That was a tremendous result for Forest Green against Accrington last week and very much needed.
We all know it’s early days but having had a three-match spell in the league without gaining a point or scoring a goal things were starting to look bleak. It’s so difficult in these circumstances to pick the players up, as a gaffer you rely on the ‘we all have to stick together’ mantra but deep inside you are desperate to come up with something that can change your team’s fortunes.
I think Ian Burchnall did that on Tuesday, opting to play with two up top which is something the supporters have been willing him to do. In Ian’s defence, he hasn’t had many opportunities to do so but they looked a much more balanced unit on Tuesday. They were very good in the first half and deserved their lead. The second half looked like it was going to prove the ‘game of two halves’ cliche correct as Accrington grew into the game and took control.
Mitch Clark was a thorn in Rover’s side and when he got his assist for the equaliser there really only looked like one winner and it wasn’t the team in green. Fair play to Rovers, they dug deep and got a very welcome three points for their efforts. I thought Bryan Fiabema looked the part when he came on. He may only be nineteen but he certainly doesn’t look short of physical attributes or talent. Here’s hoping he can do for Forest Green what Elliot Anderson did for Bristol Rovers last season. Anderson was superb for the Gas and was adored by the fans. On a personal note, the loan spell did the young Geordie the world of good. He is now a regular member of the Newcastle group and is starting to gain a reputation at his parent club. It would be brilliant if the same were to happen to Bryan this season.
It’s clear with the recent additions to the squad that nobody at the club is going to roll over and just let events take a downward path. The whole club seems united and that bodes well as the season progresses and the highs and particularly the lows, if they occur, have to be addressed.
The majority of footballing folk like to see ten games on the table before passing any judgement on the start their club has made. I concur and Tuesday’s three points is going to make the table look considerably better after ten games. The postponement of Peterborough away means that it’s now Charlton (a), Morecambe (h) and Exeter (h) to complete the magic ten. I’d like to think Rovers will pick up a minimum of three points from that sequence which will keep them ticking over. Six points will put them in a really good place and would be very welcome. Anymore is dreamland.
“Never get too upbeat about a win or too upset about a defeat” is sound mental health advice for a football manager. There are exceptions to that rule and Ian Burchnall had every right to be chuffed to bits with the three points his team claimed on Tuesday. After the three-match run he had endured he had earned the right to enjoy himself.
