Pirates Sunk By Bournemouth Comeback

AFC Bournemouth strengthened their play-off chances as they came from behind late on to deny Bristol Rovers a victory that would have taken them out of the bottom four.

Wayne Brown's second goal in three days gave Rovers a fourth minute lead that remained until the 84th minute when Mathieu Baudry headed an equaliser from a corner, and that wasn't to be it as veteran forward Steve Fletcher prodded the ball over Conrad Logan's goal line to give the Cherries a 2-1 win in a game that also saw Rovers David McCracken sent off for violent conduct and the home side's Danny Hollands for two bookable offences.

There were three changes to the Rovers side, the injured trio of Danny Coles, James Tunnicliffe and Jeff Hughes dropping out of the team to be replaced by David McCracken, Gary Sawyer and Wayne Brown. Anton Robinson came back into the Bournemouth team for Harry Arter.

Bournemouth looked to take the game to Rovers but it was the visitors who hit back with the opening goal of the game. Stuart Campbell took the ball to the halfway line and played it forward to Will Hoskins, the star striker turning and playing a ball over the top for Wayne Brown to run onto and place a shot under Shwan Jalal for his second goal of the Easter period, the Iraqi goalkeeper getting a hand to it but not being able to keep it out.

The home side went straight down the other end and won a corner, Feeney putting a low ball in that Donal McDermott slashed at, taking a complete airshot and missing the ball, leading to massive jeers from the Rovers fans just to his left but it was Rovers who looked to extend their lead. Gavin Williams taking a dig from range that forced Jalal to make a superb acrobatic save, pushing the ball around the post.

Danny Ings had Conrad Logan making his first save of the game but the header from the home grown striker looped comfortably into the Irish keepers hands before Jalal had to make a similarly easy save from a Jo Kuffour effort and soon after what should have been a great chance for Rovers to double their lead turned into a disaster.

A corner was swung into the Bournemouth area by Stuart Campbell but before it reached the gaggle of players the referee blew up and subsequently sent off Gas centre back David McCracken for what looked like an elbow on Adam Smith. The pressure from being down to ten men was soaked up by Rovers, though, and thirteen minutes later Bournemouth's numerical advantage dissappeared.

Danny Hollands was already on a yellow card before Chris Lines looked to burst away through the centre circle only for his run to be stopped by the former Chelsea trainee's sliding challenge, leaving the referee with no option but to brandish a second yellow card his way.

By this time Stuart Campbell had already been forced off with a dead leg, being replaced by JP Kalala. The re-shuffle following the read card saw Gary Sawyer move to the centre of defence, Wayne Brown drop to left back and Jo Kuffour move to left midfield, leaving Will Hoskins the lone striker in a 4-4-1 formation.

The second half kicked off with a couple of Rovers efforts from Kuffour and Hoskins that never truly threatened Jalal before ten minutes in came the substitution that arguably turned the game, big Steve Fletcher coming on for Donal McDermott, running straight over to Gary Sawyer and his physical impact was clear from the first time the ball was hoofed his way.

Despite this there came a moment for Rovers to put the game to bed. Will Hoskins received the ball on the left hand flank and looked up to find Danny Senda running completely unmarked on the far side, beating a ball across to put the full back one-on-one with Jalal only for the ball to bobble up at the point of impact, Senda sending it high over the bar.

Ings looked to punish that miss as he connected first time with a short, jabbed pass from Fletcher but his effort flew over the bar a fairly brisk pace.

The game was getting livelier by the minute; Logan having to save from both Ings and Feeney while the former saw a shot cleared off the line by Senda. Jason Pearce flashed a shot wide and Gavin Williams failed to get the required bend on a right-footed effort at the other end after cutting inside from the left.

The home side were really piling the pressure on the Gas during the final fifteen minutes of the game and it eventually paid off, all of Rovers good defensive work being undone by the simplest of goals. Warren Cummings bent a corner in and substitue Mathieu Baudry got there first, running off his marker and thumping a header past the helpless Logan.

Kuffour saw a shot blocked as the Pirates desperately tried to regain their lead but then came the killer blow, not only of the game but perhaps to Rovers survival hopes entirely.

Danny Ings ran into the box and his shot from a tight angle was saved by the on-rushing Logan. Unluckily for Rovers though the striker was able to pick up the ball again and squared it for Fletcher to knock over the line, capping a superb substitute performance and compunding Rovers misery, sending them home with nothing when you couldn't have argued if they had taken all three points.

