Clinton Mola wants the winning feeling to return to Bristol Rovers when the Gas welcome Bromley to The Memorial Stadium in Sky Bet League Two.
The Pirates are without a victory in the fourth tier since beating Salford City at home in late September but took a positive step forward last Friday against Crewe Alexandra. After ten straight defeats, Rovers gained a 1-1 draw on the road, with Callum Morton's goal cancelling out Emre Tezgel's strike from three minutes.
It was a bright start for new Head Coach Steve Evans, who took charge last week on a contract until the end of the season. Rovers' next test will be Bromley, who have won seven of their previous eight league matches and are pushing for promotion.
Mola played the entire match when Rovers beat Bromley in the first round of the Emirates FA Cup earlier this season but insists it will be a completely different fixture this time around.
"It’s a different game," he said. "They are going to come with a different approach; they are going to come with a mindset that they want to beat us, and no game is ever the same in football. So, we just need to go there with an approach that we’re looking to win, and we’re looking to get three points, which we haven’t had in a long time."
Rovers moved out of the bottom two in the Sky Bet League Two table with a point against Crewe, responding immediately to going behind to score through Morton before dominating against a team that went down to ten men due to Adrien Thibaut's red card. For Mola, it was important that the Gas ended their disappointing run of form and was pleased to come away with a point.
"We were in a rut, and the most important thing was to stop the rut," said Mola. "If you said before that we would go to Crewe and get a point, most people would have taken that, and they did end up having ten men for large parts of the game, but if that was a week ago or a couple of weeks ago, we probably would have lost that game.
"So, we did well just to close the backdoors, no silly goals, no silly errors, and we took a point. It was a valuable point in the end."
Head Coach Evans has plenty of experience in the EFL and has appeared in the dugout over 700 times, with the 63-year-old now in charge of leading the Pirates up the table. Mola spoke highly of the former Rotherham United boss and suggested he has made his intentions clear since coming through the door.
"He hasn’t been here for a while, but you can see his intent straight away," said the defender. "Everyone knows Steve Evans; he’s been around the EFL, he’s a big name, and he’s been really good so far. He’s been fair with us, and he’s told us what he wants straight away, and you can see that he’s had an impact on us straight away.
“In training we have been working on that [being hard to score again] and we’ve been working on everything, defending and attacking and he’s mainly said that he’s going to install that confidence back into the team and that started off on Friday. So, hopefully, we can bring it into the next game.”
Mola joined the Pirates last summer and has made 57 appearances for the Gas, more than any other team in his youthful career. Despite only being 24, he has plenty of experience and has played at the top level in Germany, appearing for VfB Stuttgart in the Bundesliga shortly after departing Chelsea's academy.
The defender reflected on his time at the club and admitted that sometimes he forgets that he is still in the early years of his career, suggesting he often gets pointers from fellow defender Tom Lockyer.
"I’ve enjoyed it," said Mola. "When I put the shirt on, I try to give everything I can, and I try to give everything for the team, especially in this moment and the position that we are in. I just want to keep fighting for my teammates at the club as well.
"Sometimes I feel like I am getting on a bit, but I have to remind myself that I am still young, I’m still learning my trade as well. So, when I do have people around me that are more senior in the building, when I am playing alongside Locks, I like playing alongside him because he always speaks to me and helps me with my game with little pointers here and there. There’s a lot more to come from me, and hopefully, I only get better.
"When you have someone who's played at the highest level in the Premier League that’s come in and signed for us, everyone sees that, and he’s a big figure, and he’s a good player as well. He drops in little gems for me when I speak to him around the building, on the pitch and on the training ground as well."
