Matt Taylor has called Bristol Rovers’ upcoming trio of matches “mouthwatering” as the Gas come up against three of League One’s best teams in the run up to Christmas.
This weekend’s home game against last season’s play-off runners up Bolton Wanderers will be followed by a trip to promotion favourites Birmingham City and then a home game against Wrexham who are also firmly within the promotion race.
For many Gasheads, it’s a schedule seen as extremely daunting amid Rovers’ recent form and struggles to produce quality in the final third but Taylor is relishing the fixture list, starting with Bolton on Saturday.
“These are mouthwatering games,” the Rovers manager exclaimed to Bristol Live. “Bolton at home, ex-Premier League team. Birmingham, ex-Premier League team. Monstrous clubs. And then Wrexham coming up from a fairy tale story, the Cinderella story from where they’ve been.
“The top end, the strong have got stronger, but the biggest thing about the league this season is the bottom end and the lower, inferior clubs to the top end have got stronger as well, just to survive, they’ve had to which has meant it’s an absolute beast, an absolutely fantastic league to be involved in.
“So much to look forward to, but first things first and that’s this weekend. First things first was today and getting Tuesday out of our system and getting back to what we want to look like as a team, even before the ball’s involved and what we stand for and then putting a few final touches tomorrow (Friday). Picking the ones who we think physically can do what we need to do because it has been a bit of a slog in terms of games and duration, X, Y, Z.
“But I can’t wait for Saturday and it’s hammering it down right now. I believe there’s more wind and rain to come this weekend. It’s winter football. It’s roll your sleeves up. It’s bite down on your gum shield and it’s get right in.”
The Gas produced their worst performance of the league campaign on Tuesday night in a 3-0 defeat at Leyton Orient in which they conceded all three goals before half-time and could have easily conceded more in the second half.
Although he was present in East London, Taylor watched on from the stands having taken a leave of absence last week to deal with a family emergency and certainly didn’t like what was unfolding before his eyes, albeit from a higher distance than usual.
Bristol Rovers Live on Whatsapp
Join Bristol Rovers Live’s Whatsapp community for all the biggest Bristol Rovers stories sent straight to your phone
Bristol Rovers Live is now on WhatsApp and we want you to join our community.
Through the app, we’ll send the Bristol Rovers news, live match coverage, team news, transfers, fixtures, analysis and more straight to your phone.
To join our community you need to already have WhatsApp. All you need to do is click this link and select ‘Join Community’.
No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Bristol Live team.
We also treat community members to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out at any time you like.
To leave our community, click on the name at the top of your screen and choose ‘Exit group’.
If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
The Rovers manager returned to work on Thursday ahead of Saturday’s match with Bolton and there is significant pressure from supporters to oversee a notable improvement on recent league performances, especially in the final third.
The Gas failed to produce a single shot on target in their last two League One outings, the loss at Orient as well as a 2-0 home defeat to Blackpool last Tuesday with the defeats sandwiching a gritty, resilient display in the FA Cup against Barnsley as Rovers progressed on penalties after a 120-minute goalless affair. However, even in that match, they managed just one shot on target which came less than 10 minutes into the match.
It doesn’t get much tougher in terms of opposition than Bolton who, despite seemingly having a tough campaign so far on the back of their play-off disappointment last term, sit seventh and have come into some form, winning three of their last four matches.
“One of the strongest teams in the league,” the Gas boss declared. “Missed out in the play-off final last season. They’ve always been in and around it at this level.
“I think they probably had a slight, hangover is the wrong word, but what happened at the end of last season probably affected them at the start of this season.
“But recently they’ve hit form, hit the back of the net, found consistency, built on their style and structure and personnel they’ve had for a long period of time and strengthened and strengthened and [have] got quality all over the pitch.
“A big club, a big club at the level but they’re coming to our place and we fully intend to make it an uncomfortable afternoon for them.”