Bristol Rovers got back on track with a dominant performance against Bradford. In typical Gas fashion, they left themselves all to do, but Rovers are back and in some style too.
By the time Bradford came along, a week had passed since Carlisle, which felt more like a month. After the disappointment of losing, there’s nothing you want more as a fan than an opportunity to bounce back straight away. For the players and the manager though, rest and time on the grass was just what the doctor ordered.
Another sell-out crowd and another cracking atmosphere awaited on Saturday. Probably the two biggest clubs in the division going head to head in front of a full house at The Mem is a mouth-watering proposition. Add a touch of spice through Joey Barton’s past relationship with the opposition manager, plus a good serving of context with the meaning of three points here for Rovers, and you have a real recipe for entertainment.
Rovers played some beautiful football early on, albeit without an end product. Passes forward to feet were immediately re-distributed, not allowing Bradford to get anywhere near the ball. We got ourselves into some good positions but couldn’t find the missing piece to the puzzle. Midway through the first half, The Gas had 24 attacks to Bradford’s 7. That tells you exactly where the game was being played and that pattern was to wear on for the rest of the game.
Sam Finley is quite some footballer. He is different to any midfielder I’ve seen in League Two this season. The Scouser is elegant and tenacious in equal measure but also possesses a graceful agility that allows him to turn away from danger or glide past opponents. He’s capable of the spectacular too, as we saw away at Exeter and Stevenage. He saved his third spectacular goal of the season to give Rovers a foothold in the match. People talk about Antony Evans and Elliot Anderson’s ability being well above that of League Two, but we are lucky to have our number six here too.
Paul Coutts’ performance as captain is worth the entrance fee, let alone his footballing capabilities. He is everything we didn’t have last season. He is constantly influencing the referee, trying to make the case for Rovers in every decision. He leads his teammates with passion and desire, never leaving anything on the pitch. He put quite the shift in on Saturday and was my man of the match.
It must also be recognised that he has overcome intense adversity this season, having struggled on the pitch after no pre-season and a bout of Covid-19 too. He bore the weight of expectation then, but had the strength and character to drag himself above board and in doing so, pull his team towards the play-offs.
Rovers knew Bradford would be better in the second half. They knew they’d be more inventive and would get at us more. But they also knew that they had to stay alert from the off – and didn’t. The quick run from the throw wasn’t tracked, the ball fell favourably for Bradford and Rovers were bamboozled by the ultimate sucker punch.
The Mem was deflated but would rise once more to honour the great Sam Finley. There had been a theme of greed not paying off for Rovers’ forwards until this point, with Elliot Anderson and Aaron Collins frustrating the better placed Harry Anderson by not passing to him. Step forward Finley to reverse that trend, taking all the glory with a rocket that proved too hot for Bradford keeper Alex Bass to handle.
Sam Nicholson, criticised by some sections of the terraces of late, looked refreshed on Saturday. His running was pacey and direct and he caused problems in the Bradford defence. But he didn’t bring his shooting boots and should have done much better when played in by Elliot Anderson just after the hour. You sense his performances are improving, but he just needs a goal to boost his confidence.
How Bradford ended the game with 11 men is beyond me. Elliott Watt can count himself a very lucky man to have stayed on the pitch for his tackle on Aaron Collins alone. His cynical lunge brought his studs to Collins’ ankle. Call me old fashioned, but when did aggressive tackles from behind stop being red cards?
It mattered little just minutes later as Rovers’ defensive rock Connor Taylor bundled the ball home. Watching that live just seemed like it was in slo-mo; the ball took forever to get over the line. He took up more intelligent positions in the box throughout the game, particularly during second phases of play when he judged where a rebound would land in order to be in a position to get a shot away.
That tactic paid off with 15 minutes to go. Barton had previously challenged Taylor to add more goals to his game and the centre back answered that emphatically. He may not score a more vital goal this season too.
The heart that Rovers showed in coming from behind to win was so pleasing. It would have been easy for heads to drop after conceding, having been dominant throughout the first half. But they brushed that aside and pushed on relentlessly. The attacks were incessant, Bradford were pegged back and the initiative was seized by Rovers. The players will have left The Mem broad-shouldered after such a strong performance and the manner of their victory.
The task on Saturday was to bounce back from defeat and get back to winning ways. We did just that and have done so many times now in the second half of the season. Carlisle is now a mere blip as Rovers gained momentum going into another cup final. We made the most of slip-ups from our rivals too, with Northampton, Newport, Swindon and Tranmere all dropping points.
The promotion race this season is absolutely unbelievable from a neutral’s perspective. Everyone from 1st to 11th is in with a shot of automatic promotion, most of the teams play each other and we are sure for much more drama between now and May 7. How Sky Sports aren’t showing this scorcher of a run-in may beyond belief, but a surprise it is not based on their history of TV selections.
Tranmere away is next up for The Gas in what is a tasty looking tie. They will be without two first-choice players with both MacDonald and Morris being sent off against Carlisle. They will also be incredibly frustrated, having conceded in the 7th minute of injury time to draw with the Cumbrians. Form is on Rovers’ side too, with The Gas winning 4 of their last 5 and Tranmere failing to win any of their last 3.
Rovers know it will be tough, but if they can play anywhere near as well as they did against Bradford, a win could be a reality. They’ll once again have the backing of an incredible fanbase, with around 1,000 tickets already sold and the initial allocation sold out for the umpteenth time. What a set of fans this club has – taking that number from the South West to the North West is unbelievable.
It’s in our hands now. We’ve done the hard work to get ourselves here and haven’t let go of our grasp since. The challenge now is to maintain our spot in the top 7 and take care of our own business. To do that, we’ll need to beat the sides in and around us. The Gas will back themselves to do just that though – and you won’t find a team in the league that will want to play us right now.
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