Fleetwood Town v Bristol Rovers
Sky Bet League Two, Highbury Stadium, Saturday 31 October 2026, 3pm KO
Bristol Rovers will look to turn their fortunes around away from home when they visit Fleetwood Town on Saturday afternoon.
The Pirates ended a four-match losing streak in Sky Bet League Two last time out with an entertaining 0-0 draw against Swindon Town at The Memorial Stadium, Rovers' first stalemate of the season.
Steve Evans' men have lost their previous four away league games, with their only win being a 2-0 triumph over Crawley Town at Broadfield Stadium. Tom James and Bobby Kamwa scored first-half goals in what was a dominant performance for the Gas.
Fleetwood have had a slow start to the Sky Bet League Two campaign, sitting in 18th place and two points below Rovers, but caught national attention midweek with a penalty shoot-out victory over Arsenal in the Carabao Cup.
Read everything you need to know about the fixture below…
Tickets…
Tickets will be available on the day of the fixture at Highbury Stadium by card payment only.
Travel…
If you are travelling from Bristol to Highbury Stadium, Fleetwood. Leave Bristol and join the M5 northbound, continuing past Birmingham before merging onto the M6 northbound. Stay on the M6 through the West Midlands and into Lancashire.
At Junction 32, leave the M6 and join the M55 westbound towards Blackpool. Continue along the M55 before exiting for the A585, following signs for Fleetwood. The A585 will take you directly into the town, where signs for Highbury Stadium will lead you to Park Avenue, Fleetwood.
Opposition…
There might be some party atmosphere at Highbury Stadium on Saturday afternoon after Fleetwood captured the world's attention with a historic Carabao Cup victory over Premier League champions Arsenal on Tuesday night, the most historic result in their 118-year history.
There was an 84-place gulf between the teams heading into the contest, but the Cod Army took the lead through Fulham loanee Aaron Loupalo-Bi before Gunners forward Viktor Gyokeres levelled after the break. The contest then went to penalties, with Fleetwood staying calm under pressure. The Fishermen netted four perfect penalties before Jay Lync saved Bruno Guimaraes' spot-kick, with Conor Haughey striking the winning effort.
Turning back to Sky Bet League Two action, Fleetwood will be hoping their midweek exploits can kick-start their season, with the Cod Army 18th after three wins from 13 matches.
Their decade-long stay in Sky Bet League One ended in 2023/24 after relegation from the third tier. The Cod Army then finished 14th in their first season back in League Two in 2024/25, as they looked to adapt to life in the fourth tier under first Charlie Adam and later Pete Wild.
Fleetwood showed flashes of quality throughout the campaign but could not mount a sustained push for the play-off places. Despite some impressive results, inconsistency ultimately prevented them from challenging towards the top end of the table during a season of transition.
Current manager Matt Lawlor has a history with Fleetwood and returned to the club under Wild before succeeding him on an interim basis on 26 January 2026. He was then made the permanent boss in March after an eight-game unbeaten run.
The Cod Army were active in the transfer market this summer, with permanent signings including Jake Batty from Swindon Town, former loanee Kane Thompson-Sommers from MK Dons and Noah Mawene from Preston North End.
Previous Meetings…
Rovers have had mixed results in recent meetings with Fleetwood Town, but did beat the Cod Army in their previous meeting, with Joe Quigley heading in the only goal at The Mem last term.
However, the Pirates have not won at Highbury Stadium since 2023, with Lewis Gibson and Grant Ward scoring in a 2-1 comeback victory after Jayden Stockley broke the deadlock for the hosts.
Rovers' first away fixture of last term was at Highbury Stadium, with Will Davies netting a first-half brace before Promise Omochere scoring a consolation from the penalty spot for the Gas against his former club.
Match Officials:
Referee: Richard Eley
Assistant Referees: Danny Guest and George Eaton
Fourth Official: Alex Gray
