Bristol Rovers host local National League South outfit Weston-super-Mare AFC at the Mem on Saturday afternoon in the FA Cup first round. With the close geography of the two sides as well as being three divisions apart it’s one of the stand out cup ties of the round, although it hasn’t been selected for television coverage.
Being a League One outfit at home, naturally all of the pressure will be on Rovers to win the game and avoid a cup upset with Weston heading up the M4 unbeaten in 16 matches and top of their league table.
Gas manager Matt Taylor spoke to local media on Thursday afternoon to discuss the tie, the FA Cup as a competition and ensuring his team avoid an upset as well as the latest injury news and the latest in the search for another back-up goalkeeper. Here is every word he had to say…
Matt, let’s start with some squad news. How’s the top end of the pitch looking? A chance to put out some proper strikers this weekend?
Potentially, in Chrissy. He obviously got his half a game on Tuesday and he’s recovered well and felt no ill effects in that leg, in that bone which obviously he broke.
The rest is a little bit light. We have to understand and acknowledge that but it’s no excuse going into the weekend. That’s where we are and that’s the circumstance we find ourselves in.
So that doesn’t sound great for Promise [Omochere] in terms of this weekend…
Look, I don’t want to sit here and rule him out on a Thursday afternoon. I want to give him as much time as we possibly can but it’s looking less and less likely. He’s not been out on the grass as yet.
“Obviously, the pain and the effects he was feeling at the start of the week are still lingering. So, look, we’ll test him. We’ll give him as much time as we possibly can. So maybe a late call on Saturday.”
It’s not like you don’t have other options but it potentially changes the way you have to play. Is that something you’re comfortable with?
Yes, but we’ve got options. Ruel can play as an out-and-out nine. He might not be the same physical profile as maybe the other three we’re talking about.
Bryant’s actually done better than expected in that position. It’s not his natural position but what he did at the end against Northampton so long ago and even in that probably 25 minute cameo at Reading, he causes problems. He’s got pace, power and he can head a ball. If can put a profile of a centre forward then he’s not a million miles off that.
So we’ve got options. Like I say, the biggest positive sat here right now is that it looks like Chrissy’s gonna be available. Now, let’s keep him available for as long as we possibly can.
We know he won’t play 90 minutes. I think a few players are in that bracket. But yeah, we’re looking forward to see him out there again.
And with Bryant, the sort of that enthusiasm that he brings to everything he does, that could go quite a long way you’d imagine…
Yes. He smiles which is a great start. He’s positive in terms of his experience to date and actually on Tuesday out of where the performance was, he was one of the better ones. He affected the game. He contributed. He had his usual lung bursting runs up and down that left side. Wasn’t beating one-v-one and he’s always a benefit to any team in both boxes in terms of set-pieces. So yeah, he was a positive.
He’s a player who we’re still developing. We have to understand that this is his first Football League exposure but he’s certainly been a positive to date.
For you, where does the FA Cup this season sit in terms of your priorities?
It’s at the top. The next one is always at the top. The Exeter game on Tuesday morning and Monday was at the top of that list because it’s the next one.
So Weston is right up there. It’s a home game. We know the pressure will be on us as a home team and the league team, the professional team and we’re playing against a team in form with nothing to lose to a certain extent. So we know where the pressure lies, but it’s a great opportunity for us to get into the next round of the competition.
And is that something you tell the players to embrace? Because obviously everyone from outside is going to expect you to go through…
Yes. We have to acknowledge that. We speak about being professional footballers and it being a privilege and part of being a privilege is the pressure you get with it and this weekend, there might be more pressure because the expectation is there with the difference between the leagues.
But we, internally, fully respect Weston, certainly in terms of the form they’re on and the job Scott [Bartlett]’s done there for a number of seasons and the players they’ve got. We know some of them. They’re quite familiar to us. I’ve worked with a couple in the past and they’re seriously good players. But if we’re on our game, regardless of who we’re playing, our home form has generally shown that if we’re where we need to be, we’ll be okay.
And that’s it, isn’t it? Because your home record is pretty good so far this season, that’s something I’m sure you want to continue, but there have been a couple of games where you haven’t hit those levels and you’ve just got to avoid those…
Yes, and in those games, like I say, the last minute heartbreak against Wycombe, we weren’t a million miles away. But then we did have that shock to us, the Wigan game.
But as long as that’s a once a season, then our home attendances, home support should generally be okay, and more importantly, our home form. We’ve picked up some good points and some good performances, good wins at home this season and we’re looking for the same again this weekend.
No team never wants to start slowly but is a match like this where they’re going to be full of confidence, is this particularly important that you’re kind of like, we’re the League One team here?
Yes. Not just for the start, but for the end of the game as well. We have to play to a certain physical level where, no matter the scoreline going into the last half an hour at game, it’s affected the opposition. We try and do that against any team, let alone a team from a non-league level and this weekend in the FA Cup. And up and at them, intensity and forward play at home has been reflected in terms of our starts.
We might not have always had the goal return but generally getting the opposition on the back foot and playing the game in the right area and this weekend is no different. But, both teams I expect, certainly on the build-up towards the game, will be sharp. It could be a really interesting scenario.
