Following his team’s lacklustre performance against Lincoln City on Saturday, Matt Taylor offered no justifications for Bristol Rovers.
At the LNER Stadium, the Gas suffered a 5-0 loss as the hot-starting Imps maintained their League One winning streak at the expense of Rovers.
In a game where Ethan Erhahon was sent off for two bookable offences for Lincoln, Paudie O’Connor’s opening goal and Reeco Hackett’s late goal separated the hosts’ hat-trick lead.
However, Rovers had other opportunities as well; Sam Finley, Chris Martin, and Jevani Brown all came close before Antony Evans missed a penalty kick, regrettably slipping at the last second.
All in all, it made for a difficult afternoon for manager Taylor, who in his post-match interview restated his expectations of his team.
After some devilish moments, we found ourselves behind 3-0 in a short while. In terms of game speed, we didn’t appear prepared for it. We were unable to match the script, which was predicated on what the opposition was likely to bring.
That is the game’s insanity. We had, I believe, thirteen opportunities to their eleven, and five of those should have resulted in a goal.
We may appear to be a strong football squad at times, but before the skill moments, you must practise the fundamentals of football, defence, and a little bit more running. You can have those skill moments if you do that.
These players are under my direct supervision; regardless of their age or circumstances, I am their coach and trainer. All I ask of them is a sense of personal pride in their work. It was just too bad of a performance today to swallow.
The positions we place ourselves in are amazing. It irritates me so much because I want us to develop into a specific kind of squad before we start playing our trademark quick passes.
In terms of where some of their bodies are, it’s probably a good thing. They may require some time away, and hopefully the boys will be available when they return.
Towards the end of the game, Brandon Aguilera made a brief appearance on the pitch, which was amazing to witness. Ideally, Josh Grant and Grant Ward won’t trail too far behind either. We will be keeping an eye on our four boys who are serving overseas.
