Just got back from the game. Although delighted to be spot on. It looked as though there were more people there.
Congrats bs3Gas! We sounded dominant, especially in 2nd half but found it hard to score. Also it sounded like Martin and Cunnington had good games - is that the case?
Martina got better as the game went on but had a poor first half. Cunnington had an ok game, felt sorry for him as the only service he had was lofted long balls.
Absolutely dire first half. We played like 11 strangers...Parkes awful. Better in the second half. Class strike by Clarke; and Taylor and Cunnington improved as the game wore on. I'll take the win but this was an iffy performance against a poor team.
I like Martin and I think Cunnington will get better. But what has happened to Tom Parkes?. His passing is terrible. The other centre back that i think we got from Plymouth looked really good.(cant remember his name)
Manager on first win of the season Darrell Clarke was pleased to see his side pick up their first win of the season this afternoon, but the manager will not be getting carried away. He said: “It was a positive performance, but it was a bit of a scruffy game at times. “The pleasing thing for me is we kept going and stayed strong as a team, and a great strike from Ollie Clarke wins the game. “I am delighted with the three points and the clean sheet. The performance warranted more goals, and maybe on another day we would have scored three or four. “You have to earn your right at times, and sometimes you have to win scruffy games 1-0. “It is about getting the winning mentality into the group, but we won’t be getting carried away, as I believe there is a lot more improvement in there. “Winning football matches brings confidence, we take the three points and move on to the next game. “I hope the first week of the season was the kick up the backside that we needed. We have to approach every single game right and be strong and disciplined.” Rovers now have to ready themselves for their next game, which is a trip to Forest Green Rovers on Monday. Darrell said: “The next game comes quickly now in less than 48 hours, which is less than ideal, especially when you go to a team like Forest Green with their spending resources. “But we will go there with good backing and we will go and do ourselves justice. It is a really good game to play in, they have some good players. “They played Friday night so they have had a bit more rest than what will we have, but we will be ready and prepared.” And in terms of team news ahead of Monday, the manager will assess Mark McChrystal’s ankle at training tomorrow. He said: “We have to wait until Mark McChrystal’s ankle to settle down, and see where we are at. “Ryan Brunt was not rested, he didn’t train a couple of days this week and Ellis looked very bright this week.”
Another Match Report Bristol Rovers 1 â 0 AFC Telford United Attendance: 5,450 (167) By Steve Hood Bristol Rovers picked up their first win of the 2014/15 season beating AFC Telford 1-0 at the Memorial Stadium. A 30-yard wonder strike from Ollie Clarke was enough to earn Rovers all three points for the first time this season. Darrell Clarke handed Adam Cunnington his club debut in a line-up that saw Neal Trotman come in to replace the injured Mark McChrystal. Lee Mansell was handed the captains armband in McChrystalâs absence. Rovers had the best of the opening exchanges as Andy Monkhouse headed twice into the grateful arms of Jonathan Hedge in the Telford goal. Steve Mildenhall was called into early action for the home side with 10 minutes on the clock. Neal Trotman slipped in the penalty area, which allowed Sean Clancy to shoot, but the Rovers keeper was equal to it and pushed it wide for a corner. Clancy had another opportunity to take the lead for Telford moments after. A punch from Mildenhall on the edge of the area allowed Clancy a shot, but the winger couldnât hit the target with the goal gaping. Rovers had the best chance of the half just after 20 minutes as Neal Trotman hit the crossbar. A deep free kick from Tom Lockyer was floated into the box and the unmarked Trotman connected but his header crashed against the crossbar and behind for a goal kick. Ollie Clarke forced a great save from Hedge just before half time, which the Bucks keeper pushed out for a corner. The resulting corner also fell to Clarke who powered a shot goal wards but was blocked in the area. Rovers appealed for a penalty, but the referee turned down their claims. The second half started brighter for the visitors as Sean Cooke came close on two occasions forcing Mildenhall into a couple more top saves but it was the home side that took the lead. Rovers were applying pressure down the left hand side, the