Sting in the tale

Photo: Terry Parker

on the deck: Athletic striker Pawel Abbott reaches for the ball.

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Bristol Rovers 1, Athletic 0

Last-gasp pain for Latics as Pirates plunder points

FOOTBALL can be an unforgiving game at times as Athletic found to their cost at Bristol Rovers.

It was like an act of piracy as striker Jo Kuffour’s stoppage-time goal denied Athletic the point they looked to have richly deserved for their efforts at the Memorial Ground.

The Athletic players sank to their haunches in disbelief as referee Steve Bratt sounded the final whistle. They could not believe what they had just witnessed.

Though Athletic’s position in Coca-Cola League One makes depressing reading — they have slipped into the bottom four — at least this was a far more encouraging performance than the hefty home defeat inflicted by Hartlepool United.

Athletic more than matched the high-flying Pirates, and it again underlined there is precious little separating the top from the bottom.

Dave Penney’s side, who have been leaking goals for fun in recent weeks, were much more solid at the back and were hardly troubled against one of the division’s leading teams.

It was difficult to find fault with their effort and application. It was just a case of being caught by a sucker punch at the death.

The one area of weakness remains Athletic’s lack of a cutting edge as they fired a second successive blank. This was despite Penney again juggling his strikers, with Pawel Abbott and Nick Blackman starting up front.

It was not a match which will remain etched in the memory. There were times when the panoramic views of the Mendip Hills from Uplands East Stand far outweighed events on the pitch.

And that was reinforced by two pigeons perched on a ledge beneath the roof of the same structure, blissfully unaware of what was happening beneath them.

Penney made three changes from the heavy defeat by Hartlepool. Dean Furman, Chris Taylor and Blackman returned in place of Danny Whitaker, Keigan Parker and the injured Jon Worthington.

Jeff Hughes and Mark Wright had early chances for Rovers, although Athletic almost snatched the lead midway through the opening period.

Abbott nicked the ball past the on-rushing ’keeper Mikkel Andersen, only for Carl Regan to clear the danger as the ball trickled towards the empty net.

Alex Marrow was booked the a late challenge on Andersen sparking a melee as angry home players rounded on the teenage midfielder.

Abbott was unlucky to see an angled shot fly across the face of goal in stoppage time as Athletic were able to reflect on a job well done in the opening half.

Under-fire Athletic ’keeper Dean Brill made two important saves in the first 15 minutes of the second half to deny Stuart Campbell and David Pipe. The latter’s effort dipped awkwardly, but the shot-stopper somehow managed to claw it away.

Athletic had a couple of decent chances in the latter stages, but both went begging.

Blackman latched on to a return pass from Abbott and was clean through on goal only to spoon a weak shot into the hands straight into the arms of Andersen.

Furman then saw Andersen allow his shot to rebound off him, but no Athletic player reacted quickly enough to slot home the rebound.

Then to compile the misery after those misses, Rovers snatched victory 15 seconds into stoppage time.

Athletic’s defence was caught out by a long ball over the top. Substitute Andy Williams created an opening and squared the ball for Kuffour, who took a stride to his side before curling a delightful effort into the top corner.

Agony and disbelief for Athletic, who had looked all set to collect one point for their efforts.


Penney: We can build on this display

MANAGER Dave Penney has vowed to get things right as Athletic’s miserable start to the Coca-Cola League One season continued with an agonising defeat at Bristol Rovers on Saturday.

They have managed just one win in nine competitive matches, and he is aware that this time last year, under John Sheridan’s tutelage, Athletic were sitting top of the table and still unbeaten.

Penney, also mindful of the previous week’s 3-0 home defeat against Hartlepool, said: “It was a lot better performance from everybody and it gives us a lot to build on.

“We will have another good week on the training ground and try to get the win which we need against Carlisle on Saturday.

“It is our job to lift the players, watch the DVD of the match and look how we can do better.

“It is difficult to concede so late on. There is so little you can do about it with only two or three minutes left.”

Penney thought Athletic more than held their own and believed they ought to have taken something from the match at the Memorial Ground.

He said: “We had a couple of chances and, if you are going to get something away from home, you have to take them.

“And if you don’t , you have to see the game out for a point which we failed to do.

“We were caught by a ball over the top for the goal. That also happened in the first half, so we need to deal with those situations better.”

Penney was pleased how his players got the ball down and passed it, saying they looked a decent side when they were in possession.

The Athletic manager said two of the three changes, an injury to Jon Worthington being the exception, were made to freshen things up.

Midfield man Dean Furman said it was disappointing to come away empty handed having put so much into the game.

He explained: “We have to keep our heads up because it was a good performance. We looked solid as an unit and we did not deserve to lose.

“It is a case of little things not going for us at the moment. Chances aren’t going in, but that a bit of luck will hopefully come our way sooner rather than later.

“When I look at the games we have dawn or lost, we could have take something from every one of them. with the chances we created”

Furman said the hard work on the training ground in the week was reflected in a much-improved performance.

He continued: “We can take positives from the game and try to work on the negatives. We need to cut out the mistakes and hopefully the luck, which other teams seem to be getting, will come our way.”



Coca–Cola League One:

Bristol Rovers 1 Oldham 0, Carlisle 0 Brighton 2, Charlton 1 Southampton 1, Gillingham 2 Millwall 0, Hartlepool 1 Wycombe 1, Huddersfield 0 Brentford 0, Leyton Orient 1 Exeter 1, Swindon 1 Colchester 1, Tranmere 2 Walsall 3, Yeovil 2 Stockport 2.