retired_jennie

Tuesday 30th August 2005

Yey, an away win! OK it was only Carlisle, they’d lost all three games they’d played up until yesterday and the bookies had them down as among the favourites for the drop, but we’d still broken our duck on the road with a very solid display and I was f**king delighted.

I was still cursing the authorities for their fixture scheduling though, I mean it’s far from ideal to have to make your longest away trip of the season on a Monday night and especially a Monday night after you’ve already played on the previous weekend. We’d done a professional job, but the coach hadn’t got back into Bristol until well after 4 a.m. and since we were at home to Mansfield on Saturday I’d decided to do the safe thing and give the players a day’s rest. All except Jean-Christophe Cesto, that was; we’d arranged for him to have a scan at the local hospital to make sure he hadn’t done himself any serious damage.

I still had work to do, so by a quarter to eleven I was bounding (well, crawling would be more accurate – I’d decided a few celebratory early-morning Jack Daniels had been in order!) up the stairs to the Memorial Stadium office.

retired_jennie

Today, the office would be even more crowded than usual; Laura had yesterday told her sex-pest of a boss at the Evening Post to stick his job where his mother never kissed him, and as of today she was now editor of that most revered of literary works, the Bristol Rovers match-day programme! God knows how we’d manage for space, as it is there’s barely room to swing a very small cat in there, but I was definitely looking forward to having her around. Well, it was better than staring at Ratty’ s ugly mug!

“Morning, sweetheart. Settled in OK?”

“Yeah, though it’s a good thing I’m not claustrophobic or anything. Christ, Teddy, how do you two ever manage to get any work done in here, it looks like a f**king bomb’s hit it!”

“We manage, or we did ‘til you came along. If you want to tidy the place up, feel free!”

“Oh, and what’s with the computer? Ancient or what? I swear, a few days back I was watching National Geographic and they found a P.C. just like that inside Tutankhamen’s tomb!”

At that point the ringing of the (newly repaired) telephone halted any further discussion on the merits of Bristol Rovers’ IT network. It was Gary Smith, my Norfolk super-agent, and he had a few more recommendations up his sleeve. Trouble was, this time there was a catch..

“Portugal? Well, I could use some cover in those positions, and since they’re on a free why not. Sure, invite them over for a trial and I’ll take a look.”

“No can do, Teddy. These guys have got Porto and Sporting Lisbon sniffing around, there’s no way they’ll agree to hop on a plane on the off-chance they’ll get a deal at a crap English club. Now I’ve spoken to them and they’re interested, but if you want them you’re going to have to come up with a permanent deal and then come over here and persuade them.”

“What, come to Portugal?? I can’t just leave the f**king country, Gary; in case you’ve missed it, I’ve got a football club to run!”

“Seriously, Teddy. If you miss out on these three, you’re going to be kicking yourself.”

I put down the phone, and turned to Laura.

“How does a few days in Portugal sound, darling? It’s not a holiday, exactly, but..”

“Just say the word, and I’ll get packing!!”

So far, Gary had done me proud with the players he’d recommended, and if he thought these three Portuguese youngsters were worth the effort then that was good enough for me. We’d be flying out on September 4th, the morning after the Mansfield game, and all being well I should be able to make it back to Bristol for the following Thursday to prepare for the home clash with Wrexham.

retired_jennie

Friday, 2nd September 2005

So, what’s been happening down here since Tuesday? Injuries, that’s what, and f**king lots of them! Actually, “injuries” doesn’t really cover it; “epidemic” would be more accurate!

Yep, with temperatures still hovering around the high seventies and after a week of perfect sunshine, no less than six of my squad of pansies have come down with a bloody cold! And, it’d be fair to say I wasn’t all that sympathetic; I can see no good reason why an attack of the sniffles should prevent a professional footballer from doing his job.