Gas caretaker boss Stuart Campbell couldn't hide his disappointment after the game and speaking to the press said:

"We are absolutely devastated to have lost the game.

"I thought we were excellent from, start to finish, and we passed the ball very well, and created a number of chances without getting another goal.

"When you are unable to press home your advantage, then you leave yourselves open to a comeback such as the one we saw from Bournemouth.

"I think we did more than work hard this afternoon because we passed the ball around so well even though we were the away team."

Steve Fletcher, scorer of the winning goal, talked to the media after the game and summed up his teams performance, saying:

"We didn’t play well for 60 to 65 minutes against Bristol Rovers but really took the game to them after that. We did to Rovers what Yeovil did to us and it was a great feeling after Saturday.

"We know we didn’t play particularly well. But, at this stage of season, strange things happen in games and there are some strange results.

"We showed character and a never-say-die attitude and you will take any win at this stage of the season."

An Easter Resurrection?

The Easter weekend in the Football League season is always an exciting time, two games in quick succession coming at the business end of the season with summer just around the corner and it is a key period for Bristol Rovers in their League 1 relegation battle.

Saturday's game against Charlton lived up to the hype, the Gas coming from two goals behind to earn a point, Wayne Brown and Gavin Williams the players to get on the scoresheet, but it could have been so different had the visitors not had both Kyel Reid and Jose Semedo sent off at 2-0 up allowing Rovers to play with three at the back and go gung ho in their quest for survival. After the game Rovers manager Stuart Campbell claimed it was 'a point gained' but it could have been three had Will Hoskins not missed a golden opportunity to drag his side out of the relegation zone.

Next they face AFC Bournemouth for the second time in a month. Rovers came away with a 1-0 in the original game and will be hoping for a similar result again. After Lee Bradbury took over as manager at Dean Court he took his side on a ten game unbeaten run but since beating Oldham at the start of March there has been just one win that coming against struggling Notts County although they could, and perhaps should, have taken all three on Saturday. 2-0 up against ten-man Yeovil they somehow contrived to finish level, Adam Virgo scoring a penalty with four minutes to go before Shaun McDonald headed a 93rd minute equaliser. Home is where the Cherries feel most comfortable, they have lost just four times at Dean Court this season but half of those losses have come in the last three games.

That win over Bournemouth just a few weeks ago was Rovers last and they have since gone without a win in three, losing at home to Exeter and away at Southampton and, of course, drawing with Charlton. Their form on the road has been good since Campbell was appointed manager, nine points out of a possible twelve have been taken, though all three wins came against sides that reside in the bottom half of the table, the final score being 1-0 in each.

One Rovers player hoping to force his way into the starting line up on Monday will be Wayne Brown. The diminutive midfielder hasn't started a game since the home defeat to Plymouth at the start of January and made just two substitute appearances under the stewardship of Dave Penney but came on against both Yeovil and Exeter. He once again came off the bench against Charlton and helped turn the game around for the Gas, netting the first goal of the comeback, making a big impact on the game with his passing and movement, always looking to get into a good position to receive the ball before either shooting or laying it off for a team mate. It was an impressive performance and Brown will be hoping it reaps the reward of a place in Campbell's starting eleven.

After a dreadful display against Rovers where he wasted innumerous chances to score Bournemouth striker Danny Ings has hit a purple patch, getting on the scoresheet in each of the three games since, netting both in the aforementioned 2-2 draw with Yeovil. He has seven for the season and with his confidence grown over the past couple of weeks you fear that if he gets as many chances as he did at the Memorial Stadium he is likely to punish the Pirates this time around.

The overall record between Bournemouth and Rovers is heavily in favour of Monday's home side, 53 of the 116 games have gone their way, 43 of those coming in league competition while the Gas have 43 wins, 39 in the league. The last time there was an away win for Rovers at Dean Court Nathan Ellington put two in the onion bag with a two minute double salvo in a 2-1 win, Faroe Islands international Claus Jorgensen getting the Cherries goal, way back in February 2001, just over ten years ago.

The referee will be a familiar face to the Rovers players, having taken charge of their game against Southampton just over a week ago. He has shown 98 yellows over the course of his 34 games this season, seven of which came in the Southampton-Rovers game, and has sent off nine players including Graeme Lee when Rovers beat Notts County 2-1 in September. The last time he refereed a game involving Bournemouth the Cherries lost 2-0 to Blackpool in March 2007.

