Darrell Clarke wants his Bristol Rovers team to back up their win over Bromley with another positive result against Gillingham in Sky Bet League Two.
Following a difficult month in October and an impressive September, the Pirates' Emirates FA Cup victory over Bromley meant the Gas started November with a win. Rovers were under pressure against the Ravens, but goals from Fabrizio Cavegn and Joel Cotterill helped the Pirates to a 2-1 triumph.
Gillingham are in eighth position in Sky Bet League Two and will be a tough challenge. The Gills had been unbeaten in 21 league matches between March and September (winning ten and drawing 11) but will now be looking for a reaction after losing four of their previous five in the fourth tier.
Speaking to the media ahead of Rovers' upcoming clash, Clarke reflected on the Gas' victory against Bromley, gave an update on Alfie Kilgour's injury and previewed the next clash versus Gillingham.
WINNING AGAINST BROMLEY
“You’re always learning. It was a really tough month, but a gritty performance at the start of November at Bromley got us into the next round of the cup.
“I keep calm and composed, to be honest with you, because I know where we’re at. I know what’s needed, and I know we’ll get there. The frustrating month was October; a fresh start in November. We started with a win, so let’s try and back that up Saturday.”
HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH THE PLAYERS
“I think when you’re looking to get into an environment that’s, no disrespect, been relegated, there’s a lot of processes you have to put in place. There are obviously lads who have felt that pain, been on that journey.
“There are obviously new players that have come into the building, who don’t know the club as well as I know the club. Every single player, I said this last week, every single player has an individual mindset; it’s a little bit different with how they cope through good times and bad times.
“A lot of the time, as a manager, you learn when things aren’t going well, a lot about your group. So, no doubt I’ve learnt a lot about them, they’ve learnt a lot about myself and my staff, but we come out of it making sure it’s in a positive manner.
“There is a lot of individual work, manager to player, a lot of work on the training pitch, and we keep going. We have a lot of problems at the minute, through injuries and stuff. But one thing I will say is that the culture and the environment are in a really good place.
“Now we’re looking to get consistency. I don’t sit here and say I’ve enjoyed a lot of the season so far, because there are a lot of answers still to be searched for. I'm still looking and learning about the group and what’s needed moving forward, but those grey clouds are clearing.
“I have a clear path of where we need to be and where we need to be heading. The lads have an opportunity from now until obviously the windows to make sure that they’re on the bus and working hard to bring success to the club.”
BUILDING ON BROMLEY
“I am not happy. When I say I’m not happy, I’ll be happy when I’ve got the solutions to the many problems that need to be resolved here, and that’s always going to be the case. I think the club only won 14 or 15 games last season in 53 games in all competitions.
“I think that we’re in the stage this season where we’re eight or nine, but we’ve had some disastrous defeats, where we haven’t performed and we haven’t shown the identity that I expect in the club.
“But it’s a path and a journey that we’re on, and we’re trying to get as many wins as we can, we’ll try and climb the league table. Like I said, we’ve got that opportunity Saturday to try and pick up three points.”
INJURY NEWS
"We are missing six or seven, but like I said, we don’t look for excuses. They are big players that we’re missing, but we galvanise that, and that gives players opportunities to show their worth and come to the fore to put on a good performance that represents what we’re about.
"So, I can’t moan or cry about injuries. We’ve had that for 12, 13 or 14 weeks, so we just get on with it. We don’t use it as an excuse.
"I don’t think Alfie Kilgour will be out for long. I think it looks as bad as it does because his knee is in a brace, but hopefully, in the next week or two, I'll know a little bit more information on that. But we know he’s not going to be a long-term one.”
GILLINGHAM PREVIEW
“They’ve had a tough spell, but that’s this league is, isn’t it? We can talk about all of the teams that have had tough spells, but I don’t see anybody running away with it. Maybe MK Dons with their resources and their player power and the money they’ve got and financial backing.
“But other than that, I think that the league is going to be pretty equal and there will be bad runs, good runs. We have to focus on ourselves. We have to try and get into that rhythm and get into a good run ourselves and obviously try and back up Saturday’s win.”
