Rovers v Bournemouth – Cherries

I turned up for the original Rovers versus Bournemouth fixture at 6.15pm in the evening at just about the same time that the game was called off due to a water-logged pitch.

As I switched off my car’s engine in the car park, the Bournemouth team was getting word of the cancellation via their goal-keeping coach’s mum – not great communication skills from the powers that be.

That evening as the Cherries squad stood by the pitch looking bemused at the decision - and furious in equal measure - one of the backroom staff told me that they would come back and batter Rovers. At that time I couldn’t argue a defence for the Gas, but that was before Campbell-mania took hold.

Rovers have picked up ten points in the five games since midfielder Stuart Campbell took over from Dave Penney and confidence is building with each match.

I was talking to another club’s scout before the Swindon game on Saturday who told me that the word in the ‘game’ was that Rovers had given up and were down. Campbell doesn’t want the job, he said. And top scorer Will Hoskins was down in Brighton on loan deadline day taking a medical in anticipation of a move to the Champions-elect. The Rovers board had, allegedly, accepted a bid in the region of £1 million for Hoskins’s services and Plymouth striker Rory Fallon was being lined up as his replacement, but terms couldn’t be agreed with the financially strapped Pilgrims.

Now, how true any of this is I don’t know and it might well just be rumour, but having seen quite a bit of Rovers recently, I can say for certain that they haven’t given up.

Whether Hoskins was strolling along the sea-front eating candy floss or not, I don’t know either, but he sure wasn’t playing like someone who didn’t care before deadline day and hasn’t played like that since. Without his goals, they would already be down. He’s a skipper leading by example.

Who knows whether Stuart Campbell wants the job long term? Whatever his ambitions are, I can say for certain that he is busting a gut to keep Rovers in League One. If he manages that feat, he will find it bloody difficult not to accept the inevitable job offer that comes his way. He was already highly regarded by Gasheads for his playing ability and work ethic - survival will see him achieve God-like status in the blue half of the city.

If Dagenham lose to Peterborough tonight and Rovers manage to turn over play-off hopefuls Bournemouth, then the Gas will move out of the relegation zone and the resulting euphoria and self-belief from within the squad might just see them beat the drop in their final few games.

You have to feel for the Cherries though. Had that original fixture taken place, they were riding high and bankers for the win. However, they have now not won in five games as the nerves start to jangle and their promotion hopes seemingly slip away.

I have a lot of time for Bournemouth. The club has effectively been saved by the fans, they play good football and they don’t deserve to miss out on promotion.