Bristol Rovers tasted defeat for the second time this week on Saturday. Again, Joey Barton's side shipped three goals, though the 3-1 loss to Portsmouth at Fratton was a more dogged and resilient performance after the midweek reverse at Barnsley.
Limitations remain, though. The Gas are not the same attacking threat they were last season – going up a level while losing three quality players without replacing them, yet, will do that to you – and the only answer to that is in the transfer market.
Rovers had plenty of the ball but it was Portsmouth who had the better chances and Connor Ogilvie's bullet header from Michael Jacobs' corner was deserved reward at the half-hour mark. And Pompey always looked like the likelier scorers of the second goal, but the Gas hung in there and Aaron Collins scored his fourth of the season to equalise with 29 minutes remaining.
Referee Gavin Ward had already divided opinion with his decision to book Glenn Whelan for a foul that resulted in a serious leg injury for Louis Thompson midway through the first half, and the official was centre stage again in the final 10 minutes for a tale of two penalty claims.
The first was given eight minutes from time when Harry Anderson tried to clear after James Belshaw parried Reeco Hackett's swerving strike in the direction of substitute Joe Pigott. Anderson seemed to get to the ball first but also made contact with the striker – a transfer target for Rovers two years ago – who sunk to the deck and was awarded the spot kick. He converted it with ease.
Moments later, the Gas had a big shout of their own as Collins strafed into the area and looked to get a shot off but went down after contact from Joe Rafferty. Mr Ward waved away the huge appeal of the players and away end alike.
Barton struggled to see much difference between the incidents, believing there was more contact on Collins, while Pompey boss Danny Cowley thought neither were penalties. In the end, it was Rovers who paid as Owen Dale added a third in stoppage time.
Stating the obvious, again
It is hardly cutting-edge analysis at this point to remind you that the Gas have lost Elliot Anderson, Luke Thomas and Sam Nicholson and are yet to replace them.
It shows in Rovers' performances. For the second game in succession, they had more possession than their opponents but found it hard to create chances and the shortage of options to support the strikers is taking its toll.
Barton has repeatedly explained his motivations for showing such patience in the window and on Saturday he told Gasheads that the calibre of players he will add to his squad in the final 10 days of the transfer window will be worth the wait.
In the meantime, Rovers have been grinding away and have accrued six points from their five games, which feels like an accurate assessment of where they are. They are capable of giving anyone in the third tier a difficult game, but their potential will not be realised until the ranks are bolstered.
An injection of quality will not only naturally boost the talent level of the group, but it could also help the Gas get more from their key players. Antony Evans has struggled in back-to-back games, albeit against opponents who like to bypass the midfield, being a lot of the time he is spent running back and forth with his head on a swivel. If Rovers can replenish their reserves on the wings, Evans' creative juices could start flowing again quickly because there will be better options for him when he gets on the ball.
The recruitment setup is in Barton's hands these days, of course, giving him power but also added responsibility and pressure. The late deals for Evans and Elliot Anderson in the past two windows show he knows how to navigate the chaos of the market as the deadline nears. Reproducing those signings will be a tough ask, but matters off the pitch in the coming days will be influential in shaping Rovers' season.
One big improvement
The scoreline is similar, but Saturday's defeat had a different feel. The Gas had plenty of the ball but were disjointed once again, unable to progress their possession through the lines anywhere near as often as Barton would like.
But at Oakwell, they never gave themselves a chance of grinding out a result, succumbing to an early wave of pressure and failing to hang in the contest. They did just that at Fratton Park, and it is a skill that is crucial in a league with so many big hitters.
The Gas were workmanlike and battled their way to half time just the one goal down, surviving a few set-piece scares and taking the sting out of the contest by keeping the ball, albeit without venturing too far forward, and they were rewarded after the break.
At 1-0, you are always in the game and it takes just one mistake from your opponent to quickly change the narrative. That is what happened when Sean Raggett found himself boxed in by Anderson's hopeful long ball. Marquis applied the pressure and snared possession before squaring for Collins, who was ruthless when presented with the chance.
If not for a couple of contentious decisions in each penalty box, Rovers could have had a point on the road at one of the fancied sides in the division without playing anywhere near their best, underlining the value in being able to take the game deep.
