Bristol Rovers captain Alfie Kilgour is back in contention for the Gas and is raring to go after missing over six weeks of action through injury.
The centre-back started the Pirates' first 14 fixtures in Sky Bet League Two, but has missed the previous five matches through injury, watching on as Rovers' losing run in the fourth tier extended to nine games.
As a boyhood Gashead who came through the Academy at the Club, it has not been easy for Kilgour to be sidelined through Rovers' tough patch of form, but his hard work now means he is ready to play if selected.
"I’m feeling good," he said. "I’ve put my time in doing my rehab, like I always do. I was dedicated to that and worked hard, so I am back fit and ready for selection if selected and ready to go.
"It’s tough. Speaking to my family, my girlfriend and friends, I said it is a tough feeling when you’re out injured, and you almost feel a bit guilty, but these things happen as a professional athlete. I was dedicated to getting back fit, back around the group, back around the lads, back around the gaffer, the team and working hard for the cause, and it will be great to be back."
Kilgour later added, "It’s a weird feeling when I’m on the sideline because it’s like guilt. It sits heavily, and it’s not nice. Obviously, if I am selected because there are no guarantees, I will be out there, as I always am, giving 110 per cent for the cause and for this great football club, which I absolutely love."
The Pirates fell to their ninth consecutive league defeat on Tuesday night, losing 4-0 to Barnet. However, results do not always reflect performances, with the Gas unlucky not to claim any points from one-goal losses to Walsall, Gillingham, Cheltenham and more recently, Notts County.
Kilgour believes it is difficult to identify one factor that has caused the Gas to go on a tough run of results but stressed the importance of showing character during tough times.
"It’s football, isn’t it?" said the defender. "It’s the best game in the world, and nobody has sussed it. It’s tough at the minute, and you can’t always pinpoint one specific thing.
"It’s normally a few variables, injuries, sending offs, going down to ten men, and it’s hard, but these are the times that you learn a lot about yourself. You dig deep in the tough times, you galvanise, you stick together, and tomorrow is all about going to war. It’s 90 minutes with 22 men on the pitch, and we’re going to have to get right after it."
Rovers will play Swindon in the league for the first time since 2022 when the two teams meet for an early kick-off on Saturday afternoon. The West County derby always serves up an atmosphere at The Mem, with the Gas searching for their first triumph in the fixture since 2017.
With Rovers attempting to claim their first Sky Bet League Two triumph since September, Kilgour is excited for the fixture and did not underestimate the size of the clash.
"Every game at the minute seems a big game, but tomorrow is massive," he said. "It’s a local derby, two big clubs, it’s going to be a good atmosphere, and it’s a 12:30 kick-off on Sky, so we’re ready to go. All the lads are prepared, and it will be a good one. I’m looking forward to it.
"I hope all of the fans turn out to support the lads and support the club because it’s a tough period. It hasn’t been through a lack of effort. Sometimes you question the quality, and you can question other things, but for me, it’s never been through a lack of effort or a lack of lads trying hard; it’s just the way it’s going at the minute.
So, it’s about sticking together, looking at the bigger picture, and all eyes are on tomorrow at 12:30, where we’ve got an amazing opportunity, and what a privilege to be playing in that game for whoever is selected to do this club proud, everyone proud, and themselves proud, and get after it and hopefully put a few things right.
“If you can’t get up for a game like this, if you can’t roll your sleeves up, put your scrum cap on and get stuck in, then I don’t know what will. So, for me, I’m really looking forward to it, and I have been for the last few days.
"We’ve prepared right, everyone is as fit and healthy as they can be. So, it’s a privilege, and I am sure that the lads can’t wait.”
