Jack Sparkes believes mistakes proved costly in Bristol Rovers' defeat to Plymouth Argyle but took the positives from another bright performance under Steve Evans.
The Pirates were looking to build on a bright start to 2026 with a win over Argyle to move to the Quarter-Finals of the Vertu Trophy but fell to defeat in a seven-goal thriller that really could have gone either way.
With both teams leading at different points, Plymouth gained the advantage for the third and final time in stoppage time, with Aribim Pepple netting from close range to give the visitors a victory.
Speaking to the media after the dramatic contest, Sparkes reflected on the game and the match-defining moments.
"There was a lot of good stuff tonight, but it's the same kind of story this season," he said. "In the second half, we come out a little bit. I don’t know what the word is, but we concede, and then from there it’s always difficult when you concede early in the second half, and then it gives them a lift.
"I guess we’re a ‘nearly’ team at the moment. Things aren’t going our way in certain moments, and we’re costing ourselves games. We’re a ‘nearly’ team, but obviously, we can put that in a positive way and say we’re nearly there, and just the finishing touches, so yeah, obviously, we’re looking to build on that."
The Pirates were looking to start quickly after beating Shrewsbury Town on New Year's Day but fell behind inside two minutes when Caleb Watts converted into an open net.
However, the Gas showed their spirit to come from behind and lead at the break. Shaq Forde raced onto Fabrizio Cavegn's inch-perfect cross to score before the Swiss forward scored his fourth goal of 2026, driving a low strike into the bottom corner.
Tom Cleverley's men came out of the blocks again in the second half and gained the advantage for the second time after efforts from Brendan Galloway and Lorent Tolaj before Luke Thomas levelled it up on the hour for Rovers. Nevertheless, Plymouth netted the seventh and final goal through Pepple to go through to the next round.
Sparkes was disappointed with certain moments in the game and believes the team must address them going forward.
"I think altogether, we’ve got to just see out certain moments better as a team," said the left-back. "Obviously it’s quite often now that we’ve conceded second half early on, so it's something we’ve got to address and I don’t know how, it’s down to all of us together, not me personally to come out and tell everyone what we need to do, yeah we’ve got to assess that."
Evans has undoubtedly had an impact on Rovers, who have scored nine goals in his six games in charge - six of which in the previous two outings. The Pirates showed a clinical edge in their victory over Shrewsbury Town and plenty of resilience against Plymouth before ultimately falling to defeat.
Sparkes spoke positively about the Head Coach and said that all of the players are enjoying their time under the 63-year-old.
"Obviously, the gaffer has come in; he’s been really good with the lads, and everyone’s really enjoying themselves," he said. "Performances have been good; they have been there, but as I said, it’s moments again."
He later added: "You’ve seen with the shape we’ve been playing; we’ve been a four. So he’s just been getting into us what he wants. So yeah, it’s been enjoyable."
