So it’s another lockdown that we have had inflicted on us but this time one that has little effect on our season as we are deemed to be ‘elite sport’ – whoever thought that term would cover Rovers! In any case we should be nearly halfway through the latest restrictions by the time you read this. Unfortunately, whilst the Premiership and EFL teams are virtually unaffected by those restrictions the same does not apply to us supporters who continue to go without our ‘fix’ of League football and, for those of us who have taken to the ‘grass roots’ for some live action we have now lost that as well with all non-elite sport curtailed until at least the 2nd of December!
This is a real shame as I have met and talked to several ‘Gasheads’ out and about on the non-League circuit in recent weeks. Hopefully things will start to improve before Christmas but I must say that I fear we fans may not see our teams live at all this season. Let’s hope I am wrong! One thing to affect me personally is that my long unbroken run of attending Rovers’ home games, that stretched back to 1972, has come to an untimely end. I know that it is not a record as I am aware my old mate Malcolm Norman had an even longer run covering, as I did, decades at Eastville and all the matches at Ashton Gate, Twerton Park and the Mem up until March this year.
Obviously included in that run was the switch back ‘home’ from Bath to the ‘rugby ground’ in 1996, the 25th anniversary of which takes place at the start (if there is one!) of next season, as we were reminded of by our good friend and former Editor of this esteemed publication, Keith Brookman.
Jim Chappell.