‘Let’s hope lightning doesn’t strike twice’

I’d like to start with an apology. A month ago, I proudly stated that Rovers were on promotion-winning form. Since then, we’ve only picked up seven points from a possible 18. That’s average form by anyone’s standards but in comparison to what we’ve been served up over the past couple of years it’s a bit of a shock.

Whilst I feel the need to apologise for being a jinx, Darrell Clarke also correctly apologised to the home faithful on Tuesday night after our second heavy League defeat in ten days. Losing at home isn’t something we’ve been used to under this manager, getting absolutely thumped less so. But the defending on Tuesday night makes it possibly the worst performance of the Clarke era. At times it looked like the back four were being bullied by the Addicks’ front line. It’s no secret that Rovers don’t have the tightest defence in the division but by anyone’s standards they had what can only be described as an off night. Perhaps having two youngsters, Lockyer and Clarke-Salter, in central defence, was a gamble, and more experience was needed. Maybe 5-1 flattered Charlton and we missed a few gilt-edged chances. 

Speaking of Clarke-Salter, the worst point of a very disappointing night’s work was his injury. It looks like the Chelsea youngster might be out for a little while and while the squad will be poorer for it, you’ve gotta feel more for him than for us. Long injury lay-offs are always awful but they seem worse when they happen to a young kid starting out in the game.

What is required, though, is a little perspective. We’ve had a rotten fortnight, but the squad hasn’t gone bad overnight. The strike pairing that picked us off consisted of a guy who played 3 games for Northern Ireland at the Euros, and another who scored 24 goals at this level last season.

Also, after this ‘disastrous’ run of games, we’re a win off of the play-offs (okay, two points, but our goal difference has taken a bit of a hit lately) and we sit tenth in the League. When was the last time we finished as high as the top ten in the third tier?

I’ll give you a clue. Jamie Cureton and Jason Roberts played up front. 

Not to mention that we’re still in the FA Cup (trademark embarrassing early exit to a non-league side avoided at least for now), and only out of the other cup competition because we came up against the best team in the country. 

What I’m saying is that these players, and this manager, have earned the right to lose a few games without losing our trust. Luckily I think most of us are able to write off a couple of bad outings and not resort to the empty cry of “sort it out”, or start demanding that half a dozen players be shipped out. Because we remember far, far worse times than these.

Time to dust ourselves off and think about Chesterfield away on Saturday, then. I absolutely refuse to make predictions any more, given that I said we’d “easily dispatch” Charlton. Half their board have just quit, and if social media is to be believed, the Spireites are in even worse peril off the field than Charlton are – reports have been bandied about that season ticket holders are buying dozens of tickets and giving them away to friends for free, such is the club’s reported short-term financial woes.

Add that issue to the eight games on the bounce that they’d lost before finally winning a game in midweek, and you’ve got a club in crisis. But that kind of peril often helps a club pull together and deliver shock results – after all, Charlton are all over the place off the pitch and aren’t lighting up the place on the field either – well, until last Tuesday. Let’s hope lightning doesn’t strike twice.

James Hodges is Bristol24/7’s Bristol Rovers columnist for the 2016/17 season.

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