After Rovers thrashed newly-promoted Wycombe Wanderers 5-0, during their first home game of the 2020-21 Championship season, boss Tony Mowbray – who oversaw his 700th career game as a manager against Wycombe – spoke of his delight following his side’s emphatic victory against the Chairboys.
“It was a good performance, overall. There were different aspects of the performances that were impressive. I think the defenders, especially (Darragh) Lenihan and (Derrick) Williams, even though we kept a clean sheet, deserve a special mention because they kept winning headers against a pretty direct, physical team. Obviously, (Adam) Armstrong deserves praise after his hattrick and I thought (Tyrhys) Dolan was electric today. (Ben) Brereton worked his socks off, and although he does need a goal for his confidence, we shouldn’t take away from the work that Ben does for this team. (Bradley) Johnson was pretty immense today as well, on a day where we needed him to be, given the physicality of the opposition. We saw off their early tirade which came inside the first ten minutes, where everything kept coming inside our box. We scored some amazing goals on the break, when the space opened up for us as they started to put men in the box. I think the result was about right, even though I do believe that we could have scored more. I think Wycombe will give some teams problems this year, especially if their opposition can’t get the ball down and get started against them.
“The goals, especially in the first-half, were brilliant and they had the clinical edge that we’ve missed over the past two games. The fact that we were really clinical for the first-half was exceptional for the team as it made things difficult for Wycombe in the second-half. Their situation wasn’t helped by the dismissal, which was a warranted sending off because Arma was running through and their lad was the last man. I think the score was about right and I don’t think Wycombe can have many complaints. A statement performance like this was coming, I think. That’s what I’ve been saying to the team, because even though we didn’t win our last two games, we played pretty well. I don’t read the newspapers so I don’t know, but I feel like the team deserved a lot of credit for the way we performed at the Vitality Stadium and at St. James’ Park because I thought we were on top in both games, but we didn’t deserve to lose either, even though we did. Yet, if you’re performance-driven, and your performance levels stay high, you’ll win matches and that’s what he had to believe in. Today was about keeping the standard, the work ethic, the intensity and the quality as high as it has been, and all that helped us towards getting the right result, today. I hope results like this breed more belief into what we’re doing as a squad. As a manager, if the players don’t believe in what you’re doing, then you aren’t going to find a level of consistency. I always say to them that ‘this is your team, not mine’, they have to buy into what we do. I allow them a voice into what we think is or isn’t working and at the moment, they’re all buying into it and enjoying what we’re asking them to do, so hopefully the rewards will come.
“Tyrhys has been a joy for however long he’s been at the club. He does everything that I like in a footballer. He’s got intensity, individuality, speed and great mobility and on top of all that, he’s a brilliant kid. He’s got no edges to him, or any arrogancy to him, he’s just a humble kid who just wants to enjoy playing football. We should all enjoy him and his performances. I’m hoping it all continues for a very long time, of course, because sometimes young players can come on the scene and fizzle out, but if Tyrhys keeps his enthusiasm and his love for the game, then hopefully he’ll have a big future. I hope he gets better the more experiences he has in the first-team. I think with (Bradley) Dack and (Sam) Gallagher coming back, with Armstrong on fire, with Brereton working his socks off, with Chapman – who played well today – using his speed, direct and individuality that we need, all alongside Dolan, it shows how healthy we are up top. Although it was a disappointment that we didn’t find the net up at Newcastle United, we had enough chances for one of them to find the back of the net and hopefully, if we keep working on it, the chances will come and the goals will help us win matches.
“Adam is playing down the middle now after spending two years coming off the left-wing for us. He can score goals and he will score goals. Adam is another one who’s a joy to work with and watch, really. He’s another ‘low maintenance’ footballer who just wants to play the game, score and win. The attributes that he possesses are fantastic, yet he’s disappointed that he didn’t score a couple more today, but he’s managed to get a hat-trick today, so we have to just keep rolling with him.
“Sadly, we’re getting used to the fact that we’re playing in empty stadiums. It’s not particularly nice. I don’t enjoy these empty stadiums. Even when it’s not going well and you’re getting a bit of stick from behind the dugout, it’s part and parcel of football, I’ve been doing it a long time. Of course, you hope it goes well and you win every week, but of course, that’s very hard to do. We know it’s an emotional, passionate sport and we’re all missing our fans, because I think we’re going to have a really good, positive season and it would be great if they could share in that.”
