Joey Barton hopes Bristol Rovers ace Antony Evans can build on winner at MK Dons

Posted Wednesday, October 12, 2022 by PA

Bristol Rovers manager Joey Barton hopes midfielder Antony Evans will gain confidence after scoring the winner from the penalty spot in his side’s 1-0 victory at MK Dons.

Evans has struggled to find the form that led to him scoring 11 goals in helping the Pirates win promotion from League Two last season and was one of the players left out by Barton at Stadium MK.

However, just five minutes after being brought off the bench he held his nerve from 12 yards to earn Rovers their second straight win, which lifted them up to 15th in League One.

Barton said: “We made a couple of changes just to freshen up and get energy levels, knowing that we would utilise the strength we had on the bench, and the good quality we’ve got.

“I felt it was a real team performance and Evo, I think that will do his confidence the world of good to get on the pitch and get the winner.

“When you see him stepping up to take a penalty, you always fancy him due to his quality from dead balls.

“I’m really pleased for him and the travelling contingent – I think we had more fans in than them by the look of it, we certainly had more noise in the stadium.
“I’m really pleased for the Gasheads who have come out on a Tuesday night to have given them back-to-back wins and a nice clean sheet to boot.”

Bristol Rovers stepped up to control the second half, with Ryan Loft having a low effort tipped around the post by Jamie Cumming, who later produced a brilliant save from Lewis Gibson’s header.

But the breakthrough came when Loft was pulled back in the area, leading to Evans sending Cumming the wrong way from the spot.

MK Dons boss Liam Manning, whose side are still third from bottom, said: “The fight’s there, it’s not the case of us not fighting and competing.

“In terms of the will to head [the ball], the will to compete with them, I think that was there, that wasn’t the problem.

“It’s a case of discipline in key moments is costing us and then, ultimately, quality: the quality to create, the quality to take chances, the quality to control the game by passing the ball, which is what we have to do.

“That’s probably the biggest thing that we have to go away and look at.

“For me, it’s controlling what I can control and all I can control is how we respond to tonight, what work we do for Thursday, what work we do ready for Saturday [against Plymouth].

“Until I’m told otherwise, it’s head down, scrap, work and give the players the best opportunity to go out and change it.”