Bristol Rovers v Aston Villa (F.A. Cup 3rd round): Post-Match Thread

[Dante Lavelli]

I think I was a bit more impressed than most people on here appear to be. 

The midfield looked good.  They all played well, especially Clark. The pitch was atrocious so I think we did well to control the game as we did.

The defence clearly need some work but we are starting to have some options going forward with players getting to something like the top of their game.

[Legion]

Dunne, Cuellar, Clark and Herd would do nicely.

[Somniloquism]

We did what was needed in the end. But I was fucked off with Dunnes reaction fter the goal. He should be pissed off that we never kept a clean sheet and his mistake led to the goal but he treated it as if he had knocked it out for a throw in by mistake. That attitude is atrocious in top level footballers and seems to be why our defense does make these mistakes.

[Percy McCarthy]

Great finishes for the goals.
Hints that we actually want to play good football.
Loving our academy.
Bent continues to look like some bloke who's won a competition to play.

[ozzjim]

Bent linked play fine a few times in the second half, got down the wing and put the ball in etc, but he is never going to be like Gabby. I think the stick he gets is harsh, but we have to be more savy to how he moves off a defender. The only player I have seen pick out his runs is Bannan this season.

[UK Redsox]

If only getting back home from a Villa game was this quick every week

I haven't yet looked at the goals but Clarke's was reminiscent of the one I described Swindon scoring against Rovers just before Xmas; a player picking the ball up deep and running right thro' the middle of the defence.

[UK Redsox]

Marc was excellent in the first half but drifted out of the game later on.

All the midfielders and attackers looked OK but even against a woeful League 2 outfit, the defence looked poor. Warnock will lose his place to Stevens very soon if he continues like that.

[Somniloquism]

To early for Stevens. But Warnock has got to be replaced. He is a major catastrophe. He killed our confidence against Swansea and give away a penalty today. Even Hutton is less risky !!!

Although he was atrocious for most of the match, the penalty incident was one of those where the ref either says ball to hand, or gives one. There wasn't much he could actually do as he could not move the hand. But i doubt they would have been pushing like they did if Dunne hadn't gifted them abit of a lifeline.

[UK Redsox]

Who was selling H&V outside the away end today ?

[phantom limb]

The penalty given against Warnock was very harsh, but my word he is terrible. I know we're not supposed to be buying anyone in January but a replacement left back wouldn't go amiss, every time the camera did a close up on Warnock he had the haunted look of failure in his eyes.

[dave.woodhall]

Who was selling H&V outside the away end today ?

Steve Whitehouse.

[Matt Collins]

I think Warnock has done well this season for the most part, but he's always got a mistake in him and has been appalling in the last 2 games. We have seen this before and when it happened last time his form got so bad he didn't look a premier league player. At all.

[Witton Warrior]

Thanks for the win lads. Cheered up a trying weekend.

Good to hear the young bloods doing well but a little concerned that the Fonz was ousted by Heskey as he could have done with a boost (injured?)

Mr Petrov was very good first half.

[eamonn]

Thought we bossed it as you'd expect but on a terrible pitch and what could have been an intimidating atmosphere we did well. Would have liked to see Bent score, didn't really have much of a sniff until near the end when Gabby played him in but his first touch was poor.

Three excellent goals particularly Clacker's. Did our best to fuck things at the death. 3-2 would have been unjust considering how comfortable we'd been up to then but it also would have served us right for cocking things up.

[bertlambshank]

How on earth did slap head give a penalty for a shot that was going 20 yards wide.
He really has turned into a piss poor ref.