Bristol Rovers Fan Blog

Dianne Pilkington - Popular (This Morning)

2010-05-20T13:37:00.000-07:00

Natalie Bassingthwaighte - Alive

2010-05-20T13:34:00.000-07:00

Natalie Bassingthwaighte - Love Like This

2010-05-20T13:24:00.000-07:00

2009-08-08T02:33:00.001-07:00

Natalie Bassingthwaighte - Not For You

2009-05-29T10:48:00.000-07:00

Natalie Bassingthwaighte - 1000 Stars [Official Video]

2009-05-29T10:45:00.001-07:00

Natalie Bassingthwaighte - Someday Soon

An Amazing Upturn in Form

2009-03-21T02:54:00.000-07:00

Well I have to admit that I feared we may face a relegation battle when I left the Mem on Boxing Day after watching us lose 2-1 to 10 man MK Dons. However our form and results since then has been superb and we now find ourselves in the top half the table and with an outside chance of making the play off's.

It started with an improved performance at Northampton and a rather fortunate win at Leyton Orient. That result kick started a great run which has seen us Win 7, Draw 5 and lose just 2 of our last 14 games. Included in that run were thumping wins away from home against Hereford and Walsall.

Our away form has been particularly impressive and if we can reproduce that at home a play off place is not out of the question. 7 of our remaining 10 games are at the Mem. Summer signings that started the season slowly are now on top form and we have most of our injured players back and available for selection.

Today’s game against second place Peterborough will probably tell us whether a top 6 finish is realistic but even if we fall short we are improving every year and I'm confident that will continue into the 2009/2010 campaign.

Leyton Orient - Match Review

2009-01-18T03:08:00.000-08:00

ORIENT 1- 2 ROVERS

MATCH STATS

GOALS:
Orient 1
Rovers 2

POSSESSION:
Orient 58%
Rovers 42%

SHOTS ON TARGET:
Orient 5
Rovers 3

SHOTS OFF TARGET:
Orient 6
Rovers 6

CORNERS:
Orient 8
Rovers 1

At last it's time for my first match review and what better way to start than with Rovers second away win of the season. It was by no means our best performance on the road but on this occasion the result was far more important and I'm delighted we managed to come away with all 3 points.

The first half was a fairly tight affair with neither side having any clear sights of goal. Rovers came closest to taking a lead into the break when a thunderous free kick from Lambert whistled inches past the post and they had another opening when Kuffour latched on to a long ball forward and held off the defender before firing just wide.

At half time I was fairly optimistic we would come away with at least a draw and felt that if either side was going to win is was likely to be us.

The start of the second half saw Orient step up the tempo and enjoy their best spell of the match. Rovers conceded a number of corners and it was from one of these that the O's top scorer Adam Boyd headed in the first goal of the game in the 56th minute.

At this point all optimism had drained away as we found ourselves a goal down and on the back foot.

However things levelled out a bit after that and in the 74th minute good play by Kuffour down the right set up a shooting opportunity for Lambert. A stroke of good fortune saw his strike deflected into the path of Hughes who was left with a simple tap in.

Just 5 minutes later and the Gas travelling army were in dreamland when substitute Duffy nicked the ball off their last defender to run through and score what proved to be the winner.

Did we deserve it? Probably not but the result was vital and quite possibly the most important win off the season so far. A defeat would have left us just 3 points off the drop and just 1 ahead of Orient. As it is we have a 7 point cushion between us and the relegation zone.

The team appeared a bit rusty after 3 weeks without a game but this win should give them a boost and hopefully lead to an improved display against Colchester next weekend.

RATINGS
(7) PHILLIPS
(6) GREEN
(7) LESCOTT
(7) HINTON
(7) ELLIOTT
(5) DISLEY
(6) HUGHES
(6) CAMPBELL
(5) LINES
(6) KUFFOUR
(5) LAMBERT

Leyton Orient - Match Preview

2009-01-16T09:42:00.000-08:00

OPPOSITION ANALYSIS
League Position: 21
Form (Last 7 Games): Won 0, Drawn 2, Lost 5
Top Scorer: Boyd (10)

PREVIEW
For once it seems like we might be playing a side at the perfect time because Orient are on a run of 7 games without a win and haven't picked up 3 points at Brisbane Road since beating Hartlepool back on November 1st.

Of course our away form is even worse with our solitary win on the road coming at Colchester on October 4th.

The O's have found goals hard to come by this season and are currently the second lowest scorers in league 1. Despite this they have one of the leagues top scorers in Adam Boyd who has already found the net 10 times.

They do have a decent defence and have actually conceded less than many sides in the top half of the table. Earlier in the season they went on a run of 5 games without letting in a single goal.

As mentioned in earlier previews Rovers form is not much better having only won 1 of our last 10 outings so both sides will be looking at this as a great opportunity to get back to winning ways.

We played very poorly there last year and were probably fortunate to only lose 3-1 so I'm hoping for a far better performance this time around.

We are lying just a few places and 4 points ahead of Orient so it's a bit of a 6 pointer and will no doubt be a fiercely contested match. I'd love to see us take all 3 points but I have a feeling it will be a low scoring draw.

BLOG PREDICTION: ORIENT 1-1 ROVERS

Yeovil Match Postponed

2009-01-10T02:07:00.000-08:00

Todays match against Yeovil has been called off after a morning pitch inspection.

It's no great surprise considering the recent weather but it means Rovers will have been nearly 3 weeks without a game when they travel to Leyton Orient next Saturday.

A new date for the Yeovil clash has yet to be arranged.

