Bristol Rovers Club captain Alfie Kilgour was a rock at the heart of the defence in Rovers’ 1-0 victory over Cambridge United at The Memorial Stadium.
The Pirates were looking to build on an encouraging display against Oldham Athletic in midweek, where they dominated the chances and reduced the Latics to very little in a 0-0 draw and did just that against the U’s.
Ellis Harrison’s 50th goal for the Pirates turned out to be the winner, but the hosts did not have it all their own way. Rovers were forced to defend deep in the closing stages of the contest to stop Cambridge from levelling, and stayed strong to claim a second straight clean sheet, stopping Luke Southwood from having to make a noteworthy save.
Speaking to BRTV after the fixture, Kilgour described the feeling of victory and praised the character of his side.
“It feels absolutely immense,” said the defender. “It was definitely hard-fought, but we got the job done. It’s three points and the first win at The Mem since March. It’s a good feeling. The fans were right behind us. It’s an important win and we’re ready to crack on now. Happy days."
He later added, “We maybe could have done a bit better in the second half. We allowed them to play a bit more, and that invites more pressure, but we showed great character. We hung in there to a man, everyone who started the game and most importantly, the subs that came on.
“Everyone was needed. Everyone came on and made an impact and did their job and dug deep, and that’s what you’ve got to do. It’s a tough league, and they're not a bad side. They chucked everything at us, and it shows good character, desire and heart. With the fans behind us, we were able to hang on and keep our clean sheet and get the three points. So, it’s a happy dressing room.”
Two consecutive clean sheets have given the Gas a foundation to build on. Kilgour’s centre-back partner, Kacper Lopeta, defended bravely by his side for the entire contest, with Taylor Moore coming on for the final moments to secure the shut-out.
A combination of Macauley Southam-Hales and Joel Senior on the right and Jack Sparkes on the left nullified Cambridge’s attacks down the wings, with the midfield and attack also working hard to do their jobs at both ends of the pitch. Kilgour highlighted the importance of keeping a clean sheet and the effort everyone made to stop the U’s from scoring.
“Back-to-back clean sheets and we work on that,” he said. “That’s what our job is as defenders. So, keeping a clean sheet is a great feeling and back-to-back after Tuesday night, where we didn’t quite get the win, but we got the 0-0, and we got the point, and to back it up with three points is brilliant. Kacper has come in and has been superb.
“Taylor coming off the bench, Luke, the full-backs, Macca, everyone was grafting and working so hard, and that’s what you need to do in this league to keep clean sheets. I don’t think Luke actually had too many saves to make in the second half. I don’t think he had any, but we hung in there, we worked hard. So, we enjoy this tonight, but we rest up and we go again next week with another busy week of two games. There’s no rest for the wicked.”
Kilgour’s main target will always be to stop the ball from going into Rovers’ net, but the defender played his part in the winning goal. The captain latched onto Southam-Hales' throw-in and flicked a header back to Harrison to finish clinically from close range.
Set-pieces are an important part of the game, with the centre-back suggesting it is something they work on during the week.
“I get told my job for the long throw,” he said. “My job is to go and attack it and try to flick it behind me for Ellis or Promise Omochere. That’s the first one that’s worked. It skidded off the top of my head, and Ellis, doing what he does, was there. He was alert and put it in the back of the net, and it was a great finish. It was an absolutely brilliant goal, and we do work on them as always.”
Kilgour knows Harrison’s qualities after playing with the forward during their first spell at the club, with the 27-year-old stating they rolled back the years for the match-winning strike.
“We’re going back in time,” said Kilgour. “Obviously, we’ve got a bit older now and a few more war wounds, but it was a good feeling and a great throw by Macauley Southam-Hales. We work on them all week, so it’s nice for it to pay off, and ultimately that hard work during the week and doing our drills and practising has paid off because it’s got us the goal and got us the three points.”
As Kilgour knows well from coming through at Rovers, The Mem is one of the best places to be when the crowd gets loud. Harrison’s first-half goal lifted the roof off the stadium before an equally impressive noise rang around the ground when the referee blew for the end of the game after ten minutes of additional time to confirm the Pirates' first victory of the 2025/26 campaign.
Kilgour has been waiting for such a moment and wants his team to keep pushing forward.
“It’s been a long time coming,” he said. “It’s a special feeling and one of the best feelings in the world. When Ellis put the goal in and the Thatchers’ End was celebrating, and when that full-time whistle went, it was a special feeling, and I want more. You want to win as many games as you can and get everyone happy. So, that’s the main aim.
“There’s a lot we can take from it, and I don’t think we’re fully got going yet. I think we’re only at 75 per cent. Our fitness levels need to get better, we need to get better on the ball, and we need to score more goals. It was a good feeling, and we got the win, but we’ve got so much more to give and so much more to come, and we’re going to keep working hard and hopefully, this is just the start.”
