THE GAME
Rovers somehow managed to lose this game after being two goals ahead at the break and although it can be argued that Shaq Forde’s second half red card cost them victory it must be said that the defending for the last two Bromley goals was woeful.
Head Coach Steve Evans made two changes for this first ever league match against Bromley as Shaq Forde started in place of the injured Callum Moron and Joel Cotterill replaced Alfie Chang in the middle of the park.
There were only three minutes on the clock when Fabrizio Cavegn squandered a gilt edged opportunity of giving his side the lead. Picking up on the failure of Deji Elewere to control the ball the striker nipped in to claim possession but, when one on one with keeper he curled a shot well wide of the upright.
Forde was booked in the 12th minute for his challenge on Idris Odutayo, something that he would pay for later in the game. Forde also missed an opportunity to put Rovers ahead when he dragged a shot wide after being played in by Jack Sparkes.
With Rovers dominating proceedings, Josh McEachran saw a shot blocked while Smith saved from Cavegn while Ben Krauhaus hit Bromley’s first real shot wide of the target.
The breakthrough eventually came on 34 minutes after McEachran played in Sparkes down the left. He then beat his marker before lashing a tremendous shot into the top corner of the net to register his first league goal for the club.
Six minutes later Cavegn doubled the lead as he fired past Smith after being teed up by Kamil Conteh and Rovers, playing their best football by far, headed into the half time interval two goals to the good.
It all began to go wrong on 53 minutes though when Forde, seemingly oblivious to the fact that he had already been booked, dived in on Ashley Charles and picked up a second yellow before making his way to the dressing room, leaving the ten men to protect their two goal advantage.
Incredibly, Rovers might have added to their goal tally as, once again, Cavegn raced through on goal only to drag his shot wide of the upright. It was to prove a costly miss.
The ten men were breached in the 68th minute when substitute Nick Kabamba tucked a shot in following Elerewe’s cross in from the right. The inevitable equaliser arrived on 81 minutes when Odutayo played the ball into the unmarked Ben Thompson who had all the time in the world to beat Luke Southwood.
Worse was to follow as, two minutes into time added on Thompson managed to get on the end of another ball into the box and beat Southwood for what, at one time, had seemed an unlikely win.
WHAT WAS SAID
‘For 53 minutes, it was an outstanding performance, particularly in the first half. Let’s be honest, we could’ve gone four or five up. Shaq missed a good chance, Fabrizio missed a good chance after two or three minutes. We’ve had a couple of things that have gone the wrong side of the post; we’re so far in front of the game. Top of the game. You always know you’re going to get a reaction from Bromley, the way they play, the way they played last season, the way they play this season.
‘But the start of the second half, they’ve come out for four or five minutes, the game’s level again, we’re on the ball again. Then Shaq commits a silly challenge, and it’s a second yellow, no complaints with the referee’s decision. Then you’re having to dig in and find a way, and then Bromley get belief, and then they get a goal back, and then we’re camped in a bit. Listen, we tried two or three times to change formations and situations, but again, we’re short on certain personnel to help us on that front.
‘Tactically, we got the shape, the system right, we got the runners right, we got the personnel right. Everything was good, but if you get an ill disciplined individual within a team, that affects everyone. It affects balance, we’d walked on for two or three minutes and the boys, there was a real balance – players were interlinking. They knew where they were. So that was easy, and then all of a sudden, it’s out of shape, it’s out of kin, and you give the opposition oxygen. If they have oxygen, they’ll breathe, and if you’re a real good side like Bromley are, you’ll breathe well, and you’ll probably go on to win the game.’ Rovers Head Coach Steve Evans
‘I think it was a very good half. We played a lot with the ball, we said we want to play with the ball and keep going, we started playing, everyone wanted the ball, we created chances. I can score another one. I have to score three goals, but I’m not happy with my chances. I scored one, but I have to score two or three. But it was a good first half.
‘It’s more difficult when we’re on the pitch, you need concentration. You have to do everything, you have to stop the crosses, you have to defend, and then you see that they can score. You ask yourself what more can we do? We have to do more, be more aggressive, and defend better. Taking it also on my head, I can score more goals, and maybe we could win the game.
‘In football, if you have games, if there are a lot of games, you can do it in a few days, you can turn it around. But you have to look back and see what we did wrong, what we can do better, keep going, and we can build on it, on the first half.’ Rovers striker Fabrizio Cavegn
‘To be fair, I think if we had come in at half time 5-0 down I don’t think we’d have had any complaints because we were so bad first half. Probably the worst 45 minutes I’ve had as a manager at this football club. That’s not taking anything away from Steve Evans’ team. I thought they were excellent and they’d be disappointed they haven’t gone in 5-0 up. It was that bad.
‘Half time couldn’t come quick enough for us. We made changes. There’s a few honest conversations said at half time and the thing that annoys me is that these boys put themselves in this situation and they don’t need to be in this situation. And that was the bit that frustrated me. I said to them ‘whoever scores the next goal in this game will win it.’, and thankfully we scored it and we pushed and pushed and you know we got across the line. It was it was one of those Boxing Day games which you hope you’re not involved in, but we were involved in it today and thankfully it went our way at the end.
‘I don’t like calling them subs because I think that’s bit of a disrespect to them. These guys are coming to finish the game for us and win us the game and give us everything and we’ve had that in abundance. The whole squad’s chomping at the bit to get on the pitch and make a difference. And every single one of them did. We utilise the squad and if someone’s having a tricky day or not the best day then we change them and bring on the guys that are ready to come on. Bromley Boss Andy Woodman