Yeovil - Match Preview

2009-01-09T03:01:00.000-08:00

OPPOSITION ANALYSIS
League Position: 18
Form (Last 7 Games): Won 2, Drawn 3, Lost 2
Top Scorer: Schofield (4)

PREVIEW
Well yet again we seem to be playing a team at the wrong time. Yeovil have found life in league 1 pretty tough this season but their recent results show signs of improvement and they are now unbeaten in their last 3 outings.

They have struggled for goals but have looked to address that with the signing of Luke Rogers who already found the net twice for his new employers.

Rover’s record against Yeovil is awful and I'm pretty sure we've never beaten them in a league match since they won promotion from the conference back in 2003. However we are desperate to finally end that run and pick up maximum points on Saturday after a depressing run of just 1 victory in our last 10 games.

Yeovil have actually won more matches away from home than they have at Huish Park but we can't afford to let them improve that record tomorrow.

I think it will be a very close, highly competitive game but I'm hoping we will have enough quality to edge it and win our first fixture of 2009.

BLOG PREDICTION: ROVERS 2-1 YEOVIL

Saturdays Game in Doubt

2009-01-08T14:54:00.000-08:00

Well I haven't yet previewed our match on Saturday against Yeovil because I was almost certain it would be called off but temperatures have improved slightly which has softened the grass and allowed them to cover the pitch so maybe there is an outside chance it will go ahead.

They have called a pitch inspection for 9:15am on Saturday and are asking for volunteers to help remove the covers so if you fancy an early start then get yourself down there and lend a hand.

I would say the chances of this game being played are no better than 50/50 but I'll post a short preview tomorrow just in case.

Williams Returns to Hereford

2009-01-08T14:47:00.000-08:00

Well just 24 hours after it seemed Williams was back in the mix and likely to play some part for Rovers against Crewe on Tuesday night he is shipped back out on loan to Hereford for the rest of the season.

I have to say I am a little disappointed with this news because I personally think he is at least as good as Duffy and certainly better than some of our fringe players like Rigg. He would have also given us more options on the wing which is something we are lacking at the moment.

Match Off

2009-01-06T01:52:00.000-08:00

Tonights match against Crewe at Gresty Road has been called off after a morning pitch inspection.

Temperatures fell as low as -7 overnight and Crewe called in a local match official who decided the match had no chance of going ahead.

The game has been rearranged for Tuesday, February 10th, at 7.45pm.

Crewe - Weather Update

2009-01-05T01:42:00.000-08:00

Don't panic that's not Crewe's pitch in the above picture but there has to be some doubt as to weather tomorrows match at Gresty Road will go ahead.

Monday
Max Day Temp (2)
Min Night Temp (-5)

Tuesday
Max Day Temp (1)
Min Night Temp (-2)

With temperatures not getting much above freezing I think this match is likely to fall foul of the weather and I'd suggest phoning the club before you set off to ensure you don't have a wasted journey.

Crewe - Match Preview

2009-01-04T13:11:00.000-08:00

Match: Crewe Vs Rovers

OPPOSITION ANALYSIS
League Position: 24
Form (Last 7 Games): Won 3, Drawn 2, Lost 2
Top Scorer: Miller (6)

PREVIEW
A few weeks back you'd have looked at this match as a great chance for us to pick up only our second league win of the season but now I think I'd probably settle for a point.

Crewe's form has picked up since parting ways with Steve Holland. Dario Gradi steadied the ship and new manager Gudjon Thordarson continued the improvement with a 2-2 draw away at Millwall in the FA Cup.

Their form over the past 7 games would have them finishing around the promotion play off places (11 Points / 7 Games x 46 Games = 72.3) and they won their last league match away at Hartlepool 4-1; not bad against a side who knocked Stoke out the cup a few days later.

Last season I was at Gresty Road to watch Rovers hang on to take a point back to Bristol after a 1-1 draw. We took a slightly fortunate lead when Chris Lines' cross was deflected into his own net by Crewe 'keeper Ben Williams. However soon after half time Tom Pope equalised after Steve Phillips failed to hold Nicky Maynard's shot.

I'm sure I don't need to remind you that it's 1 win in 10 now for Rovers and top scorer Rickie Lambert hasn't scored in his last 4 games with speculation increasing about a possible move away from the Memorial Stadium in January. Taking everything into account a think a draw would be a decent result.

BLOG PREDICTION: 1-1

January - A BIG Month

2009-01-04T11:36:00.000-08:00

January is a crucial month for us and a poor run of results would almost certainly lead to a serious relegation battle and the end of PT's reign in charge:

Draw - Crewe (Away)
Win - Yeovil (Home)
Draw - Leyton (Away)
Draw - Colchester (Home)
Win - Cheltenham (Home)
Draw - Southend (Away)

I think anything less than 10 points from the 6 games would be disappointing and 8 would probably be the minimum required to keep PT in the job.

There are no easy games but if we can't get a decent return from these then we are in real trouble.

Rovers Till I Die

2009-01-04T10:51:00.000-08:00

I've supported Rovers all my life and first started going when my Dad took me to Eastville back in the early 80's. In truth I was so young back then that I used to spend most my time running around the terraces rather than concentrating on the match but I'd still caught the Rovers bug and in recent years - since the mid 90's - I try not to miss a single game.

The first real heartache I can remember was watching the Gas lose the 1989 Play Off Final to Port Vale - yes there were tears - but that turned out to be a blessing is disguise because the following season I was with thousands of Rovers fans at Blackpool celebrating beating City to the league title.

There have been lots of highs - well a few - and many lows since but one thing that hasn't changed is my love for this club. I decided to start this blog to share my experiences following the Gas with others and where possible keep everyone up to date with everything Bristol Rovers.