WARD: PIRATES STILL IN DANGER
BRISTOL Rovers boss John Ward admits his side are still nervously looking over their shoulder but conceded avoiding defeat was the name of the game at Northampton.
The Cobblers remain in the drop zone but they came into yesterday’s match buoyed by back-to-back wins – something achieved in midweek for the first time this season.
Rovers themselves picked up a valuable point against Scunthorpe on Tuesday and may have taken three from Sixfields had Northampton stopper Matt Duke not denied David Clarkson with a superb save in the best chance of the match.
The draw sees Rovers maintain their sixpoint lead over the Cobbers and while it was far from pretty, Ward declared a job well done.
“Both teams were trying to win it in the second half and it seemed like in the first half that the main thing both teams were focusing on was not conceding the first goal,” said the Rovers boss.
“We tried to lift it at half-time and I think both teams did that; if we’d been chatting about a 2-2 draw everyone would be saying what a good game it was.
“It’s been a big week for us and we’ve just played two form teams and both of them away from home so we're happy to remain unbeaten and to add another point to our haul.
“That’s a good point for us because we’ve worked extremely hard in our three games this week and I’m sure Northampton will say the same about their fixtures. “Who knows if a draw was the right result? Their keeper (Duke) made a blinding save and Tom Parkes had a header cleared off the line so maybe we’ve come closer.”
While Rovers were drawing with Scunthorpe on Tuesday, Northampton were sinking play-off chasing Southend with an all-action performance that engendered hope on the Sixfields terraces that the Cobblers can maintain their Football League status.
But Wilder felt his side paid the price for their midweek endeavours and that it left some of his players short of energy for yesterday’s clash.
“The players put in an unbelievable shift on Tuesday against Southend and I thought we just looked a bit jaded,” he said.
“We lacked that little bit of quality in the final third and I think that was down to tiredness.
“The first goal is always important and I really thought we were going to get it to be honest but we can still be pleased with our day’s work.
“The players have given me, the staff, the club, and the supporters everything this week with two wins and a draw.
“In the bigger picture although I’m happy to see the supporters enjoying it more, there are no congratulations from me for the players yet.
“We’ve got a free week now which is important for us and we can prepare well for next Saturday’s game.”