As mentioned above Wayne Brown will be pushing for a start after his fine performance off the bench on Saturday.

Jeff Hughes (triple wrist fracture) and Danny Coles (achilles) will not feature while James Tunnicliffe will also be unavailable as he is having the foot injury sustained against Charlton monitored for three days, though he has confirmed via Twitter that it is not broken.

For Bournemouth Stephen Purches will be looking to fight his way back into the starting line up after recovering from a facial injury but otherwise there are no new fitness or suspension concerns for Lee Bradbury's side.

Winger Marc Pugh and striker Lauri Dalla Valle will be pushing for starts after coming off of the bench against Yeovil.

Stuart Campbell spoke to bristolrovers.co.uk after the Charlton game and mentioned the Bournemouth game. On the subject of that and survival he said:

"We have three games left and we want to go out and win every one of them.

"Bournemouth are a very good side, we saw that when they came here a couple of weeks ago, we are under no illusions about how tough the game will be, but we will go there and give 100% and hopefully get the three points we need."

Bournemouth gaffer Lee Bradbury also talked about Rovers in his last post match interview, he told afcb.co.uk:

"We know it will be hard against Rovers and we feel we owe them one after the game their place when we lost 1-0 after having 21 shots in the match.

"The lads now must lift themselves for the challenge against a team fighting for their lives and despite the disappointment against Yeovil, we are confident that we can turn in a good performance."

Rovers Take Three More Points Against Battling Bournemouth

Bristol Rovers clambered out of the bottom four of League 1 with a hard fought win over AFC Bournemouth.

Jeff Hughes scored the only goal of the game from the penalty spot after Gavin Williams was brought down. Despite hitting the crossbar Rovers had to soak up a great deal of pressure during the second half, including clearing one Cherries effort off their line but their defence held firm to take three points that mean so much.

There was one change to the Rovers starting line up, weekend goalscorer Gavin Williams coming in for Harry Pell. Lee Bradbury also tinkered with his team, Stephen Purches starting at left back in place of Rhoys Wiggins with veteran Steve Fletcher starting in place of Manchester City loanee Donal McDermott.

The Cherries looked dangerous from the off, winger Marc Pugh being the first player to have a great chance of scoring, shooting straight at Conrad Logan's legs.

A Bournemouth corner straight from the training pitch in front of the Blackthorn End was sent in low and hard, central defender Jason Pearce running across the area and firing wide.

Steve Fletcher was a thorn in Rovers side throughout and it was his knockdown to Ings that had the home defence scrambling, but thankfully for the Gas he was unable to find his range, his shot flying high over the crossbar.

Logan was again called into action soon after, Danny Ings played through with a ball over the top but Logan rushed off his line and stayed big, the young strikers shot thumping back off of the Irish keepers chest.

Bournemouth continued to come forward in waves, a cross from Marc Pugh on the left wing found the head of Fletcher who forced Logan into a fine diving save.

Will Hoskins had to have physio Phil Kite come onto the field to look at a possible ankle injury but bravely battled on. It was, however, to be too much for the Rovers top scorer who broke down in front of the home dugout, eventually being replaced by winger Reggie Lambe, a move which saw Rovers play with a five man midfield, Williams sat just behind lone striker Jo Kuffour.

It was former Arsenal trainee Kuffour who slashed wide before the key moment of the match arrived. Jeff Hughes broke away down the left and his ball into the box was not properly cleared and fell for Gavin Williams who nudged the ball on, only to see his run abruptly stopped by the sliding challenge of Adam Smith. Referee Graham Salisbury gave the spot kick and Jeff Hughes stepped up to the plate, sending Shwan Jalal the wrong way to score his eleventh goal of the season and open the scoring.

The second half kicked off with the visitors taking the ball towards the Rovers area but it was Chris Lines who broke away, running from the halfway line to within six yards of the byline in the penalty area, his shot deflecting wide for a corner.

The closest Bournemouth came to an equaliser was from captain Danny Hollands whose volley from two yards within the area was cleared off of the line by the head of James Tunnicliffe who put in another commanding performance at the heart of the Rovers defence.

Rovers came so close to doubling their lead through Lines, the midfielder driving a free kick from thirty yards against Jalal's crossbar, the Iraqi keeper rooted to the spot as he watched the effort sail goalwards before bouncing away off the woodwork.

Anton Robinson dragged two shots wide and Ings had Conrad Logan flinging himself to his right before Jeff Hughes forced Jalal into a stop, holding onto the ball well as he fell to one side.

