On Saturday I accepted a late invitation to watch Bristol Rovers host the already anointed champions of League One- Norwich City. Adding to the end of season party atmosphere were numerous fans dressed as pirates..
Bristol Rovers are more often known as 'the Gas', a reference to the days when their original ground in the Eastville area was overshadowed by a gasworks. The Pirates is their other major nickname and it turned out that there was some attempt afoot to break the record for the most people dressed as pirates gathered together in one place!
Whoever the organiser was would have been a little disappointed, there were several 'pirates' scattered throughout the Memorial ground but it appeared that the away fans were far more enthusiastic. A number of jovial luminous green and yellow spandex versions could be sighted amongst the Canaries faithful.
For Norwich the contrast to there opening game of the season could scarcely be greater. At that time our erstwhile reporter 'the Romeboy' gleefully took up the story of how then manager Bryan Gunn had led them to a 7-1 home loss to Colchester.
Norwich swiftly reacted by boldly snatching Colchester's manager Paul Lambert as their replacement for Gunn. From that point on they have been the most consistent team in League One and in the end have romped to the title and an immediate Championship return.
With the title decided with two league games left to play and Bristol Rovers out of the race for the play-offs, the match could accurately be described as a dead rubber. However, as far as Bristol Rovers are concerned, I can be fairly sure that at least the manager Paul Trollope will be happy with the overall campaign.
Realistically Rovers have long been out of the competition for snatching a play-off spot, although it remained a mathematical possibility until the last few matches. Instead they have consistently hovered between 6th and 12th ever since an encouraging start had them sitting pretty in the top four.
Back in late August I interviewed Paul Trollope (http://90minutesonline.com/index.php/component/content/article/421-bristol-rovers-the-paul-trollope-interview.html), and judging by what he hoped to get out of this season he cannot be called a failure. He was reserved over his ambitions but also clear that the club should be seen to be progressing.
Last season saw 'the Gas' finish 11th, and after Saturday they were left in 10th with a final kick-off to come next weekend at Elland Road. There the odds will be against them as Leeds will need a win to guarantee a last-gasp automatic promotion spot, finally ending their exile in England's third tier of the league structure.
Nonetheless, fans of Bristol Rovers are far from gushing in their general praise for the efforts of Trollope. Too often a complaint heard from parts of their fan-base concerns the quality of football they see. There has also been some growing resentment at the lack of a replacement for their former star striker Rickie Lambert, who was sold to Southampton at the start of the season.
Meanwhile it could be said that after getting the club promoted from League 2 three seasons ago, the fans should be more grateful. After all, Bristol Rovers have quickly established themselves in League One and if they can improve their away form, they should be aiming for the play-offs in 2010-11. Interestingly there have been rumours that the MK Dons see Trollope as a successor for the soon to depart Paul Ince.
Rovers home form has been fairly good, winning 13 of 23 games and losing 7, especially when considering that two of those losses have come in their final three home games. One of these was my visit this weekend as Norwich proved why they have been a class apart since Lambert's appointment.
The first half was reasonably tepid and even, but Norwich were clearly getting joy from attacking the right flank of the home side. It was from another foray down this side that led to the champions opening goal, when Chris Martin cut inside the box and expertly finished with a low shot after making the defence look foolish.
Things continued in the same vein until half-time and the second minute of stoppage time. At this point I felt that the home side would be happy as long as they didn't concede another before the break, and like clockwork they did just that. Substitute Oli Johnson had replaced Stephen Elliot a minute earlier, and with what must have been his first touch he made it 2-0 from the edge of the area.
A player possibly worth keeping an eye on in next season's Championship will be Norwich's Anthony McNamee. As the Canaries targeted Rover's right side he was constantly involved and provided several decent crosses and through balls, using his extra pace and low sense of gravity to great benefit. Inevitably he was the player who played in Johnson for his goal.
The second half saw Bristol Rovers respond to their half-time team talk. From the outset they were far better organised and created a number of half-chances to get back into the game, so much so that it was easy to feel that a certain Ricky Lambert would have duly obliged. Unfortunately, try as they might the home side could not convert any of their good build up work into a proper shot on target.
Norwich appeared relatively happy to sit on their 2-0 lead and to soak up pressure, but in the 68th minute Rovers were again architects to their own undoing. Panic in their penalty box and too many missed tackles led to Stephen Hughes striking a low shot to the bottom right hand corner of the goal. A ricochet or two ended with the ball dribbling over the goal line for what amounted to a slightly harsh 3-0 scoreline.
This was greeted by some derision from the home crowd, who seemed resigned to such an outcome. In response Rovers finally crafted a proper effort on goal from another decent cross into the Norwich box, which found Darryl Duffy who smashed a header against the crossbar. The provider was Ben Swallow, who's probing throughout the afternoon was in a similar vein to Anthony McNamee.
Alas Bristol Rovers could not quite grab a consolation and so ended their quota of home matches for 2009-10. Credit must go to the home fans, or at least those in the terraces of the Blackthorn End, who were all the more vocal even after going 3-0 down.
If Paul Trollope can unearth a finisher with the qualities of the aforementioned Rickie Lambert, they should be confident of making a promotion bid next season. As a home fan said to me, League One has had several high profile clubs with bigger resources dominating it this year. If Leeds and Charlton join Norwich in the Championship, Rovers should be looking to fill the gaps they leave behind.
As for Norwich, they have a style that is quite easy on the eye and a manager that has them well drilled. All in all they should comfortably survive the step back up to the Championship, just as long as Delia provides the resources.