Tactical experiment
Barton is never afraid of thinking outside the box when it comes to setting his side up and when the team news dropped at 2pm it was a real head-scratcher trying to figure out the who, when and how, with five central midfielders in the XI.
The 'why' was a bit more apparent, as Barton stocked his team with experience and bodies in central areas, hoping to minimise the threat of direct balls into Colby Bishop by having more men in position to compete for second balls.
At times, it looked like a back five, but not as you would know it. Out of possession, the three centre-backs would narrow and Paul Coutts and Glenn Whelan would be stationed close in front of them on the inside shoulder of the outside defenders. Slightly further forward, Evans, Sam Finley and Jordan Rossiter provided the energy, with John Marquis and Aaron Collins at the sharp end of the team.
When Rovers had the ball, they stretched out significantly. Hoole and Lewis Gibson, the outside centre-backs, would get close to the touchline to open up passing lanes, with Coutts and Whelan dropping into the spaces they vacated.
Did it work? Not perfectly. The Gas were able to keep the ball relatively well but advancing it to the final third proved difficult. Defensively, Jacobs and Dale had space to roam down the sides, which meant the Gas faced periods of pressure although they had the bodies in the middle to cope.
Portsmouth had little trouble creating pressure, although clear chances were less forthcoming. Their goals came from a corner, a penalty and the third was the result of Rovers leaving the back door open when chasing a leveller in stoppage time.
It is a system Barton could deploy again soon. He revealed after the game his players had less than an hour at The Quarters to work on the shape and it seems it is something he wants to explore further if and when he gets his desired reinforcements in the transfer market.
'A Rolls Royce'
That was how Barton described centre-back Lewis Gibson soon after full time on Saturday, highly impressed by the 22-year-old's first start in a Rovers shirt.
The Everton loanee was the standout performer for the Gas at Fratton Park, showing what he can offer on the left side of a back three. He was smart and precise with the ball at his feet, committing fully to Rovers' attempts to play out from the back.
The defensive instincts were clear to see, too, throwing himself in the way of Ronan Cutis' goal-bound shot in the first half and he timed his intervention to perfection in the second half to deny the same man a gilt-edged chance to make it 2-0.
He lasted 75 minutes on his first start, with Rovers cautiously getting him up to speed after injury curtailed his stint at Sheffield Wednesday last season, but the Gas lacked the same level of stability when he was withdrawn.
The next challenge for the former Fleetwood Town and Reading defender will be to get up to 90-minute match fitness and get a run of games in the starting XI, but the early signs from this performance are very encouraging. He showed the temperament to stand firm against a physical attack and the composure to handle the ball under pressure.
Grim outcome but booking was reasonable
It was immediately obvious that something awful had happened to Louis Thompson after he was challenged by Glenn Whelan in front of the dugouts. Even from the press box in the back row of the stand, the horror for Danny Cowley was apparent.
Fortunate is the wrong word, but the location of the incident meant medical assistance was swift. The 27-year-old was immediately given oxygen and was taken away on a stretcher a few minutes later. The fear is he has suffered a broken leg.
Often in these circumstances, a red card is produced for the outcome of the incident, rather than the challenge itself. It was a foul, and a pretty ugly one at that, with Whelan catching Thompson on the side of the leg. The studs were not involved, but the damage appeared to be inflicted with Thompson's leg being trapped beneath Whelan's and the Portsmouth man's foot getting caught in the ground.
Cowley responded classily after the game. He said: “I’m just worried about Louis, if I’m honest but I don’t want to get caught up in the tackle. Glenn Whelan is an excellent professional and I don’t think for one minute he meant to do it. It was a nasty one. It looks to me like the tibia and fibula have… but sometimes you fear the worst in these moments. That’s our early concern.”
At the time, though, the home crowd demanded a red card, but Mr Ward brandished a yellow. He agreed it was a reckless challenge but what happened to the stricken midfielder was the consequence of an unfortunate chain of events.
Ultimately, the decision had no sway on the result, and hopefully, assessments in hospital have given a more positive outlook for Thompson than was first feared.
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