What a day for Steve Evans and every Gashead at The Memorial Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Before the game even got underway against Crawley Town, Chairman Hussain AlSaeed walked out onto the pitch and proudly announced that the 63-year-old had been permanently appointed as the Men’s First Team Manager.
On the pitch, it was as normal for the Pirates under Evans. Ellis Harrison and Mees Rijks netted in the first half to give the Gas a comfortable lead at half-time before Yusuf Akhamrich sealed the points with a last-gasp finish in a 3-1 triumph over the Red Devils. It was a sixth straight victory in Sky Bet League Two for Rovers and a sixth straight win at home, with the Pirates now looking to end the season strongly in their final three outings.
Speaking to BRTV after the contest, Evans was delighted to have committed his future to the Gas and was pleased with the victory over Crawley.
Steve, a new contract and three points equals a special day for the Gas family.
"Yes, I think it must be a special day for anyone appointed manager of Bristol Rovers Football Club, because it is a special club. Who makes it such a special club at this present time? Our owner, our board, Hussain [AlSaeed] and Abdullatif [AlSaeed]. All of our board of directors, Abdulaziz [Alroomi] and Khaled [Alkandari], are all playing a part.
"I speak regularly to all of them, and they are all playing a big part. It is just a special day when you become a manager here. The support is there, and the supporters are the real owners of this football club. I always say it, I said it to our chairman in our talks over the last two weeks that they are the real owners - he is the custodian - but the real owners are the Gasheads. I am just proud to be a part of the family."
What was it like coming out before the game and just seeing everyone so happy that the deal had been signed?
"I think it was quite emotional to be fair. I have signed with some really good football clubs, and I have been proud and still remain proud to have managed them. Walking around and seeing the reception the chairman and I got was very impressive to say the least, and thank you to everyone.
"I know our chairman was humbled. You can’t give him that, you can’t buy him anything in life because he has got everything, but he can’t buy that. You can’t buy that feeling when the Gasheads are showing appreciation for a man who, since he took over the club, has spent millions."
A tight game right at the start, but Ellis opens it up with a great finish.
"It's a great finish, great first touch from Ellis. At first, I thought maybe a bit too far, but I think he has played it to get the angle, and it is a great finish. We are just totally dominant and against the wind. We are just totally dominant and playing really well. We come in at half-time, and we remind ourselves that it is not finished.
"We get the second goal of course, Mees gets his goal which we have all been waiting for, I think he stumbled it in, but when you are nervous that type of thing happens but I think he had a good introduction to the game today as well, him and Ellis were causing them enormous problems and I warned them that this Crawley team are where we were eight weeks ago, they are fighting for EFL survival.
"The one thing they have got is really good players. It's a Club I love, so it pains me a little bit that we have beaten them, but you know who I love, it's Rovers. They get back in the game, don’t they? They get back in the game with some good play."
You mentioned a bit before about it being a memorable day for you, but especially for Mees to get his first goal in English football. He is someone who has worked so hard for that moment.
"I am pleased with all the scorers today. I am pleased with Ellis, obviously; he is working so hard to earn something, to be here and be part of it, and I am really pleased for Mees. There is not a person at the football club who doesn’t love him. He is such a nice kid, I keep saying that about Shaq, Yusuf, they are sons, but I am really, really pleased for Yusuf.
"He has been playing with a little niggle, we brought him today, as Shaq got a bit tired. He covered a lot of ground, Shaq did, a lot of unselfish running. We put Yusuf on, and if I want two people in our football club going through in a situation like that, one is Yusuf, and one is Shaq Forde.
"They are my kids at this club, and as he went through, I went, 'just dink the goalkeeper as I did 40 years ago'. Only tongue in cheek, but it was great to see the Gasheads in full voice as well, and normally on the days like today when you are introduced, and you get a new contract, and everyone is positive, that's the day it sort of goes against you.
"Did we need the Gasheads in those last 10 minutes when we were defending? The last five or six minutes were spentdefending our lives. Kofi Balmer and, until Tom Lockyer got sent off, they were defending heroically, the skipper, they were putting bodies on the line. But we can play a lot better. We have played a lot better and lost games. I can probably tell you four or five times now, but you know, we still dominated for long, long spells."
That defending, apart from their goal, felt like you forced them to shoot on site, shoot from range, because they just weren’t really getting into the box.
"They could not get through, and the one time we did switch off, Kofi and Joe got into a little bit of a mix-up in terms of positional play, and the ball got in, and they got a bit fortunate. It goes through Brad. Brad has been terrific, I must say, and Brad Young's save is one of the best saves I have seen live for a long, long time today. It was terrific play, they cut it back, and I thought it was in, and what a save by the big man. He is just improving every game."
Finally, when you hear your song at the end, how does that make you feel?
"Well, compared to what they used to sing about me, obviously, I am a different fella now. I have said this since the day I walked in; they have just been tremendous. I see them around the city, everywhere; they are tremendous. We just have to keep focused, we want to be in our form league, which is from the window closed, we are top of that league.
"We have three games to go; we need a decent points return to make sure we are, but we have freshened up the group. Some good players aren’t even here today: Kane Thompson-Sommers, I am looking up there, Clinton Mola and Josh McEachran. Promise Omochere would have probably played today under any other manager, but when you have got Mees, Ellis and big Joe Quigley and people like that to come on to the pitch, and Fabrizio Cavegn, then it is hard to get in."
