Rovers Return to Town With New Manager and New Hope Friday, 10th Jan 2025 09:34 by Ziggy Carter Bristol Rovers fan and sports journalism student Ziggy Carter gives an overview of Sunday’s FA Cup third round opponents. Bristol Rovers head to East Anglia, followed by just under 1,000 Gasheads, hoping to get to the fourth round of the FA Cup for the first time since the 2006/07 season, but with Premier League opposition Ipswich Town in their way. In the last 15 years Rovers’ FA Cup record has been sub-par, having been knocked out by lower-tier opposition six times since the 2010/11 season, among them five National League sides. Last season, it was Ipswich’s much-loved neighbours Norwich who beat them in a home replay which put paid to a dream away tie at Liverpool. New manager Iñigo Calderón will want to change the club’s fortunes and give the Gasheads something to sing about after a disappointing League One campaign to date. Calderón may see this as an opportunity to show the fanbase the quality the team possesses, something they have only seen in glimpses this season. Route So Far Rovers’ FA Cup campaign started with a West Country derby, against Weston-super-Mare, a team just 24 miles down the road and flying high in the National League South, a potential banana skin that Rovers were just able to overcome in extra-time with a 3-1 win, thanks to goals from Jamie Lindsey, Connor Taylor and former Ipswich player Grant Ward. In round two, Rovers visited Oakwell, home to Barnsley, where many fans expected our FA Cup campaign to end. It certainly looked like it was heading that way with the Tykes taking firm control of the match. But, due to goalkeeping heroics and Barnsley missed chances, it stayed 0-0 with the South Yorkshire side having 30 efforts on goal. Rovers hung on until penalties where they emerged victorious, scoring all four of their spot-kicks after Barnsley hit the post and had another saved. Current Season Review Rovers have been back in League One for three seasons following a stint in League Two in 2021/22 and finished 15th last time around. There was much hope for Rovers fans at the start of the campaign due to a successful transfer window in which they brought in 16 new players. However, it became clear that patience amongst the fanbase with manager Matt Taylor was running thin and he was eventually relieved of his duties on 16th December after a period of three games without registering a shot and with Rovers just two points off the relegation zone. On Boxing Day, it was announced that Calderón, ex-Brighton full-back and head coach of the Seagulls’ U18s, would be taking charge. There has been a clear improvement in performance with the Gas showing brief moments of positive play. But while build-up play evidently improved, Rovers are still prone to leak goals, conceding nine in their last four games. Currently, the Gas occupy 20th position in the third tier and are five points off the drop thanks to a 1-0 away win at the weekend against fellow strugglers Cambridge, with fans hoping they can start to find some form and push up the table and improve on their last two league positions. Manager Calderón was an unknown name compared to other rumoured managerial candidates. However, with EFL experience and a great record with Brighton’s U18s, he seems a promising candidate. He has a Masters in Sports Psychology and favours an exciting attacking brand of football. The 43-year-old started his career in his native Basque region of Spain, playing for Deportivo Alvavès. In 2010, he moved to Brighton where he played over 200 times, captaining them on several occasions, before moving his career to the Cypriot league retiring in Asian football. Calderón then moved back to Deportivo Alavès to start his coaching career, leading the second team before his return to Brighton. Although he hasn’t managed first teams, the fanbase is hoping he can bring his experience from Brighton to Bristol Rovers as he's referenced that Brighton was in a similar place to Rovers when he joined. The fanbase has certainly got behind him and there is a new positivity around the club that and a belief he can push the club forward. Predicted Team and System Since Iñigo Calderón has come in, he’s been trying to find his best starting XI so it’s hard to predict what he’ll do for this game, however, I’m expecting a 4-2-3-1 formation with three changes from the weekend. At right-back Joel Senior will replace Taylor Moore, Shaq Forde will come in for well-travelled Scott Sinclair on the right wing and then Gatlin O'Donkor will take the centre-forward berth from ex-Canary Chris Martin.  Players to Watch Goalkeeper: Josh Griffiths is a promising goalkeeper on loan from West Brom. Great at shot stopping and often kept busy but rises to the challenge, although has struggled with balls into the box. Centre-back: Connor Taylor rejoined Rovers after a season on loan from Stoke during the promotion campaign when it became clear that he was not part of the Potters’ first-team plans. He’s been a rock at the back being appearing in the League One Team of the Week three times this season. Right wing: Shaq Forde, the danger man, came in on deadline day as a proven League One player after a successful loan period with Leyton Orient the season prior and has shown he has quality in an underperforming team. Ipswich Connections There are three players in the expected XI who previously played for Ipswich. Thirty-five-year-old centre-back James Wilson played in blue from 2019 to 2021 making 49 appearances before being released and joining Plymouth Argyle, who he helped to secure the 2022/23 League One title, before turning down a new contract at the end of that season and joining Rovers. After an underwhelming first season, he set out to prove Gasheads wrong and the Welshman has done just that. Grant Ward is another who played at Portman Road, from 2016 to 2019, making 98 appearances and scoring eight times, including a hat-trick on his debut. He’s shown in his two years at the club he has quality but has been plagued with injuries, preventing him from getting a solid run of games Finally, Luke Thomas, who only managed five appearances for the Blues on loan from Barnsley in 2020/21. The next season he joined Rovers on loan and helped them to promotion from League Two, making 32 appearances in all competitions. He next played for the Gas a year later, joining on a free transfer after leaving Barnsley. Frozen out of the squad in the earlier part of this season, Calderón has played him in twice out of his three games in charge and undoubtedly sees his potential, especially after he scored what turned out to be the winning goal against Cambridge. Another former Town player to recently play for Rovers is young Indonesian defender Elkan Baggott, currently on loan at Blackpool having been loaned to Rovers last season. After a few poor performances, Baggott managed to build up his confidence and get a good run of games showing his quality at the back and many Gasheads wanted him back this season. A player who could start on the bench is Suffolk-born former Norwich striker Chris Martin. The veteran got off the mark for the season against Leyton Orient two weeks ago, scoring two. He was Rovers’ top scorer last season with 16 goals in League One. The home fans will no doubt take a disliking towards him for his four years at Carrow Road. Perhaps the biggest link between the two clubs is Town legend Marcus Stewart. The striker started off his career in the West Country, where he spent the first five years of his career, playing 178 times and scoring 80 times between 1991 and 1996, before leaving Rovers and joining Huddersfield, where he spent four years prior to moving to Portman Road where he famously netted in the play-off final at Wembley and then bagged 19 goals in the Premier League the following season as the Blues finished fifth and qualified for the UEFA Cup. In the twilight of his career he bounced around various West Country teams, retiring at Exeter, where he continued as a coach until rejoining Bristol Rovers as a player development coach, subsequently becoming assistant manager to Darrell Clarke in 2013 and helping the Pirates to back-to-back promotions from the National League to League One. He left by mutual consent back in 2018. Summary Rovers’ season has been nervy, edging closer to the relegation zone and with the team’s confidence low. However, with a new manager and positives to take from the last few games, the fans will hope they can rise to the occasion. Town have won six of the last eight meetings between the clubs with one draw the last time they met in the league, a drab 0-0 in Bristol that signalled the start of an impressive 13 wins in 15 for Town, driving the Blues to their subsequent promotion. The last time Gas won this fixture was at Portman Road in 2019, a 2-1 League One win.
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