All of the supporters who regularly attend matches at the Memorial Stadium will have been aware of the Conference, whether it was through websites and social media, a fleeting glimpse or two towards BT Sport’s television coverage, or a passing interest in results and the league table. However, before May 2014 none of us could even begin to envisage that its 24-team line-up would soon include Bristol Rovers. When the unthinkable happened, all hell broke loose with stunned supporters invading the pitch, taking their anger out on staff, players, the police (and their horses), and primarily the board. Nick Higgs & co had a lot to answer for, and the anger and resentment towards him was to last for several months. One of his first moves was to terminate the contract of director of football John Ward and confirm that Darrell Clarke would remain manager. It was a decision which totally divided opinion, as many saw Clarke as the man who oversaw the club’s fall into non-league football and were not prepared to forgive so easily, a feeling borne out of pure bitterness. He was tainted. The counter argument was that he could hardly have been judged fairly having only been in charge of the final eight games of 2014-15, taking over a team from John Ward which was divided; on a downward spiral and woefully lacking in quality going forward. Only a promotion challenge would appease the many doubters, and a lot of the playing staff were moved on in the summer. Goalkeeper Steve Mildenhall and defenders Lee Brown, Mark McChrystal and Tom Parkes were the only senior players who remained, along with the now established young trio of Ollie Clarke, Ellis Harrison (who had been told to clean up his act) and Tom Lockyer. The manager then set about bringing his own players in, determined to only sign those with the hunger and desire to help Rovers become the first club to return to the Football League at the first attempt since 2005. As a result, new recruits were handed one-year contracts, so they were also playing for their long-term futures. The first player to arrive in this manner was striker Jamie White, who had played under Darrell Clarke previously at Salisbury City and had a decent goalscoring record, although there were doubts over his fitness. Fellow forward Matt Taylor came in from Forest Green Rovers and promised to be man to look to for goals, and he was soon joined by young Exeter City winger and Gibraltar international Jake Gosling, influential Torquay United captain Lee Mansell, hardworking midfielder Stuart Sinclair - soon to become a favourite with supporters due to his unrelenting commitment and instantly recognisable appearance, speedy right-back Daniel Leadbitter and long-serving Hartlepool United winger/forward Andy Monkhouse, who was a familiar opponent having played against us on numerous occasions. Being in the Conference meant there were many new things to get used to. We would have to play a qualifier to reach the first round proper of the FA Cup; we would no longer feature in either the Capital One Cup or the JPT, while highlights of our matches were not available anymore on the Football League Show. Us supporters would have to rely on the club’s YouTube channel for that. The FA Trophy was to be graced with our presence for the first time, not to mention the fact that we would be coming up against sides that we had never met before and in doing so visiting plenty of new grounds. At times it seemed as if some of the more disillusioned supporters considered a few of the smaller, part-time outfits as unworthy trespassers on the Memorial Stadium pitch. Nobody really knew quite what to expect as we took on losing play-off semi-finalists Grimsby Town in a tricky opening fixture which was screened live on BT Sport, but there were none of the fireworks that greeted our initial introduction to League Two (then Division Three) in 2001. One notable change in the setting was the lack of advertising sponsors on display, with the name Blackthorn no longer adorning the stand behind the goal; one of the many costs of our demotion. The game itself was not a classic, but both teams missed good chances in the second half to take three points as it eventually ended goalless. Stuart Sinclair was awarded man of the match for an all-action display, but the unrealistically high sense of expectation around the club meant the final whistle was greeted by boos from some sections of the crowd, harsh given that Rovers were against one of the strongest sides in the division. The next week, however, proved to be one of the most downbeat in the club’s entire history as two straight away defeats left us with just one point from the first nine available, leading many supporters to aim more vitriol towards Darrell Clarke and those running the club. The first came at title favourites Barnet, where goalkeeper Will Puddy - signed as cover for Steve Mildenhall - and powerful central defender Neal Trotman made their debuts. Just like most Conference teams over the