After witnessing his side come back from a goal down to snatch a late draw against promotion favourites Brentford, Rovers boss Tony Mowbray spoke of how proud he was of his players, after they kept concentration and claimed a 2-2 draw, despite the game creating multiple issues for the defensive personnel, which included skipper Darragh Lenihan being sent-off after 36 minutes.
“I’m finding it very hard to put into words how proud of the lads I am after today’s performance. I told them that I can’t remember being prouder of a team than today. The effort, desire, organisation they showed in all aspects was brilliant. During the opening stages of the game, I thought we were dominant and looked like we were going to add to Joe’s (Rothwell) goal and hopefully go on to win the game, until the 36th minute sending-off. I know Brentford are a team that can wear you down with their passing and their good, technical, attacking players, but I thought that we were exceptionally good for those first 36 minutes. After the sending-off, we needed to re-organise and hold on until half-time, which we did, before we made further changes to the team. I thought we executed our game plan in the second-half, really well. We slowed them down and made things pedantic for them, as we let them keep the ball between their defenders for the most part. We always planned on ‘flicking the switch’ back and playing our high intensity way on 80 minutes, because we might as well have lost by three or four, rather than 2-1 and wondering ‘what if’? So, we went back into ‘attacking mode’ and ultimately it paid off with the equaliser, before we reverted back for the last five minutes of injury time. I think that was the right game plan against this Brentford team, because we looked good during that eight or nine-minute spell in which we got the goal, even though we were a man down. I’m delighted with the players, but we need to turn our focus to Bristol City on Wednesday, so we’ll take this point and move onto midweek.
“It feels like more than a point, given the circumstances we were in, because at 2-1, with them in total control and us unable to counter-attack because we were slowing them down, it became difficult to see how we were going to get back into it other than going back on the front-foot on 80 minutes. I had several opportunities, with the substitutes to use them as messengers in order to get the message around the team that we were going to push at that time, and thankfully it paid off. It feels good for the team and for me as a manager, that the team – without sounding silly – ‘know what you’re doing’, if that makes sense? They feel and trust that your decisions and instructions can work, when they do work. We wouldn’t normally gamble by going back on the front-foot and leaving a one versus one at the back, but it got us a point. Some people might have argued that, had we played like that from the start, we could have probably won by three or four, but we never planned on doing that. Brentford are a good team and you have to respect them. All we did was slow their mentality down, block off a lot of spaces and stop them from getting the ball forwards. This was a great result and I’m very proud of the team.
“Their second goal was a great strike, but we didn’t change our mentality because of it. We always had it in our minds that the 80th minute would be our cue to change our mentality. If you start to chase the game against good teams, too early, then you leave yourselves vulnerable defensively before suddenly finding yourself 4-1 down in a matter of minutes and we’ve been that sort of team in the past. I’m happy for the players that their effort and work has been rewarded with a result. We have a long trip back down to the south to Ashton Gate on Wednesday, where we go again, so it’s nice to have a result today to build momentum with. I was just talking to my staff, saying that we really have to think hard about our defence, and whether we can actually pick a full defence for Wednesday. Scott Wharton’s Achilles was giving him trouble, hence why he was taken off. It’s really worrying to see players go down without anybody near them, so I’m not expecting Scott to be available anytime soon, depending how his scans go. Obviously, Darragh (Lenihan) won’t be available due to the red card, although I still don’t know whether it’s a one game ban, for two yellows, or a three-game ban for a straight red. If it’s only one game, then that’s fine because, as Ryan (Nyambe) showed today, he can cope at centre-back. The players need a break, really, because that was a real testing game and again, why does Scott break down? I’m not sure it’s fatigue, because he missed the last game. The lack of a rest is a real concern for us, as are the absentees at the back, but one positive for us is that Derrick Williams trained a few days ago, so we have to keep our fingers crossed that he feels ready and up to the game on Wednesday. Seeing Scott hobbling around on crutches with the metal boot on is a concerning sight, and the team doctor and head of the physio department, who travel with us everywhere, have said that his Achilles tendon feels pretty loose and Scott needs a scan, which is never a good sign, as it doesn’t seem like it’s a mild injury, but we’ll know more after the scan.
“Jacob Davenport is a really nice kid, who’s had a shocking time with injuries since he’s been at our club. He’s managed to get himself fit and he’s been fighting for a place in the team, although it’s been difficult to get him in. However, as I say to him, it comes down to trust. He hasn’t had the opportunity to show me I can trust him, which allows him to ask the question of ‘if I’m not playing, how can you trust me without giving me a chance to play?’ and yet, it’s not about catering to one individual and giving him a chance to play, it’s about the team functioning well and getting results. So, if I think (Lewis) Travis, (Bradley) Johnson, (Corry) Evans, (Lewis) Holtby or whoever else it might be, are ahead of Jacob, then I’ll pick the team that will give us the best chance of winning any given game. Saying that, what Jacob needs is an opportunity like he got today, which he grabbed with both hands. That then gives me a selection headache and more faith in him because his positive performances let me know that when I need to rely on him, he’s capable. He looked pretty sharp today when he came on, not just because he scored, but he snapped into tackles and was a constant thorn in Brentford’s side, in the middle of our midfield. When I first saw him on-loan at Burton Albion from Manchester City, I saw this positive, tenacious young lad who could snap into tackles, but break lines by passing with his left-foot. I thought he was a young kid who could supplement the squad whilst also maturing around our players. That has taken longer than I and he would have hoped through certain circumstances, but his performance and his goal was a real positive for us today.
“Joe Rothwell’s goal was him at his best, showing the quality we know he possesses. I was telling him in the dressing room that we need to see more of that from him, because I think he should be doing that every week, because he does it countless times in training. I love to see him pick the ball up deep and run past a couple of players, breaking lines, because you can see the fear in the eyes of the defenders as he breaks past the midfield, because he’s a fast manipulator of the ball. I’m pleased for Joe and the team that they managed to dig deep and come away with a vital point.
“I hope a performance and result like this will bring this tight group of players even closer. Yet, I do sit and worry about the number of injuries we have defensively. You have to be strong when you’re at the back, and I thought Daniel (Ayala) stood up to the test today. I spoke to him and said he’d be on the bench for today because I was worried about his workload and how much load he’s got in his legs from not playing a lot of matches since last January (2020), but he stood up like the man he is when we threw him in, today and looked like a mountain. If Derrick’s fit, then things might not look so bad and obviously, Ryan has shown today how he can cope with one of the best forwards in the league in (Ivan) Toney, but things are rather concerning in regards to the injuries we’re picking up, because we want to keep progressing and getting stronger, if we can.”
