It’s not been easy following Bristol Rovers this season as they yet again put fans through an emotional wringer in last Saturday’s rollercoaster victory over Bradford City at the Memorial Stadium, writes Stephen Knowlson.

The thrilling 3-2 win opened a five-point gap between the Gas and the relegation trapdoor but the victory was anything but plain sailing.

Both teams started the match desperate for points but it was Bradford who settled quickest to quieten the Rovers faithful. They moved the ball around quicker and harried the home side into mistakes, so much so that for much of the first half we were unable to string two passes together.

The Bantams deservedly led on 16 minutes when Lewis O’Brien took advantage of some poor defending to slot the ball past Bonham in the home goal. Far from rallying, Rovers continued to struggle and it was against the run of play when talismanic striker Jonson Clarke-Harris rose highest to bury a Sercombe corner into the visitor’s net.

The first half ended all square but thankfully Rovers came out with more purpose and a new formation for the second 45. The improved display yielded a deserved goal on 72 minutes when the impressive Ollie Clarke unleashed an unstoppable angled drive to put the Gas in the driving seat.

Inexplicably, Rovers sat back deeper and deeper instead of putting a fragile Bradford defence under pressure and when the inevitable equaliser came via the boot of Knight-Percival in the 90th minute a stunned silence descended on the home terraces.

But not for the first time this year, Clarke-Harris emerged as the saviour when he half-volleyed a pinpoint Holmes-Dennis cross past O’Donnell in the Bradford goal three minutes into injury time. The strike sent Gasheads into raptures and surely sealed Bradford’s fate as they’re now nine points from safety with just four games left.

That’s 11 goals from 11 starts for JCH – many of them absolute crackers. Without his goals we would surely be accompanying the Bantams into League Two next season – he’s the big goal machine Gasheads have been crying out for.

Just one more victory in our remaining four games should secure Rovers’ League One status and we have two good opportunities over the Easter holidays, away to Wimbledon on Good Friday followed by a home fixture against Rochdale on Easter Monday.