After the highs of beating Barnsley 3-1 at home last weekend, which marked back-to-back league wins for just the second time this season, Bristol Rovers were dealt a reality check in a 2-0 away defeat at Wigan Athletic on Saturday afternoon.
The mood was certainly improved going into the trip to the Brick Community Stadium as the Gas sought three consecutive wins for the first time in over two years. However, that was quickly terminated as Wigan opened the scoring after just six minutes as James Carragher (yes, he is the son of Jamie) headed home from a free-kick.
Rovers had a few half-chances but nothing clear cut until the second half when Gatlin O’Donkor forced a close-range save from Sam Tickle following a corner.
Soon after and that missed opportunity was even more regrettable as a mistake at the back with neither Josh Griffiths nor Connor Taylor covering themselves in glory allowed substitute Jonny Smith to race through on goal and fire home a decisive second.
It’s certainly not a step forward but, in reality, there’s argument that it’s not really a step backwards either with Rovers exactly in the same position in the table as they had been previously, only being one game closer to survival.
Here are some of the stand out talking points from the 2-0 defeat…
Conceding from a set-piece…again
Even under different management, Bristol Rovers are still showing a fragility from set-pieces as James Carragher was allowed far too much space to head home. It’s a scenario that has been far too familiar for the Gas this season and will continue to cost them points if they can’t stamp it out.
Yes, every team concedes from the odd set-piece over the course of a season but this is still an issue that is occurring as we head towards February.
If the nature of the goal wasn’t frustrating enough, the timing of it was even more hair-pulling as not even six minutes had struck on the clock. As Inigo Calderon noted, Rovers were late to the game and it ended up costing them.
It was the same last weekend with Barnsley having a handful of opportunities to score, and did get the ball in the back of the net but immediately saw it disallowed. That time they weren’t punished, this time they were and it ended up meaning that they were trailing for near enough the entire game.
Moments stand out once more
Admittedly it’s very cliched but, once again, moments in front of goal have played a huge part for Rovers. But this time, they went against them.
Against Barnsley, the Gas managed to prevent the opposition scoring the first goal via some fortune and some outstanding goalkeeping from Josh Griffiths and managed to grow into the contest and score twice either side of half-time. Had they gone behind, you wonder whether confidence would have surged as the game went on like it did.
The timing of the second goal that afternoon was particularly crucial, giving Calderon’s men a cushion that they have so rarely boasted this campaign and they ended up winning the match.
However, when you look back on the Wigan defeat, there are moments in front of goal that particularly stand out, most notably Gatlin O’Donkor’s second half chance.
The striker actually came away from the Brick Community Stadium with some credit after non-stop endeavour to try and get himself a goal; it just wasn’t his afternoon. But, when watched back, he has to do better with the opportunity from the corner.
A lovely ball in got a touch, falling to the feet of the striker who just had to guide it as close to the right of the near-post as possible. Yes, it’s an excellent save from close-range from Sam Tickle, but the Wigan goalkeeping was fortunate with the direction of the ball. Half a foot or so to the left and the Latics stopper wouldn’t have been able to get to it.
At that point, Rovers were seemingly in the ascendency and looked far the more likely to get the game’s second goal after Wigan had failed to do so…until that point. The Gas pressed the self-destruct button and Jonny Smith gobbled up the favour, putting the game to bed.
With anything, it’s all if’s, but’s and maybe’s and we don’t want to single out one player, especially one who was decent on the day and has largely impressed in Rovers colours, but there’s every reason to suggest that, had that chance been converted, the visitors could have gone on to not only take a point but win the game. Alas, it can’t be dwelled on for too long.
Possession shows signs of Calderon influence but in its early stages
No one is expecting the new head coach to work his magic instantly and the Spaniard has undoubtedly overseen an improvement at Rovers but it was clear that Calderon’s influence is still very much in its early stages.
Keeping the ball is clearly a huge factor of the new boss’ ethos and the Gas did that pretty well based on the fact that they had almost two thirds of possession. However, the next step is actually doing something meaningful with it.
There was one or two moves in the first half that flirted with the idea of lovely football but just didn’t materialise, be that a misplaced pass or a poor touch – that will come with time. Largely though, the ball was kept in their own half and that ended up inviting enough pressure from the opposition to lead to a decisive goal.
Calderon has said on numerous occasions that he isn’t naive to the nature of League One football and thus he will adapt his philosophy to the norms of the division. Against Wigan though, Rovers’ game plan didn’t work.
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Not much change in relegation picture
It will forever be amusing how the mood of supporters can change so dramatically within such a short period of time based on a result. It was all singing and dancing after the Barnsley win before a return to doom and gloom for some after Saturday’s defeat.
Ultimately, and Calderon touched on this post-match, Rovers are still in a relegation battle and they’re unlikely to reach the upper echelons of the top half. A midtable finish with relative comfort is a realistic best case scenario for this campaign.
With that being said, getting as far away from the drop zone as possible is the aim for between now and May and, although they didn’t open up a bigger gap on 21st place, they did see the margin remain at seven points.
Peterborough United’s thumping against Lincoln City, Crawley Town’s loss down the road at Stockport County and a sickening defeat at Charlton Athletic for Shrewsbury Town secured via a 96th minute winner for Rovers’ next opponents ensured that three other sides also didn’t pick up points while Northampton Town earned a solid point at Wycombe Wanderers and Burton Albion and Cambridge United picked up significant victories over Rotherham United and Mansfield Town.
Although frustrating, the defeat hasn’t really changed much in terms of the relegation battle. The only thing shifted is supporters’ mood and if the relegation picture alternated as frequently and as seismically as fan emotion, we’d come away from every matchweek needing a lie down.