There’s a bloke sits in front of us at the Keepmoat, who gets comically irate at the drop of a hat (‘WHY’S HE NOT KEEPING HOLD OF HIS F***ING HAT!?!’). Ordinarily I sit and scoff, but on 91 minutes I was up on my feet with him as a clumsy contact sent James Coppinger sprawling and the referee failed to give the sort of penalty for which the word stonewall was invented.
Still, let’s be clear, despite this collective incredulity, that Rovers ended this game with one point not three was very much at their own door. In control for much of the first half, they really should’ve been out of sight, most notably as John Marquis had fifty yards in which to contemplate how to tuck away a one-on-one and still failed miserably. Instead, the impressive Alfie Beestin’s sublime finish was all that separated the sides at the culmination of a one-sided half.
After the break, Argyle found their stride; Ian Lawlor kept them at bay with two good saves, but was left exposed after Alfie May summed up his wretched cameo by giving away a daft free-kick. From the set-piece Andy Butler gambled on the award of a soft foul which rightly never came, giving Ryan Edwards ample space to volley home.
It was probably a fair result as Rovers, repeatedly let down by the final ball, were left clutching at the admittedly weighty straw of that penalty appeal from a game they should’ve long put to bed.
by Glen Wilson
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