Donal McDermott came on as a late Bournemouth sub and looked confident from the off, twice cutting inside Danny Senda, the right back having an otherwise fine game, but firing his shots at Logan who turned the ball behind each time.

There was to be no way through for the away side, though, and as the final whistle went the loudest cheer heard in the Memorial Stadium this season erupted and chants of 'Goodnight Irene' and 'we are staying up' reverberated around pillars and posts on all four sides of the ground, Rovers had pulled themselves out of the bottom four for the first time since November.

After the game Rovers player-manager Stuart Campbell spoke of the pride he had in his squad for hanging on to take the points:

"I am immensely proud of the players. The effort, determination, commitment and desire was all there in abundance. It was clear for everyone to see how much the game meant for everyone tonight.

"Defensively from front to back they were phenomenal, and you could not single anyone of them out. They were all unbelievable, and they all put their bodies on the line.

"People put their bodies on the line, which is brilliant that we know they are doing that for the cause. The intensity of the performance was unbelievable, so we will try and look after everyone to make sure that come Saturday at 3pm everyone is 100% and raring to go."

Bournemouth boss Lee Bradbury was not so pleased with the result despite the way his side applied themselves throughout, saying:

"We dominated for long spells and they only had one shot on target other than the penalty. I thought the lads did well and created a lot of chances. After Rovers went 1-0 up, they sat back and tried to guard it and that's fair play to them.

"It was one of those nights when it just didn't drop for us. They defended for their lives and were buzzing at the end with the result and that speaks volumes with the way we played.

"I thought we applied ourselves very well and created a lot of chances and on another day, if we were a bit more clinical, we would have won comfortably.

"The performance was there and we pinned back a home side for long spells and in fact we looked more like the home team and the simple fact is that we should have won."

Rovers Look To Break Bournemouth Spell

It's fair to describe what Stuart Campbell has performed during his brief stint in charge of Bristol Rovers as wizardry. The player-manager has saddled a brand new broomstick and taken the club for a ride but he may have to wave his wand with a little more verve if he is to take anything out of Tuesday nights game against AFC Bournemouth.

The Cherries appear to have a curse over Rovers, claiming victory the last five times the sides have met, with an aggregate score of nine goals to one. Those games occurred in little over a year and saw three cup ties played. Jo Kuffour, now of Rovers, scored two against his current club during his time at Dean Court while Sammy Igoe, scorer of goals at both the Millenium Stadium and Wembley for the Gas, netted for the south coast side the season after he left Rovers in 2008.

Rovers last beat Bournemouth in 2006, Richard Walker scoring the winner in an FA Cup replay but in order to find a league victory for the Gas you have to go back to 2001, a Nathan Ellington two minute double salvo earning them a 2-1 win by the sea. Travel a further two seasons and you will see a Pirates home win, nearly thirteen years ago in 1998, Jame Shore grabbing the only goal of a game that saw referee Gurnam Singh card happy, sending off both Rob Trees and Jason Roberts for the home side.

Looking at the league table you'd think that none of this was about to change but the two sides have seen changes in fortune over recent weeks.

Since Stuart Campbell took over the Rovers reins from Dave Penney the Pirates have lost just a single game, having two late equalisers controversially disallowed against Huddersfield, winning three and drawing the final game of the Scottish youth internationals spell. Rovers have collected ten points out of the last fifteen, a decent return for a team that had previously won only twice in a staggering 22 games, a record that saw them drop from 9th down to 23rd in the League One standings.

All three of those wins since have been away from home though, and Rovers have struggled in their own backyard, just two wins have been witnessed by the Memorial Stadium crowd in the last six and a half months. The last two home games, however, have shown much more spirit among the players and fans alike, the last game at the Mem finishing 2-2 against a free-scoring Peterborough outfit riding high and fighting for automatic promotion. Bournemouth, on the other hand, look out of sorts.

The Cherries haven't won any of their last five games, losing three in a row before earning two consecutive draws. Their last result came on the road, a 3-3 draw with Peterborough, and the three goals could all be described as fortuitous in their nature.

First of all Boro keeper Joe Lewis flew off his line to punch away a corner, failing to connect and allowing Danny Ings to prod home. Steve Fletcher looped a header in from the tightest of angles and then Adam Smith hit a grasscutting shot that rolled agonisingly under the right arm of Lewis, compounding a dreadful night for the unfortunate custodian.

