Bristol Rovers travel to League Two side Swindon Town in the Bristol Street Motors Trophy this evening
Bristol Rovers are approaching a needed break amid the international period but first must direct their attention towards the Bristol Street Motors Trophy as they make the short trip over to Wiltshire to face Swindon Town this evening.
The competition will always be a controversial one in its modern day format but from an internal perspective, it’s an opportunity to pick up some prize money and potentially get a memorable day out at Wembley.
No doubt that there will be rotation on the back of two league wins within the space of five days which evidently took its toll on a number of players but to what extent won’t be confirmed until 6pm tonight.
Based on who’s available and in need of game time, it could be a good opportunity for Matt Taylor to try out a back-four again. The Gas manager admitted his team will be flexible in regards to formation this season.
It’s also a chance for some players on the fringes to give their manager something to think about going into the break with this the last game until Rovers head to Huddersfield Town on October 19.
Plenty to ponder and, again, it’s tough to gauge exactly what Taylor is thinking until we see the line up. For now though, here’s how we think the League One side might set up against their League Two hosts.
Goalkeeper and defence
Based on the last game, Matt Taylor will likely give Matt Hall another run out in order to give Josh Griffiths some rest. It’s no secret that the 21-year-old had a few poor moments against Tottenham Under-21s but it would be good to see him given another opportunity, especially considering that Bristol Rovers still haven’t found a free agent goalkeeper to bridge the gap between Hall and Griffiths.
Ahead of him, with Clinton Mola Rovers could deploy a back-three but given that James Wilson is unlikely to be deemed fit enough after a hectic week while Michael Forbes is on international duty with Northern Ireland Under-21s, you get the sense that Taylor may opt to use fewer centre-backs just to protect his squad.
Taylor Moore seems to be a shoe-in given that the 27-year-old missed three league games through suspension and made his return from the bench at Burton Albion on Saturday. Meanwhile, Connor Taylor has proven that he can play Saturday, Tuesday so he seems the most likely to keep his place having started the last four matches in Moore’s absence.
In the full-back positions, the manager did hint that Bryant Bilongo is another who could play again after starting at Burton while you would expect Lino Sousa is another certainty having not made it off the bench on Saturday. Sousa has played right-back in a Gas shirt so the Aston Villa loanee could drop in there with Bilongo on the left in order to give Jack Hunt a rest, especially considering that the 33-year-old might have picked up a calf issue at the Pirelli Stadium.
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