ROVERS still have a chance of making it through to the third round of the FA Cup after a battling 0-0 draw with Crawley at the Memorial Stadium on Saturday.

They will now have to overcome their opponents in a televised replay on Wednesday for the right to take on Birmingham at St Andrews in the next round in early January.

It was not the glamour fixture we were hoping for but it is a winnable tie that should attract sizeable travelling support, should we get through what is sure to be a tough rematch at Crawley.

Holding a mid-table League One side to a draw was no mean feat and shows the improvements the Gas have made in recent weeks. The fact that they had recently appointed a new manager, John Gregory, made the fixture even tougher as their players would have been out to impress the new boss.

Rovers performed well throughout the contest, creating chances while defending resiliently, and a draw was a fair result.

A clean sheet was another welcome boost to our defensive endeavours as Mildenhall proved his worth to the team once again with some good saves.

We were missing the experience of O’Toole and Beardsley, who were serving the final game of their suspensions and are now set to return to the squad.

Youngsters like Harding and Lockyer were not fazed by the occasion and seem to have improved with every game, growing in confidence and authority.

We beat York in a replay at their ground to make it to the second round of the cup and there is no reason we cannot do the same again to progress to the next stage and put some more cash into the club’s coffers.

Attention turns back to the league campaign before we do battle with Crawley again, as the Pirates face a trip to Morecambe on Saturday.

They lie in 10th place so the game will not be easy, but we must be looking to take at least a point from the trip as we strive to climb away from the relegation zone.