I’d considered forcing them to play, but Tony reckoned that might be a killer for squad morale. So, we’ll have to do without them, but the four first-teamers (Chris Carruthers, Souleymane Bamba, Johannes Djourou and Sebastian Larsson) have got their cards well and truly marked. I know Mansfield’s hardly a dream destination, but even so.. Lazy bastards! One player with a genuine excuse is Jean-Christophe Cesto; turns out he’d pulled a thigh muscle against Carlisle, the medics say it’ll be a fortnight before he’s fully fit but even so he was badgering me in training to let him at least be on the bench tomorrow! He won’t be, but his commitment hasn’t gone unnoticed.

All this means that, for the first time since pre-season, I’ll be forced to start with five from the squad I inherited in the first 11. Even worse, one of those five will be my old Wales buddy, ex-coach and ex-programme writer Paul Trollope! I’d already made it very clear to Paul that his future here is about as bright as an Iranian porn baron’s, but with his contract up at the end of the season maybe he’ll be out to make an impression.

Amongst all this doom and gloom, we have had one major slice of luck though; Ecuador’s World Cup clash with Bolivia has been moved back three days to Wednesday September 6th, which means that we’ll have Franklin Salas available for tomorrow! I’m going to need him.

retired_jennie

Saturday, 3rd September 2005

Mansfield vs. Bristol Rovers, League Two from Field Mill

Bris R (4-1-4-1); Scott Shearer, Ali Gibb, Paul Trollope, Steve Elliott, Ryan Hartslief, Lee Grant, Jeroen van Staveren (Stuart Fergus 82), Dean West, Ryan Williams (Aaron Lescott 82), Franklin Salas, Francesco Milano (Junior Agogo 82)

So my much-changed team took to the field on a warm September afternoon at Field Mill, and they surprised me by making a very bright start indeed. Dean West was clearly up for this one, he was giving Mansfield’s midfield the run-around, and Mansfield were only saved from going one down by one veteran helping out another; Gus Ulhenbeek slipped, Francesco Milano got the shot away but keeper Kevin Pressman got down well to turn it around the post.

Lee Grant then sent a free header well over the bar after 12 minutes, Franklin Salas and Ryan Williams both went close as well with low drives from the edge of the area, and with Mansfield finding themselves pegged back inside their own half it only seemed a matter of time before one went in. Finally just before the half hour Franklin Salas was cynically hauled down by defender Jon Olav Hjelde, Jeroen van Staveren had always claimed to be a dead-ball expert and he backed that up with a brilliant curling free kick which flew past Pressman and into the top left corner. 1-0, we were on our way.

The pressure continued to mount on beleaguered Mansfield, and Franklin Salas was drifting through the midfield like a shadow they simply couldn’t touch. On 41, Salas danced away from Mitchell and Dawson, slipped the ball out wide to van Staveren and the Dutchman’s inch-perfect cross was met with a stunning volley by Dean West, a moment of pure class from the 21-year old. There was still time for West to clip the crossbar in stoppage time, but this had been a superb display from us and we were firmly in command.

Half time: Mansfield 0, Bristol Rovers 2 (van Staveren 29, West 41)

I’d sent my players out with orders to produce more of the same and they did exactly that; from our first attack of the half Dean West ran at the Mansfield defence, Hjelde backed off and backed off and West shaped as if to shoot from the edge of the area. Instead, though, he slipped it across to Franklin Salas, and my Ecuador star sent it flying into the roof of Pressman’s net from 18 yards. 3-0, and just 48 minutes gone!

Mansfield as of yet hadn’t managed a shot on goal, they did put that right a few minutes later when some slack marking allowed Colin Marrison to get away a shot on the turn which Scott Shearer had to be lively to, but they knew they were beaten. The home fans were already streaming out as the hour approached, their side had opted for damage limitation in the form of a 4-5-1 and although we were still in complete control the extra bodies back made it harder for Salas and West to work their magic.

Eight minutes from time I opted to rest some tired legs, a triple change included a debut for 18-year old Stuart Fergus and a first appearance of the season for Junior Agogo, and it was Fergus who almost lived the ultimate dream as a mazy run took him away from three Mansfield defenders only for his shot to thud back off the upright. It’d have been a special moment for the youngster but in the context of the game it didn’t matter one bit; 3-0 was how it ended, three points were in the bag and for the first time since the opening day we were back up in League Two’s top seven.

