Fifty-six days after Bristol Rovers last tasted victory in League One, Joey Barton's Gas were back in the win column. A promising week ahead preceded the visit of Cambridge United to the Mem on Saturday, and at last, the Gas have regained some momentum.
This was a deserved victory, although they had to work hard for it. A dominant opening half hour could have yielded more than Greg Taylor's own goal and the afternoon had a familiar feel for Gasheads when the visitors won and converted a penalty from a rare foray forward.
Home had offered little comfort to the Gas this season, taking just two points from the past four games in BS7, but this time the Mem crowd got to serenade a win. Josh Coburn capped an impressive league debut with a goal to restore the advantage 11 minutes into the second half and then Barton's blues dug deep to secure the points.
Gripped by a defensive injury crisis in the past six weeks, Rovers have been stuck in reverse, going eight games without a win, but with Barton's squad stronger on Saturday than at any point so far this term, the Gas are back in gear. They jumped from 21st to 19th with these three points and in this guise, with depth and quality at the manager's disposal, Barton should be confident of making more progress in the weeks ahead.
A great end to a good week
Heading to Exeter City eight days ago with Rovers' form and their recent history in Devon in mind, few Gasheds would have been confident of a positive result. But at St James Park, it felt like the Gas had established a base camp. Weeks of sliding had been halted with a strong performance that deserved more than the point it earned.
A much-changed side filled with players on the fringes followed that up by getting the job done in the EFL Trophy in midweek, rediscovering the winning feeling for the first time in August. But with an eye on the daunting upcoming fixture list, victory against Cambridge was the requirement and the Gas got the job done.
The Gas have endured a chastening run underpinned by an unfortunate series of injuries, with many of them concentrated in defence, but Barton and his players have enjoyed a good week. Confidence was a concern before the Exeter game, but real character has been shown in the past week to get the campaign back on track.
Waking up this morning will doubtless feel a lot nicer for Rovers' players than it has after recent home games, and instead of lamenting points dropped, they will be eager to go again at MK Dons on Tuesday. If Rovers can pick up a victory in Buckinghamshire then they really will be rolling.
Not your average big man
Patience has been required for Barton this season and he was handsomely rewarded on Saturday with Middlesbrough loanee Coburn coming up with the game's deciding goal. There were promising signs in his debut outing for the Gas on Tuesday against Crystal Palace under-21s and with John Marquis sidelined on Saturday with a knee injury the 19-year-old was thrown in from the start.
He made an excellent first impression, trapping a diagonal pass from James Gibbons out of the sky, sprinting beyond a pair of desperate challenges and driving into the box before curling just wide. This teenager from the North East may have a different frame, but there were shades of Elliot Anderson and the way he moved in a blue and white shirt a few months ago.
The natural ability in Coburn's feet is obvious. Barton's tactical shift to striking duos with Aaron Collins playing as a number 10 has given the Gas the ability to go direct and when Coburn was the target of that service, he showed real skill to control the ball. We're dangerously close to "Good touch for a big lad" cliche territory here, but it is abundantly clear Coburn is not your average 6ft 3in striker.
He does all the things a manager could want from a target man. He's physical, wins flick-ons and looks to link play, but on the small sample size of evidence so far he can also do plenty with the ball at his feet.
He appears to have a natural instinct for scoring, too. Several times he was sniffing around the six-yard box and his movement for his match-winning goal was superb, timing his run perfectly to steal in between defender and goalkeeper to turn Collins' cross in at the front post.
Barton always felt deadline-day signing Coburn would be worth the wait as he recovered from a knee injury, and so far the manager has been proved right. He adds another edge to a striking corps that was already an asset for the Gas.
The complete package who must be on Wales' radar
Coburn was the man who got the deciding goal on Saturday, but Collins invariably has had a hand in Rovers' best moments this season. This game was no different, laying on what is becoming a trademark assist.
Like last week, he delivered a pinpoint low cross from the left channel, a space where he is as effective as any player in the third tier. On Saturday, Jubril Okedina was left trailing in his wake as he sped to the byline and picked out the run of Coburn.
Collins' tally of goal contributions for the season swelled to 11 – six goals and five assists – as a result, underlining his importance to Rovers not just as a scorer but as a creator. This is a player who arrived at the Mem in 2021 high on talent but with nothing like the confidence he possesses now.
The 25-year-old has matured into a complete package for the Gas; it was a masterstroke to secure him to a three-year deal in the summer. On this trajectory, a really exciting future awaits, potentially at international level. Surely Wales have this Newport lad on their radar?
Could he be a bolter for the World Cup? It seems unlikely – although not farfetched considering several League One and League Two players were in Rob Page's recent Nations League squad – and selfishly Gasheads may prefer he didn't miss a big chunk of the season in Qatar, but if Collins keeps shining for Rovers he will be getting a cap sooner or later.
Belshaw's response
James Belshaw has been so dependable for Rovers that any error is a surprise, but his character was on full display on Saturday. After a mistake at Exeter that led to a goal, he found himself in an unfortunate situation that keepers dread on Saturday.
He had to try to snatch the ball off the toes of Sam Smith after an excellent through ball from ex-Gas defender George Williams sent him clear, but the striker just beat him to it and was taken to ground by the goalkeeper. Joe Ironside would convert the penalty.
Things didn't seem to be going Belshaw's way for a second game in succession, but he responded brilliantly in the second half, first with a sprawling save from close range to deny Ironside, before keeping out the same man with a fingertip stop from a powerful header. Other players took the acclaim, but Belshaw was a huge factor in Rovers getting over the line on Saturday.
'Replacing quality with quality'
"You’re replacing quality with quality," a delighted Barton said of his replenished resources. "That’s no disrespect to the lads who were in there before, but sometimes we weren’t able to make a sub because people weren’t right or we didn’t think the performance would be maintained."
Rovers' season has been marred by injuries so far, but their woes are easing with Coburn, James Gibbons and Lewis Gibson all in the squad on Saturday. As a result, the starting XI has been strengthened, but also the bench.
Too often for his liking, Barton has been short of options on the bench, but he did have that luxury on Saturday. Gibson, Paul Coutts, Luke McCormick, Sylvester Jasper and Trevor Clarke all had credible starting claims for the Cambridge game but they were used from the bench on Saturday and they all played their part in seeing the game out.
A week ago, it was the bench that earned the draw with Jasper mustering the assist for Ryan Loft's late equaliser. The wait for reinforcements has been agonising for Barton, who has repeatedly stated his belief in the squad he has assembled, and now he is starting to see his plans come together.
It has been for just two league games in succession, but the starting XI is looking stronger and so is the bench. Competition for places is growing and that can only be a good thing.
Gone are the headaches about coming up with a makeshift solution to an injury crisis. Now there are a few too many players to squeeze into matchday squad with James Connolly, Alfie Kilgour, Harry Anderson, John Marquis and Glenn Whelan among those who could come back in.
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