They are a team that can play long as well, but they’re quite a good footballing team, they have been for a long time under Scott. So they’re not necessarily a typical non-league team…
No, they’re not. Yeah, we respect Scott and his staff and the team they’ve got there. Like I say, they’ve got some physical players, some strong players, some ball-handling players. Dodds and Kane in midfield, ex-Exeter boys so we know a little bit about them. I’ve worked with Reuben Reid and Nick McCootie in the past. So, physicality top end of the pitch. Ruben’s still a fantastic platform and profile for any team, let alone that level.
They’ve got a good group of players across the board. LT’s brother at right-back so if and when LT’s on the pitch this weekend, that’ll be an interesting battle if they come up against each other, but a great day for their family.
I was going to ask about that. I’m not expecting you to tell me who’s playing but if that does come to pass, it’s not often that brothers get to play against each other…
Yeah, exactly that. I’m sure shirts will be swapped. I’m sure niceties before and after, just not during. There will be no brotherly love during that 90 minutes of football. So we’re looking forward to seeing how that unfolds. But regardless of the actual football aspect, what a great day for the Thomas family.
And is a big part of your preparation for this, given what you’ve said about this squad before and sometimes the way that they handle situations. Is that particularly important in a situation that could change pretty quickly, could get out of hand pretty quickly if they don’t hit their standards?
Yeah, we can only control the pitch. Like you spoke about, the start, our performance and what that performance looks like We spoken about that generally at home this season. We’ve done that pretty well.
But yeah, we are constantly looking for players who can handle moments, pressure, expectation and perform under pressure as well. Regardless of Weston this weekend or Lincoln the following week or Crawley, even Exeter on Tuesday, when the game’s up and at you and puts your game under pressure, who’s got the game to really be able to take it to the next level? Like I say, whatever team will be selected will be the strongest team possible.
When those two balls came out two weeks ago, what was the reaction? Because there is obviously an extra bit of romance with the tie, obviously, geography-wise…
Yeah, definitely. Exactly that. It’s a local game. I don’t think it’s classed as a derby, per se, but it’s not a million miles away from it and from what I can gather, speaking to the kit man, well the kit man at every football club are a big fan, aren’t they? And speaking to the kit man, he sort of said that Weston fans are obviously, either their second team is or first team is Weston, vice versa, Bristol Rovers or Bristol City.
So there’s some affiliation with Bristol as a city and as a community and the football in the area. So, yeah, I think it’s a tie which gets people going. I think it’s a great tie for the area, a great tie for Weston especially and even more so because they’re away fans, maybe home fans to a certain extent, and don’t have to travel too far and will come in really good numbers.
I’m sure that message of how much it means to the fans has been relayed to the players…
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Every game means a lot. It does. If you’re in the professional game, every game means a lot. Tuesday night meant a lot. The game before, meant a lot. This weekend means a lot because we are judged on that 100m x 70m patch of grass. That is our judgment.
Fans will be judged in a different way in terms of atmosphere and energy and noise created but as footballers and management, especially, we are judged in relation to that and when you are judged and people will form an opinion, make sure it’s a positive one and this weekend is an opportunity to do that.
You said on Tuesday night that you’re planning to name as strong a sign as possible. Can you still assure fans that that is going to be the case?
Yeah, I’d like to think I’m a man of my word. I won’t go away from doing that in any way because we respect the opposition, we respect the competition. We want to progress in the competition. We know physically on the back of Reading and the suspension as well that we’re not, at our very strongest, but in terms of availability, a little bit limited. But yeah, as strong as we possibly can.
Away from the FA Cup, how’s Joel Senior doing? Obviously he got injured at the same time as Chris…
He’s back on the grass. He got up to top speed on Tuesday and, for our fastest player, that’s a big moment for him to test that hamstring. He needs now a week, 10 days worth of training and getting the work any football player needs to get back to some sort of rhythm and timing.
We’ve got a game pencilled in here for a week on Tuesday, which might be his return. 45 minutes, maybe an hour, but I don’t want to rule him out of Lincoln just yet. You never know what will happen with our other right-backs, other defenders, having all players available is absolutely key.
So let’s see how he gets on next week in training. But great that he’s out there, pain free, moving well and almost ready for a second coming.
In the last two games Josh Griffiths has gone down and the medical team have come on. What’s the latest on trying to get another back-up goalkeeper in to support him?
Yes, well two things. I’ll be honest, on Tuesday, Isaac [Hutchinson] lost his contact lenses. So we needed to get Isaac’s contact lenses back in and the only way to do that in in the moment of the game was for Josh to go down.
Sometimes you use it for tactical moments, esepcially when you go down to 10 men. Not every club does it. Every club understands it. Josh seems to be okay but there’s always a worry when your goalkeeper goes down and you’ve not got a goalkeeper on the bench. This weekend with nine subs, we might be able to name a goalkeeper.
The search is still going on. I’d like it to have been done by now or the earliest possible point. I imagine it will push towards January in terms of addressing a second or third choice goalkeeper.