ROVERS FANZ VIEW COLUMN
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When the fixture computer churns out the season's itinerary in the summer, the games we often look for are the local derbies and the trips to the division's big grounds. Our eyes are also drawn to the holiday matches, and it is bizarre how some of these seemingly innocuous fixtures turn out to be the most critical games of the campaign. Although we are only half way through the season, the clashes with Swansea and Boston within three days of each other could make or break our year. These are what you call real 'six-pointers' and whilst you cannot literally accumulate that many points to surge up the table, the difference between winning and losing to one of your closest rivals is a massive contrast. One journalist labelled the visit to the Vetch as 'the most important game in the club's history' and potentially a defeat there and other results conspiring against us could have seen Rovers some four points adrift by tea-time on Boxing Day. Losing to the worst team in the League apart from you would have been a psychological hammer-blow, and so our dogged performance over there in South Wales was all the more significant. We showed that we could scrap and do the 'ugly things' as John Still put it, as well as paraded glimpses of the passing football Ray Graydon advocated on his arrival in the summer. The goal was clinical, and in the context of the game and perhaps Swansea's season, deadly. It was a lovely move engineered down the right hand side, with the resurgent Danny Boxall overlapping Wayne Carlisle to centre an early cross. Paul Tait had to turn back and fetch the ball, but the sight of his shot bouncing into the far corner sent the 500 of us in that dingy away end absolutely crazy. You could see the Swans' heads drop straight away and aside from some bruising centre-forward play from Jamie Thomas, they were there for the taking. Players who needed to put in a performance did so with aplomb. Having had his confidence rocked by some hapless errors, Adam Barrett was at his best on Thursday by throwing himself at everything; then there was Rob Quinn, who had looked like a plodding passenger in recent games but this time he was dominating the midfield and got better as the game went on, especially after Graham Hyde limped off clutching his thigh. Glaring chances were missed at both ends as the minutes ticked away, as the hard-working Bradley Allen saw a snapshot roll across the face of the goal and then when Swansea's defence gave the ball away for the umpteenth time, Rovers somehow failed to capitalise when through on goal with three against one. Twice the home side's left winger stumbled as he shaped to shoot at a gaping goal and Scott Howie also made a great low block in a one-on-one. It was agony to watch, but after all those defeats this was a massive result and the players and fans celebrated it like a promotion. The mental boost of leaping up three places in the league could be immense, and what we need to do now is stop our rivals catching us up again. Boston have suddenly discovered how to score over the festive period, with former Ipswich powerhouse Richard Logan pairing up with pacy ex-Luton frontman Stuart Douglas. We face them again in a month's time with Carlisle following in another dogfight double-header. Ray Graydon imposed a media ban at Rovers over the holiday period, and was noticeably absent from the celebrations on Boxing Day. The picture of him disappeared from the club website and no-one heard from him for days, with John Still fielding the interviews lately. Is there something we don't know about? Well, you never see him and Father Christmas in the same room do you.....
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