FORMER Memorial Stadium favourite Barry Hayles says he would be devastated if Bristol Rovers were to suffer the ignominy of relegation from the Football League. Hayles, 41, who scored 32 times in 62 appearances for Rovers as they narrowly missed out on promotion to the Championship in 1997-98, said: "I always keep an eye out for Rovers' results. "They seem to have gone on little runs of form at times, but haven't been able to get any consistency and that is probably why they are where they are at the moment. "They are the club that gave me my first chance in the professional game and it would be devastating to see them slip out of the league. I've played in the Conference and there are no guarantees that they would come straight back. "It was a difficult league to get out of back in the 90s when I was at Stevenage and it is even more difficult now. Clubs who used to be in the Football League must make up at least half of it." Rovers, who are only one point above the drop zone with four games of the season remaining, continue their bid to beat the drop in front of 18,000 supporters at Portsmouth on Saturday. "I was involved in a relegation battle at Millwall," said Hayles. "The manager needs to look around the changing room and find 11 battlers and then find a way to play that enables him to get them all in the team. "When you get to this stage you need to find the tactics and a system to suit those players who have the biggest hearts and are prepared to roll their sleeves up and get stuck in. "You just need to win by any means necessary. It doesn't matter how ugly the football is if it gets the results that are going to keep Bristol Rovers in the league." When asked what advice he would offer to the current crop of Rovers' players, Hayles said: "I just used to focus on taking responsibility for my own performance when the team was struggling. "If you have 11 people prepared to do that and make sure they win their personal battles it won't be long before things turn in your favour. "I also knew what I was good at and I never tried to do anything I couldn't. Some players tend to start trying to change things when they are feeling the pressure. "I think you have to stay strong and have enough belief in your own ability to keep doing what you are doing even when things are going against you." Hayles, who was the league's top-scorer with 23 goals in the season before he left Fulham in a deal that banked Rovers £2 million in 1998, added: "I was only there a short time, but I'd consider myself a Gashead and the supporters were great to me. "When we hit a bad patch in that season the supporters did stick with us. They always believed in what we were trying to achieve and that is why we reached the play-offs. It was just a shame the way the season ended and that we couldn't quite complete the job." Hayles has also played for Sheffield United, Millwall, Plymouth Argyle, Leicester City and Cheltenham Town and is currently still turning out for Luton-based Calor Southern League side Arseley Town. How we could do with him now
We've had some cracking players turn out for us over the last 15 or so years - Hayles, Stewart, Roberts, Astafjevs, Walters, Cureton, Ellington, Lambert etc. But since Rickie there has not been a single player who has gone on to greater things and that speaks volumes for the alleged recruitment and scouting network we have. No wonder we're in the **** if we never sign anyone with potential. Perhaps Smudger is the exception, he could (and probably will) go on and play in a higher league. A sad, sorry state of affairs.
Maybe Chris Lines, but he's in no better a position than we were a few years ago. I said on one of the other threads that we don't often sign any promising non-league playes, like we did with Hayles. Gregory at Halifax is probably the latest of them, and I doubt we'd even try and get him if we stay up.
