Bristol Rovers 3-4 Plymouth Argyle
Vertu Trophy Round Of 16, The Memorial Stadium, Tuesday 13 January 2026
A cruel, heartbreaking finish in added time saw a battling Bristol Rovers exit the Vertu Trophy at the Round Of 16 stage following a 4-3 defeat to Plymouth Argyle.
The, frankly, ridiculous contest saw the lead change on four occasions at the Memorial Stadium. The Gas entered half-time with a fully deserved lead thanks to goals from Shaq Forde and Fabrizio Cavegn, after Caleb Watts’ early opener.
The Sky Bet League One outfit retook the lead with two goals inside the first four minutes of the second half. Substitute Brendan Galloway and Lorent Tolaj netted to put the away side 3-2 up, before Luke Thomas found the net with a sensational strike to again level the tie.
Both sides pressed for a winning goal but, just as it seemed a penalty shoot-out would be needed to decide the victors, Bim Pepple struck on 90+2 minutes to send the Pilgrims through to the quarter-finals at Rovers’ expense.
A first home outing of 2026 was the opportunity to put a difficult 2025 behind Rovers, but a defensive calamity allowed the visitors to take the lead inside two minutes.
It was a simple tap in, too, for Watts. The midfielder only had to turn the ball in from close range after a poor lapse at the back by the home side. Less than 120 seconds played and already a deficit to fight back from for Steve Evan’s side.
The Gas looked to bounce back immediately, and Jack Sparkes was important to those efforts early on. A warning effort from the full-back fizzed across the area not long after Argyle’s opener, while a shot from a similar position was wide from a tight angle moments later.
The Pirates enjoyed ample time on the ball, growing in confidence, and got their reward on 21 minutes at the culmination of a superb team move. A slick passing move from the back concluded with Luke Thomas finding Cavegn’s run, with the Swiss’s excellent cross making it simple for Forde to steer home from six yards.
The equaliser was no more than the Gas deserved, with the hosts continuing to make their supremacy count. It was an industrious effort that led to Rovers’ lead six minutes before the interval.
Kamil Conteh smartly picked out Cavegn on the edge of the box, with the No29 taking a touch and finding a clinical finish at the near post.
A dramatic and incident-filled first half still had more to offer as Plymouth Argyle manager Tom Cleverely was sent off by referee Alex Chilowicz in added time.
The second half offered just as much drama as the first, if not more, at The Memorial Stadium. A frantic opening four minutes led to a swift turnaround in favour of the visitors.
First, half-time substitute Galloway turned in from a corner to level the score on 47 minutes. Just moments later, striker Tolaj turned home to once again give Argyle the lead.
Thomas had seen a blasted effort well-saved in-between the two goals but the No11 saved his best for the hour mark, pulling Rovers level with a simply sublime half-volley. Meeting a clearance on the edge of the box, the attacker made no mistake with his brilliant finish.
Six goals between the two sides a little over 60 minutes in, and the Tuesday evening match on a chilly January night showed no sign of cooling down.
Luke Southwood made the save of the night to deny Argyle from a set-play routine moments after the Gas’ equaliser. Then Tom Lockyer was denied a free header on goal when Luca Ashby-Hammond made an instinctive save.
But there was still to be one final twist, and a heartbreaking one for the Gas. An Argyle counter-attack caught the home side depleted defensively, and a ball into the area was met by substitute Pepple, who turned in a late winner for the visitors.
Bristol Rovers: Southwood, Senior (Balmer 84), Sparkes, Moore, Kilgour (c), Forde, Hutchinson (De Havilland 75), Thomas (Harrison 84), Lockyer, Conteh, Cavegn
Subs not used: Young, Mola
Goals: Forde 21, Cavegn 39, Thomas 61
Bookings: Hutchinson, Balmer, Lockyer
Plymouth Argyle: Ashby-Hammond, Ross, Wiredu (Ralls 72), Edwards (c), Tolaj, Amaechi (Paterson 83), Mitchell, Watts (Pepple 60), Boateng, Curtis, Sorinola (Galloway 46)
Subs not used: Hazard, Szucs, Finn
Goals: Watts 2, Galloway 47, Tolaj 49, Pepple 90+2
Referee: Alex Chilowicz
Attendance: 2,548, includes 945 away
