherited but Kilgour's performances were a cause for hope as a campaign that had flirted with a play-off push spiralled out of control until COVID-19 curtailed the season and ended the possibility of being dragged into a relegation battle.
As an individual, Kilgour's greatest moment for the Gas came three years ago next week. Trailing 1-0 against Blackpool at the Mem, Rovers were on course for a 15th game without a win with Garner's job in jeopardy. Step forward Kilgour, quite literally, as he marauded out of defence and launched a screamer into the top corner from 30-plus yards. The strike won League One's goal of the month and sparked a turnaround that delivered Garner's first win.
At that time, Premier League and Championship clubs were known to have an eye on the youngster, who was showing himself to be competent in possession but, most importantly, a solid defender with good athleticism and potential to develop further.
But what followed was an unfortunate timeline for a player still learning their craft. Key transfer decisions, namely the exit of Tony Craig, shook things up defensively for the worse and the dysfunction of that team saw Garner sacked in November 2020. Paul Tisdale came in next with very different ideas and lasted less than four months in the job.
Enter Barton, who also had a drastically different approach but was unable to prevent the Gas from being relegated.
Injuries became an issue, too, with knee surgery required the following season, missing more than half of the games as the Gas were promoted. He was not involved in the final 24 games and although he tasted promotion with the team he supported as a lad, it must have been bittersweet having hoped to play a bigger part.
That brings us to this season, with less than 12 months remaining on his contract by the time the campaign had started. The injury problems had been overcome but Rovers had progressed a long way in his absence. James Connolly had cemented his place and new signings followed.
Barton's desired style of play was also established too, with Rovers defending with a high line and placing the onus on their defenders to start attacks in possession. Injuries gave Kilgour plenty of chances to play in the early weeks of the season, but in that framework, his performances were less convincing than in the more pragmatic setup used when Kilgour was at his best under Coughlan.
In the end, the writing was on the wall when Barton would not select Kilgour, even when there was a paucity of alternatives, such as the 6-3 defeat to Lincoln City when Luca Hoole, Glenn Whelan and Lewis Gordon formed the back three.
Those moments sat on the bench or in the stands must have been low ones for Kilgour, who was desperate to earn a fresh deal with the Gas. There was a sense of misfortune with two harsh red cards in his final months as a Gas player, one of which was rescinded.
But a few months down the line, things have worked out well. Mansfield may not be the most glamorous or aesthetically-pleasing place, but it is a club with managerial stability and ambitious ownership; you can do a lot, lot worse up and down the EFL.
His full debut for the Stags after signing an 18-month contract for an undisclosed fee featured a thunderous strike in the 4-1 win against Doncaster Rovers and he followed that up this past weekend with a late equaliser against Bradford City – coincidentally the site of his final league goal for the Gas in October 2021.
Besides, the goals, which obviously are not priority number one for a centre-back, the narrative from local paper the Mansfield Chad suggests he has been a good fit defensively and he has made an immediate positive impact as they vie for a League Two play-off place after losing out in last year's final.
As a result, some Gasheads may be wondering whether a mistake has been made. Clearly, the Gas have a defensive issue to sort after conceding 52 goals in 29 games, but the reality is Kilgour was not the answer when he was in the building – or at least the version of himself that was present in his final months with the club.
There were chances to cement a place and he did not take them, not that it was necessarily his fault. A revolving door of managers, significant injuries and on-field struggles for the club as a whole had taken its toll and, naturally, that affects a player's confidence.
He was not affecting Barton's first XI and it was hard to see a way in. In the circumstances, without the prospect of regular football, it would have been very difficult for him to rediscover his form.
Kilgour, now 25 years old, never relented or threw in the towel, giving his all for the Gas for as long as he was on the books, so this upturn in fortunes is fully deserved.
But just because Rovers is his club does not make it the right club. A fresh start in a new place was required and, unburdened by the weight of recent seasons, he looks like a man back on track to realising his potential.
So there should be no revisionism. Rovers made the right call and so did Kilgour. The challenge remains for Barton to find answers to his defensive problems, while Kilgour needs to carry this on and carry on enjoying his football.
In time, he should look back only with pride on his time at Rovers, too. He played 119 games, scored some memorable goals and played his part in a promotion. Maybe at one point, the future promised more, but offer those stats to the young lad on the terraces 15-odd years ago and he would have thought it a dream come true.
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