course of the season, we just could not handle the power and direct running of Barnet striker John Akinde that night, and he helped himself to the first goal after capitalising on some woeful defensive play, before fellow prolific forward Charlie MacDonald sealed the deal with a simple finish after Puddy had spilt an initial shot. Even worse was to follow at part-timers Altrincham the following Saturday as careless play at the back twice let in Damian Reeves to score. The long-awaited first Rovers goal of the season finally arrived as Lee Mansell nodded in from close range to pull a goal back, but blushes could not be spared on a day that was made more miserable by the sending off of Sinclair for a professional foul. As a result of this poor start and the mood among supporters only becoming more poisonous, there was an amazing amount of pressure on the team for the visit of AFC Telford United. Despite the arrivals on loan duo Adam Cunnington and David Martin, it was hard work as the newly promoted club from the West Midlands held firm until deep into the second half, but Ollie Clarke finally produced what everyone was after an provided a tangible sense of relief with a superb strike from distance, something that would quickly become his trademark. Gaining that victory certainly seemed to boost the side’s confidence as they headed to neighbours Forest Green Rovers on Bank Holiday Monday. It was a strong performance as Rovers gradually took control of the midfield and had the better of the chances before Andy Monkhouse headed in the goal we deserved. Forest Green replied with a slightly fortuitous equaliser from Jon Parkin to rescue a point, but there were plenty of positives to take from another this second televised fixture. August ended with a difficult home clash with early pace-setters FC Halifax Town, but the signs of improvement continued in the first half as Jamie White crossed from the right for Cunnington to head home. Halifax hit back in the second half and their increasing territorial dominance was rewarded by Scott Boden’s low shot across Mildenhall and into the far corner, but their unbeaten start was to end through the intervention of Ellis Harrison, who made his first step on the road to redemption by charging down an attempted clearance, which rebounded into the net. It would still take a great deal more for a large set of supporters to be appeased, and the doom and gloom was everywhere to be seen on the evening of September 6 after a poor performance led to a comfortable 2-0 defeat at Braintree Town, notwithstanding the fact that the opening goal had come from a highly controversial penalty. Unbelievably, this would be the club’s last away reverse of the season; a day which proved to be something of a watershed moment and heralded a run which was in complete contrast to the record of just two away wins throughout the whole of 2013/14. There a sombre atmosphere for the home encounter with Wrexham the following Tuesday, the second of five games in the space of just two weeks. A powerful first half header from Any Monkhouse was enough to secure victory in a largely forgettable game, but the trip to Lincoln City was to prove far from dull. Two moments of madness in the Imps defence led to Stuart Sinclair and Daniel Leadbitter to score their first Rovers goals and put us 2-0 up, only for Lincoln to peg us back by half-time. The second half was a tighter affair, but there was incredible drama in the closing stages as Lee Brown struck the post with a 90th minute penalty. It looked as if the chance of victory had gone, but there was still time for Ellis Harrison to burst clear and fire home the winner, with Mildenhall still required to make a key save after that to ensure we took the three points. Two more wins came in the following week as struggling Nuneaton Town and high-flyers Woking were both seen off at home. The Nuneaton game was our most dominant effort thus far as Tom Parkes headed in early on before Matt Taylor - who had been the target for stick due to his lack of goals - finally opened his Rovers account with a confident finish. After the visitors pulled one back, Jake Gosling wrapped it up with a classy third. But none of those goals were as spectacular as the opener against Woking, where a rare perfect cross from David Martin was met by a fine volley from Adam Cunnington. The second was also a fine strike; with Lee Mansell leaving few to doubt his free-kick taking ability. A fifth successive win was recorded a week later at Southport thanks to another Gosling goal, as we began to establish ourselves as play-off contenders and become more accustomed to the Conference. To be continued...
This year's season review will have to be posted in several instalments, as on this new version of the site I'm only allowed 10, 000 characters per post. Frustrating... Hope you like it though!
Good work I still can't get the nack of this current forum the format before was much better not much to look at but very simple to use.