Full time: Mansfield 0, Bristol Rovers 3 (van Staveren 29, West 41, Salas 48)

retired_jennie

Friday 9th August, 2005

Well, Gary Smith’s eye for talent has proved to be as sharp as ever, and we’ve returned from our five days in Portugal with three new players signed safely on the dotted line. Two of them are really hopes for the future, and will likely spend most of this season in either the reserves or the Under-18s, but I’ve also filled a gaping hole in my first-team squad.

So far in all of our games, my big worry has been at left-back. Chris Carruthers has been first choice by default (he’s the only left-sided defender we’ve got) but he possesses the first touch of a drunken virgin and the pace of a 1970’s Lada. The only other left-footed players in the entire squad are Paul Trollope, and we all know my feelings about him, and Stuart Fergus; he’s a promising midfielder but tackling certainly isn’t one of his strong points. In short, I needed a good left-back. And guess what; I’ve found one!

The lucky lad is 23-year old Jose Pereira, or as he prefers to be known, Kipulo. He started out at his home-town club Vitoria Guimaraes but was released at the end of last season, hasn’t been able to find a club and jumped at the chance of a fresh start in England. To be honest I’m amazed no-one’s come in for him already, he’s a very solid all round player and a vast improvement on the crap I’ve currently got for his position. He’s now Bristol Rovers’ first choice left back.

The other two new boys are 21-year old right midfielder Fabio Silva and 15-year old Brazil-born goalkeeper Nando. Silva, who made a handful of appearances for Estrela Amadora in the Super League, is a very skilful player but is also very slight, and until we can bulk him up a bit the rough bastards of League Two would eat him alive. Still, he’s got pace so he could be looking at a few late cameo appearances against tiring legs. Nando will go into the Under-18’s for now, but I can really see him challenging for a senior spot in the not-too-distant future.

Of course, it wasn’t all work; in fact hardly any of it was work! All three of our trialists had agreed to come to Lisbon to meet with me, since I wanted them and they wanted a club there wasn’t a lot to haggle over and I’d completed all three deals by mid-afternoon on Monday!

But I was in no hurry to leave; so Ratty told me the hot weather back home had turned into torrential rain, and the chance to spend some quality time with a beautiful girl wasn’t one I was about to turn down. In any case, Tony was taking care of training and he could probably do it a lot better than me.

We’d based ourselves right in the centre of Lisbon, and while we did spend some time touring the attractions we spent rather more time propping up the bars! Neither of us spoke a word of Portuguese, but my Spanish and Laura’s frantic hand gestures were enough to get us by in the places where English wasn’t common, and generally we had a great time. Wednesday night saw us travel out of the city to the Casino Estoril, said to be among the largest in Europe, where Laura was delighted to win 5,000 Euros on the blackjack and I was less delighted to be stung for 150 by the robbing taxi driver for the half-hour round trip. Still, at least we showed a profit!

Right now, as we made our way across the tarmac at Bristol Airport against a howling wind and driving rain, and prepared no doubt to find out which planet British Airways had teleported our luggage to, I bloody wished I was back there. But all good things have to come to an end, at least we’re at home tomorrow and at least, after Kipulo received his international clearance through, I won’t have to play Paul Trollope at left back!

retired_jennie

Saturday 10th September 2005

Oh, I almost forgot one final piece of news that happened during our week away. Franklin Salas was in the starting line-up as Ecuador took on Bolivia last Wednesday night, it wasn’t one of his better performances really but that didn’t matter; Ivan Kaviedes’ goal gave the Ecuadorians a 1-0 win, and that was enough to guarantee Franklin’s mob a place in next summer’s World Cup Finals! Yes, there’s every chance that at Germany 2006, alongside the stars from Chelsea, Milan and Barcelona, there’ll be a player from Bristol Rovers strutting his stuff on the biggest stage of all!

