When Bristol Rovers meet Norwich City in a replay on Wednesday, they anticipate having a few familiar faces return, but they also have some notable absences.
Lewis Gordon should be well enough to start on the bench for Bristol Rovers against Norwich City in tomorrow’s FA Cup match, according to Matt Taylor, while George Friend, the other left-back, gets closer to returning.
Gordon has made only three league appearances since August, despite starting the Gas’ first five games of the season. The 22-year-old has clearly had a difficult season due to a combination of injury and squad competition.
The left-back has only played once under Taylor, beginning the EFL Trophy loss at Crawley Town in the manager’s debut game for the Rovers. However, an injury forced the former Brentford youth off the field at halftime, and he hasn’t played since.
In the same role, summer hire After agreeing to a one-year contract with the League One team, Friend has experienced his own injury problems. He has made just eight league appearances this season and has not yet been included in a Taylor squad. The 36-year-old’s last game as a starter came in November’s 2-1 loss at Derby County, which turned out to be Andy Mangan’s penultimate game as interim manager. The left-back had made five starts in a row before to sustaining his third injury since joining the team.
Before the big cup match on Wednesday night, Taylor gave the following update on the two players’ respective statuses: “I believe Lewis Gordon will be available on Wednesday. George Friend is out on the pitch with the physios, and while I don’t plan to start the game in any form, I believe I will be on the bench. the instant you realise that you can sense its approach.
“We’re not in any way hurrying that because George’s injury was serious, but as of right now, there’s no pain or reaction, so those are encouraging signs.” I believe he definitely needs to continue doing that kind of thing for another week before he can potentially join the team.”
In relation to returns and full-backs, Jack Hunt, who has struggled recently, made his debut on the bench during Saturday’s 2-1 loss at Barnsley. After making a strong start in blue and white, the right-back had a hamstring injury in early October that sidelined him for a month. A secondary groyne problem later that month prevented him from playing in the FA Cup against Crewe. Hunt returned to action immediately in the Boxing Day victory over Portsmouth, but the problem didn’t seem to be resolved as the injections didn’t seem to have the desired impact.
The 33-year-old was back on the field at both his previous team, Barnsley, and in his native county of Yorkshire, but it appears that more work needs to be done for the summer signing in order to go back into the starting lineup, with Luke Thomas playing a strong right wing-back in his place.
When asked how near he is to aiming for a start before Wednesday, Taylor gave in: “Well, he’s been training for a few days now, so he’s definitely closer in relation to that.” It’s time for me to evaluate this team’s performance. Jack is a really excellent player, and I know what he’s capable of; now we just need to see it on the pitch.
Although we know what he adds, he didn’t get enough time or ball today to significantly impact that game, but he’s still a terrific player, so it was frustrating that the injury cut short my time with him so quickly. Hopefully, there is now significant competition for that seat along with a few others.”
In other news, Connor Taylor’s availability for Norwich is anticipated after he was forced to miss Saturday’s trip due to an unlucky mix of illness and recuperation after surgery on a finger injury. Nevertheless, James Wilson and Grant Ward are anticipated to be out, and their absences will be a severe setback for the team in such a crucial encounter. Due to his cup tie, James Connolly will also miss out, while Jordan Rossiter’s absence is expected to be prolonged.
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