Bournemouth have had to endure the loss of three key men this season, namely Brett Pitman, Josh McQuoid and Eddie Howe. Pitman, scorer of 28 goals last term, left just three games into the season, scoring a hat-trick against Peterborough that drew attention from Premier League Blackpool, the striker eventually joining Bristol City for a rumoured £1million fee.

Fans could have lost hope but up stepped young Northern Irishman Josh McQuoid who scored 12 goals in 18 games including hat-tricks in consecutive matches before signing for Millwall, initially on loan before a permanent deal was struck in January. Howe, a defender who made 313 appearances for Bournemouth, took over as first team manager on New Years Eve 2008 and has never looked back since.

In his first half season in charge he hauled in a seven point deficit to avoid relegation, having started the season on -17 points. His first full season in charge saw the Cherries finish as runners up to Notts County, earning promotion to League 1, all despite having a transfer embargo hanging over their heads. By the time he left for Burnley in January he had lead his side to 3rd in the League 1 table, that despite losing two prolific strikers and having minimal transfer funds to play with. Lee Bradbury was placed in temporary charge, going on a ten game unbeaten spell before the recent dip in form.


Bournemouth carry a great deal of their threat from the wide areas and the Rovers full backs will have to watch out for both Marc Pugh and Liam Feeney come game time. Pugh, signed from Hereford in the summer, leads the way in both Bournemouth's goals and assists columns, totalling at 13 and 11 respectively. Feeney has created a further eight goals for his side but is the much more exciting player to watch. He possesses great pace and likes to take on his man, wreaking havoc whichever wing he is on, having the ability to both cut in and shoot or push around his defender and cross.

Undeniably the Bristol Rovers man in form is goalkeeper Conrad Logan and Bournemouth will have to work hard to get the ball past the Irish keeper. Since joining Logan has become a highly popular stopper, two penalty saves in two games and a host of other fine saves have seen him deserving the Rovers man of the match title on numerous occasions. He again proved to be in inspired form when Rovers faced Yeovil on Saturday, taking all three points away from Huish Park, a diving save to keep out Adam Virgo the pick of a bunch of fine blocks.

This will be the third attempt to play this fixture, the original tie was scheduled to be played on December 4th but the winter snowstorm paid an end to that. The re-arranged tie in February was again postponed due to a waterlogged playing surface at the Memorial Stadium, Cherries gaffer Lee Bradbury not taking kindly to the late call off, the pitch inspection not taking place until 6PM when his team and many of their fans had already travelled.

Rovers are likely to name an unchanged line up from Saturday's win over Yeovil, though Gavin Williams match-winning substitute performance did stake a claim for a place in midfield.

Despite having served his two match ban Gary Sawyer is highly likely to be missing after picking up a groin injury in training.

Ben Swallow has returned to training this week but will not be fit in time for this clash.

Michael Symes will not recover from his abductor muscle injury before kick off but veteran forward Steve Fletcher could move up from the bench after coming on and scoring in the Cherries last game. That also means Steve Lovell, who returned to the bench on Friday night, will have to make do with a sub role.

Influential midfielder and captain Danny Hollands will face a fitness test to see if he has recovered from a knock on his foot suffered against Peterborough.

Assistant manager Craig Hinton was the man to step up and face the Bristol press, talking of the spirit in the camp and how it can carry them through their next big test:

"There is a lot of confidence about the place at the moment, and we have got to take that momentum and take each game as it comes. It is both in our hands and out of our hands at the same time.

"It is going to be a tough game, they are a good side, they are near the top for a reason, but we are looking forward to it. If we go out and keep producing what we have for the last few games, you never know.

"We have not done well against them in recent times, but hopefully the voodoo will turn. There is a lot at stake at the moment, so hopefully that bad run will stop and we will take three points tomorrow."

Snow Chance? - AFC Bournemouth Preview

When writing a match preview the emphasis is normally on whether or not Rovers will win, but this time it's different, we're looking at whether or not the game will actually be on in the first place.

One game has already been cancelled this week, the Johnstone's Paint Trophy tie with Exeter City, which has subsequently been moved to Tuesday the 7th. At the time of writing Rovers believe there is 'a reasonable chance' of the game being on. With temperatures not expected to fall below zero on Friday and to reach 5°C on Saturday that may not be too far away from what will occur. The club are looking for volunteers to help remove covers from the pitch pre-match, with helpers being paid with a bacon sandwich and a cup of coffee.