There was good news on the international front, too, for the two nations closest to my heart. Wales returned from their trip east to Poland with an excellent 2-0 win, Neil Roberts and Rob Earnshaw got the goals, and though England were nowhere near as impressive Michael Owen’s 47th-minute strike was enough for three points away in Northern Ireland. Of course after their dreadful campaign Wales were only playing for pride, but England now need only a point next month to make sure of their place in Germany. Now, back to our own exploits…

retired_jennie

Bristol Rovers vs. Wrexham, League Two from the Memorial Stadium

Bris R (4-1-4-1); Scott Shearer, Ali Gibb, Kipulo, Ryan Hartslief, Souleymane Bamba, Johannes Djourou, Jeroen van Staveren, Ryan Williams, Dean West (Mark Worthington 4), Franklin Salas, Francesco Milano

Salas had returned from his adventures in South America still on a high to take his rightful place in the starting X1, and with Djourou back and Kipulo in for his debut the spine of the team looked strong. Things didn’t start well, though, when after just four minutes Dean West went down clutching his ankle, West couldn’t continue and so Mark Worthington made an unexpected early debut from the bench.Bugger!

Thankfully it didn’t seem to throw us too much, and Franklin Salas had already forced an excellent save from Wrexham keeper Michael Ingham before the early breakthrough came. 17 minutes in, sub Mark Worthington wriggled free of Andy Holt’s challenge, Francesco Milano’s forward run was perfect, Worthington’s pass found its target and Milano’s low drive found the back of the Wrexham net for 1-0 Bristol Rovers. Five minutes later Darren Ferguson, son of Man Utd’s resident miserable bastard Alex, up-ended Salas and from the resultant free-kick Jeroen van Staveren rattled Ingham’s right hand post; his free-kick claims appear to be well founded.

There was a brief scare when towering centre-back Dennis Lawrence headed just over from Darren Ferguson’s corner, Ferguson himself sliced another half-chance well wide for Wrexham but other than that it was constant Rovers pressure. Franklin Salas was having an excellent game, his trickery coupled with Milano’s testing runs were pulling the visiting defence this way and that but the closest we came to a second was a low drive from Milano which fizzed just wide of the left-hand post.

Half Time: Bristol Rovers 1 (Milano 17), Wrexham 0

The visitors came out strongly after the break and could have had an equaliser inside the first minute; Andy Holt’s through ball released Drew Talbot, but Talbot’s first touch was way too heavy and Souleymane Bamba was able to get across and clear. Not long afterwards some poor marking gave Rob Davies a clear sight of goal, but he didn’t use the time he had and sliced his shot wildly over the bar.

So a couple of let-offs, and ones Wrexham would come to regret. We regrouped and regained control, and three minutes before the hour Franklin Salas won a free-kick out on the right, Salas took it himself and his floated ball was set on a plate for Mark Worthington to head home his first ever goal in league football. Francesco Milano was inches away a minute or so later after more good work from Salas, but then at a crucial moment we let our composure slip.

Our problems started when Robbie Foy released Lee Roche down the right, it seemed a nothing situation but Ali Gibb mistimed the tackle, Roche had time to cross and our defence parted like the Red Sea to allow Darren Ferguson a free header inside Shearer’s near post. I think the thought of Darren’s f**king father smirking at that one in the Ferguson family home tonight actually annoyed me more than the goal itself did.

The last laugh was on us, though, as despite a triple late change and a switch to four, yes four, up front, Wrexham couldn’t create anything else worthy of being called a chance. We could, and did, though; nine minutes from time Ryan Williams on the right found Jeroen van Staveren on the left, the Dutchman’s cross was flicked on by Franklin Salas and there was Francesco Milano waiting to pounce at the far post for his second of the afternoon. Up yours, Fergie!

Full Time: Bristol Rovers 3 (Milano 17,81, Worthington 57), Wrexham 1 (Ferguson 61)

retired_bbcarr

Re-opened and upped by request

retired_w0lfpack1

Welcome back, davidbr. Glad to see you re-opened this; it was one of the stories I was sad to see abandoned.

A piece of advice, you say you've got quite a bit written - take your time about posting it, so that if you hit a point where your motivation falters, you've story saved up to post for a week or two without having to write new material.

shannon2007

Read that as one of the stories you were glad to see abandoned, thought you were being unusually cruel