ball was fed to Ollie Clarke 30 yards out and the midfielder picked his spot on the right hand side of the goal and unleashed a pinpoint curling effort past an outstretched Hedge. Darrell Clarkeâs men continued to apply pressure in search for the second goal when they won a free kick 30 yards out. A three-man Bucks wall shifted to the left and allowed Lee Mansell a strike on goal. The Rovers skipper struck the ball hard and it swerved in front of Hedge but the Telford keeper was able to parry the ball to safety. Having scored from a move down the left hand side, Dave Martin was fed the ball again but this time the Luton loaneeâs far post cross evaded everyone and trickled out for a goal kick. With 20 minutes remaining Adam Cunnington was denied a debut goal as his header was saved superbly by Hedge. Cunnington towered over his man and headed low but Hedge got down quickly to make the save. Rovers substitute Ellis Harrison almost made it two just before the final whistle but his right-footed effort narrowly went past the left hand post with the Telford keeper at full stretch. Up next for Rovers is a trip to Forest Green Rovers on Monday, before they entertain FC Halifax Town at the Memorial Stadium on Saturday 30th August. Rovers: Mildenhall, Lockyer, Parkes, Trotman, Brown, Monkhouse, Mansell (C), Clarke, Martin, Cunnington, Taylor (Harrison â 87). Substitutes: Puddy (GK), Leadbitter, Gosling, White. Telford: Hedge, Baynes, Byrne, Akrigg (C), Farrell, Clancy (Deacey â 67), Cooke (Phenix â 67), Owens, McDonald, Smith (Barnett â 81), Poku. Substitutes: Pryce (GK), Hancocks.
DC speaks to BBC Radio Bristol earlier following the victory. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/28837352
http://www.footballconference.co.uk/news/details.php?news_id=13264 The write up from the conference website...
Good as the win was the reality is that this was against a poor team of part timers ! Still much work to be done I feel. We'll get better flavour of any real progress against a decent team on Monday. So bring on FGR, good luck to the real Rovers.
Three points at last, but I'm not a happy bunny with that performance. We should be playing well enough to get a few tap ins against these sides. We need to sort ourselves out very quickly and start to play like a confident side.
A Look At Tomorrows Opponents please log in to view this image Full name: Forest Green Rovers Football Club Nickname(s): Rovers, The Green, FGR , The Little Club On The Hill, Green Army Founded: 1889; 125 years ago (as 'Forest Green') Ground: The New Lawn Nympsfield Road, Forest Green, Nailsworth, GL6 0ET Capacity: 5,017 Pitch Size: 110 x 70 yards Year Ground Opened: 2006 Chairman: Dale Vince Manager: Adrian Pennock Current League Position: 2nd Current League Form: W W W D - 10pts Average Attendance 2014/15: 1,069
Forest Green Summer Signings David Pipe - Defender/Midfielder - Newport County - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Pipe Lee Hughes - Forward - Port Vale - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Hughes Clovis Kamdjo - Midfielder - Salisbury City - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clovis_Kamdjo Steve Arnold - Goalkeeper - Stevenage - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Arnold_(footballer,_born_1989) James Jennings - Defender - Mansfield Town - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Jennings Elliott Frear - Winger - Salisbury City - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elliott_Frear Jon Parkin - Forward - Fleetwood Town - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jon_Parkin Danny Coles - twat - Exeter City - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danny_Coles
I think the first half was pretty poor and showed all the signs of a team that is yet to completely gel. It also seemed quite evident at times that we lacked confidence. Parkes I agree was poor with pretty much everything he did, but Trotman alongside was immense and was our MOTM for me, and I'm surprised no-one here has mentioned his performance yet. Cunnington and Taylor didn't get much in the way of service in the first half and seemed pretty isolated at times, but later on in the game they became more involved with the help of David Martin down the left. Martin had a good game and improved as it went on, also showing that he has a bit of pace about him. After the goal we seemed to settle down and play much better passing football although there were still signs of nerves. But I firmly believe this side is a work in progress and when you sign a lot of players at once, patience from the fans is needed because we can't immediately start playing like Real Madrid. There were less long balls as the game progressed too!
