Josh McEachran has called on his Bristol Rovers side to be more clinical in front of goal ahead of the Gas' trip to Fleetwood Town on Saturday.
The Pirates fell to a defeat on the opening day of the 2025/26 Sky Bet League Two season against Harrogate Town at The Memorial Stadium, with Stephen Duke-McKenna netting the winner for the Sulphurites in the second half with a clever chip.
It was a fixture that slipped away from the Pirates after a dominant opening 30 minutes. The hosts were on the front foot in Darrell Clarke's return to the home dugout at The Mem, with Promise Omochere forcing a reflex save out of James Belshaw before Taylore Moore hit the bar.
However, despite creating plenty of opportunities, with Ellis Harrison also hitting the post on his second debut for the Club, the Gas came away from the first fixture of the new campaign with nothing to show for it. Speaking to the media, McEachran reflected on a positive pre-season leading up to the defeat to Harrogate and admitted his team must improve in front of goal against the Fishermen.
“We’ve had a great six weeks, to be honest,” he said. “There have been a lot of changes throughout the players and staff, but obviously, you always want to win the first game. I think we could have gone two or three-nil up in the first 30 minutes. We didn’t take our opportunities, and Harrogate caught us on the counter.
“Everyone is obviously disappointed to lose the first game of the season, but it’s not going to win or lose us the season. We’ve got to learn from our mistakes, and we look forward to Saturday now.
“If we put that amount of pressure on a team, we need to score. Obviously, goals win games. That’s what we’ll be looking to do, trying to put that pressure on Fleetwood going into the weekend and just be more clinical in and around the box.”
Last Saturday's fixture against Harrogate was McEachran's first outing at The Mem in a competitive fixture for the Gas since signing from Oxford United in the summer. Over 9,000 Gasheads packed the stadium to cheer the team on, with McEachran adamant that the fans will play a massive role in Rovers' season.
“It was the first game of the season, and you couldn’t have asked for more from the fans,” said the midfielder. “It was great. Hopefully, that lasts throughout the season because I think they are going to be a massive part of us and our journey and what we want to do this season. Hopefully, that continues, but I really enjoyed playing there.”
McEachran is one of the most experienced players in Rovers' squad, making almost 400 senior appearances across the top three tiers of English football, as well as playing for Chelsea in the Champions League and representing England at the youth level.
The midfielder captained the Gas in Rovers' final pre-season fixture against Oxford and wants to help every player in any way he can in his first season playing in League Two.
“I am in that leadership group,” he said. “I am 32 now, I’ve played probably close to 400 career games, so I’ve got a wealth of experience. I want to help the lads as much as I can, whether that’s younger lads or even the more senior lads. I want to help and guide them as much as I can.
“This is my first time playing in League Two, but I don’t see Bristol Rovers as a League Two club. I’ve played against Bristol Rovers many times in my career in League One. So, I know we are playing in League Two, but they are definitely a top-end League One side. That’s where we all want to get back to.”
