Bristol Rovers held on to their spot in the play-offs after a draw with Forest Green. It was a tale of frustration and graft as an off-colour Gas side ground out a result.
The hype leading up to the game was massive. It was a chance to take points off the league leaders to send a real statement of intent to the rest of the league and seize the initiative in the promotion race.
It was yet another sold-out game at home and a fantastic day for football. The Mem was absolutely bouncing before kick-off and that's got to be an incredible feeling for those players on the pitch. We sold out our last few home games, took over 2,000 away to Port Vale and look likely to take 2,000+ to Rochdale. That just shows you how incredible our fans are.
It was always going to be a tough game against a team that has occupied the top of the table for most of the season. We were well beaten at their place, but Rovers would have been confident off the back of that stunning win away at Port Vale.
Frustration was a theme of the performance for Rovers. We lacked cohesion. Not all of the cogs in the wheel were turning and aside from the first 10 minutes, we couldn’t get out of second gear. We threw away a bright start and allowed them to get back into the game.
Sam Finley had his worst performance in a Rovers shirt. Nothing seemed to work for him. His passing radar was off and he couldn’t impact the game in the same way he normally would. He was visibly upset with his performance, which is understandable given his high standards. He will bounce back though, that was just a bump in the road. He has an incredible work rate and you just know he will have a big influence over the remainder of our season.
Elliot Anderson is just incredible to watch in the flesh. I've spoken many times about his agility and the way that he moves around the pitch, demanding the ball in all areas and making things happen. But it was his leadership qualities that impressed me on Saturday. They are amazing for a person of such a young age. He barks instructions to his teammates on the pitch demanding more from them and raising other people's game in doing so.
Luke Thomas was really bright when he came on. He drove at the Forest Green defence, running at them with pace and without fear and causing all sorts of problems. He could have won it at the death too with a good curling effort. He's shown the manager he's ready for a start away at Rochdale and that’s a nice problem for the boss to have.
For the umpteenth time this season, we have James Belshaw to thank for our point and a clean sheet. Time and time again he makes top-class saves when we need them most to keep us in the game. The amount of times he clears the ball in a sweeping position drastically reduces the number of saves he has to make. That is as valuable as his stops between the sticks as it is to his defence, as it allows them to pursue a higher line, pushing Rovers’ play further up the pitch.
Whilst the draw must have felt like a defeat in some ways, it was a valuable point in others. Taking a point from the league leaders in a hotly contested game is a good result, although our high standards and recent performances mean we are also naturally disappointed. Results around us ensured that we kept our place in the table, with Barrow’s win at home to Sutton meaning the latter cannot now leapfrog us in the table with their game in hand.
The EFL team of the season was released on Sunday and it was a surprise to see no Bristol Rovers players involved. Connor Taylor has been one of the most consistent and outstanding performers in the league so it was strange to see Finn Azaz beat him to the Young Player of the Year award. Newport fans love him but it's hard to see how someone with fewer goals and assists than Antony Evans in more games makes the team.
That said, I won’t lose sleep over it. Often a player’s inclusion in this kind of thing just brings more attention from those in the leagues above and we certainly could do without more attention being drawn to our prized assets. Joey Barton and the team will tell you individual awards are nice but what everyone really wants is the main team prize – promotion to League One.
It was absolutely amazing to see the Gas Girls playing their first game at The Mem for many years, on a day that was an incredible double-header of football. The friendly was in celebration of the Her Game Too campaign, which is the brainchild of inspirational Gasheads Lucy Ford and Caz May. If you haven’t seen the goals, get yourself to the ladies’ Twitter page (@GasGirlsWFC) – you’ll be hard pushed to find three better strikes than these, with a backheel that assisted a lob from the edge of the box the pick of the bunch.
The men’s team march on to Rochdale with nothing but three points on their minds. Nothing but three points will do for the next two games as we rely on others ahead of us to slip up if we are to reach the autos. Every Gashead in the land will be supporting Exeter City for the rest of the season. With their place in the autos all but secured, they play two of our three main contenders in Northampton Town and Port Vale. We could do with favours from Saturday’s opponents Forest Green too, with the promoted Gloucestershire side facing Mansfield on the final day.
Rovers will be fully confident of results over the next two games. If we don't make the automatics though, we must remember it was only a few months ago that we were sat in 19th position and staring down the barrel of relegation to non-league. There should be no meltdown if we don’t get there, as even the play-offs were seemingly out of reach only earlier this year.
That we are even in the conversation for the automatic spots is beyond belief considering recent history. Rovers have their chance to do a Bolton from last season. Anything is possible with this team and the boys will back themselves to do it. I for one can’t wait for the next two games. Let’s back our boys to the very end and do everything we can to give them a foundation for success. After all, these are the moments we live for as football fans.
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