Update: Referee Graham Sainsbury has confirmed that the match has been postponed.

But onto the game itself, Rovers will go in on the back of two decent results, earning draws away to the top two teams in the league, leading at some point in both matches. Prior to that was the last home game where the Gas went down 3-0 to Leyton Orient in an abysmal performance that saw them play most of the game with ten men after Carl Regan's red card for a rash challenge on O's captain Stephen Dawson. In all competitions you have to go back to the game before Orient for Rovers last win, their 6-3 thrashing of Wycombe in the JPT, but in terms of pure league form Rovers haven't won in six, the last victory coming against Rochdale in mid-October.

Rovers haven't played since the November 23rd and so should be quite fresh but the same can be said of Bournemouth who had their FA Cup tie against Notts County postponed due to the weather conditions in Nottingham. The Cherries went through November unbeaten, winning three and drawing two of their matches, the most notable result being the 5-3 FA Cup win over Tranmere Rovers where they let a three goal lead slip away before eventually going on to win. They also relieved a two goal lead against Leyton Orient in a league game, though they were unable to find a winner on that occasion. Away from home Bournemouth's form has not been up to the impeccable levels they have set themselves this season, winning just one of their journeys in the league and that was against Tranmere back in August. They have, however, drawn their last four games on the road, and have shown they are not easy to break down. One of the Cherries eyes may be on Tuesday nights game, the rescheduled FA Cup tie with Notts County with a potential game away to Premiership Sunderland the reward for the victors.

Since their last game, a 2-0 home win over Yeovil, Bournemouth have lost the services of top scorer Josh McQuoid who has moved on loan to Championship Millwall with a view to a permanent move in January. McQuoid had been in excellent form since early in the season, making up for the loss of the previous seasons top scorer Brett Pitman, who moved to Bristol City in August. But twelve goals, including hat-tricks in consecutive games in November, meant that the Northern Ireland international became hot property and, despite the best efforts of Cherries manager Eddie Howe, the striker wanted to move away.

There is only one player in either squad who has played for both teams, namely Rovers striker Jo Kuffour. The former Arsenal trainee is tied with Jeff Hughes as second top scorer for the Pirates this season, behind only Will Hoskins, and will be hoping to recapture a performance akin to his JPT hat-trick at Wycombe when his former side visit the Mem.

With the loss of McQuoid a lot rests on Bournemouth's summer signing Michael Symes, captured on a free from Accrington Stanley. His current tally for the season stands at four but much of the mantle is now on his shoulders but another particular danger will be Marc Pugh. The right winger has scored nine goals for Bournemouth, eight of them in the league, and set up numerous others.

Rovers have a poor recent record against Bournemouth, losing the last five times the teams have played including being knocked out of both the FA Cup and Johnstone's Paint Trophy in 2008/09 when the Cherries were a division below the Gas. Ironically the last time that Rovers beat Bournemouth they were the side in a lower division, back in 2006 where Richard Walker scored the only goal of an FA Cup replay at Dean Court. In the overall records Bournemouth are far superior, winning 52 of the 115 encounters between the two sides, losing 42 with 21 draws.

The home side will be without Carl Regan, still awaiting to serve the third game of his three match suspension. Byron Anthony, returning from a suspension of his own, will likely deputise at right back for him. Will Hoskins will continue his return to full fitness while Charlie Reece has had a full weeks training, both players are likely to take a place on the bench.

Three players will be missing for Bournemouth, namely defenders Ryan Garry and Shaun Cooper as well as goalkeeper Shwan Jalal who suffered a fractures eye socket in the draw with Leyton Orient. Winger Marc Pugh is likely to return for the Cherries.

Paul Trollope used various unusual measures to prepare his team for this weekends fixture, he told bristolrovers.co.uk:

"We have done a lot of different types of sessions, as we have not been able to get on the grass in recent days.

"We have done a few sessions on the astro-turf and we have done a spin class and a boxing class up at David Lloyd, so we have had a varied few days.

"We gave them the day off yesterday, but everyone is ok. There are a few who cannot complete all the sessions on the astro-turf to prevent any little niggles, but we are pleased with the work we have put in.

"It is never an easy time, you cannot do exactly what you would like, but you try and get as much done as you can."

Two solid results under their belts against top of the table sides Rovers will go into this with a great deal of confidence and with Bournemouth not having won away since August they could certainly steal a result here. That is, of course, if the Memorial Stadium ground staff can beat the weather.