There is nothing better than a clean sheet for a goalkeeper, and Brad Young's shutout against Swindon Town came at the perfect time.
Bristol Rovers have endured a tough spell, losing their previous four Sky Bet League Two matches and have been without a clean sheet since beating Exeter City at the start of October.
The Gas were up against a Swindon side that beat high-flying Barnet 3-1 on the road, but were kept quiet by the Pirates after a fast start. When Young was called upon, he delivered, saving a one-on-one from Aaron Drinan and collecting shots from outside the box.
Speaking to the media after the game, Young was disappointed his team could not secure all three points, but feels a point and a clean sheet is something his team can build on.
CLEAN SHEET
"I think especially over the past couple of weeks, we've conceded a lot of sloppy goals. I think it gives us boys at the back, and the full team, confidence with a clean sheet. We can analyse and say we need to score; we want to score, obviously, to win the game, but a clean sheet. Happy days.”
REFLECTION ON HIS PERFORMANCE
"I feel a lot more composed. I know there's been a lot of noise going about in the press and stuff, and as a goalkeeper, you're going to get that. I think for me, I've got to be bulletproof because if I start doubting myself, I am only a young goalkeeper now, so if I start doubting myself, then we're in a bit of bother.
“But I've just got to keep working, keep putting the work in. The outside noise is outside noise. It's all about what we do on the pitch. So, I think, yeah, it was a solid display, a bit back to what I was doing, making a couple of saves, and it just breeds confidence. We've grown as a team. So no, I'm happy with today.
“I think obviously at the start of the season it's been tough for me and frustrating. I think it's been more of a mental challenge because conceding goals and, look, I haven't been making those big saves to keep us in games as I did at the back end of last year. It just feels like I haven't helped the boys out as much.
“But I think there have been a couple of games where I went chasing things, trying to look for work, and that's when you're in big bother as a goalkeeper. So I think we're just reining it back in, trusting in the work I do in the week. And look, I know I can make saves, I know I can deal with crosses, whatever may come. So I think it's just getting back to the basics, and I think I've shown that today.”
DISTRIBUTION
"We've worked on that. I think it's because I want to be proactive and come and affect crosses and defend the area, defend the space. I think those balls, the through balls and counter-attack kicks, are something I can be effective. So I've worked on it, and it was nice to see a couple come off today. Hopefully that will be successful in the future."
STAYING FOCUSED AS A YOUNG GOALKEEPER
"Speaking with James Bittner, the goalie coach, and people around me in my circle, it's just about remaining focused, remaining on the task at hand, and working each day. I'm going to grow, I'm going to get more experience, and the confidence will come.
“As a goalkeeper, it's not nice going through these tough periods where you feel you're not helping the team, but every goalkeeper goes through it. Whether you're 18, 24 or 34, you're going to go through these moments. So it's about coming out the other side, keeping working, staying focused, staying humble and putting one foot in front of the other.”
STOPPING THE LOSING RUN
“That's what we spoke about. Obviously, we're disappointed because we controlled the majority of the game, especially the second half. I think we were a bit sloppy in the early stages of the first half. They created a few chances, but other than a couple of counter-attacks in the second half and a couple of corners, there was nothing that really threatened us.
“We controlled a lot of the possession, I felt, and worked it into good areas. It's just now about adding that final quality. Look, you can't go from nothing to something overnight. A point? Yeah, we're disappointed; we wanted all three, but it's a building block. We go again next week.”
TOUGH CONDITIONS
“The weather's changing, and The Mem seems to be a bit of a wind trap. So yeah, I've played in worse, but it is what it is. You can't control it, just control the controllables. So we go again.
“I think you've just got to assess every ball and take every ball as it comes. Obviously, catching balls is a lot harder, and you've got to be aware that things skip up, especially with the wind. There's nothing worse than wind, especially as a goalkeeper. But yeah, it's just about staying focused in the game, staying in the moment and concentrating for every ball.”
AWAY FORM
“It hasn't been great, but as a group in there we're not dreading going away from home. It's another game of football. We're going to go there, take a bit of confidence from the clean sheet and the point today, try and be a bit more productive up front, be solid at the back and get back to our ways.
“I think that's what we've lost. Being solid as a unit back there and then building on that is something we've lost in recent weeks. But a point today puts us on the right track.”
