Paul Tisdale admits his Stevenage side were “not in with a chance of getting a result” against Bristol Rovers as his former team now guided by Joey Barton ran riot at the Lamex Stadium scoring four goals without reply.
Sam Finley, Elliot Anderson, Harry Anderson and Aaron Collins were all on the scoresheet in a rampant Rovers away performance haunting the ex-Gas boss, who was sacked by the club in February 2021 after just three wins in 15 games.
Tisdale got off to a difficult start after replacing Alex Revell at the helm of Stevenage last November, with his first victory not coming until January 8, but that 3-1 victory against Walsall began a five-game unbeaten run that saw Stevenage rise up the table.
However, heading into his reunion with Rovers, Stevenage were without a win in four and that poor form was compounded by a comprehensive defeat at the hands of the Gas on Saturday, a game in which Tisdale admitted his side were distinctly second best.
“I’m not sure where to start,” Tisdale replied when asked what went wrong for his side. “It really was a poor day for us and it’s the first time I’ve had that experience since I’ve been manager here and the first game we’ve not been in with a chance of a result.
“I know that the performance was nowhere near good enough. We had no connection or rhythm in the side, and then it comes to down to individual battles.
“There were one or two performances in there but other than that we were below par everywhere. However well the opposition plays, we weren’t anywhere near good enough.”
Rovers were a level above their opponents in Hertfordshire, with the midfield trio of Paul Coutts, Sam Finley and Elliot Anderson allowed ample time to take the ball on the half turn and spray passes out wide to the buccaneering Sam Nicholson and Harry Anderson on multiple occasions.
What has been a problem for Barton’s side though this season has been turning in consistent, dominating performances, but in the last two games they have controlled proceedings against both Sutton and Stevenage, with Tisdale even admitting had it not been for his goalkeeper the scoreline could have been far worse.
Rovers had 24 attempts on Christy Pym's goal, with 11 on target and dominated possession with 62.5 per cent of goal and out-passing their opposition 473-270.
“I thought Christy did particularly well in goal despite conceding four goals,” Tisdale added. “From end to end they had the process, so therefore the outcomes of their opportunities in the attacking end were far better than ours.
“It does happen every now and then, it’s about how you respond and what happens next and the players need to show me that in their performance next week.”
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