The opening two games of the season for Rovers couldn’t have been much harder. Those being away trips to both Dorchester and Swindon Supermarine; teams packed with Southern League Premier standard players.

So it didn’t come as a huge surprise to see the visitors spending most of the first half defending. An early chance for Brandon Bak that brought a comfortable save from the keeper was the only chance for some time.

Swindon Supermarine moved the ball around quickly and were particularly effective on the wings but Rovers were resolute in their defence.

There was some respite on the half hour mark when Paulton won three successive corners to pile some pressure on at the other end but nothing ultimately came from them.

Shortly afterwards, Archie Matthew had to make a good save from a strike. It had been the first real stop he’d had to make and it seemed, despite the host’s superiority in possession, that the teams would go in level.

But it wasn’t to be, as in the 42nd minute, Conor McDonagh managed to flick in a cross from the right.

As had happened in two previous games, Rovers came out brightly at the start of the second half. The introduction of Jamarni Langlais gave the Swindon defence something else to consider and Rovers were able play up the park somewhat although they still couldn’t create a sure fire opening.

However, Swindon still looked the more likely to add to their total and they did so in the 58th minute when T’awana Changa sublime header beat Archie Matthews.

The goal knocked Rovers and the early promise seemed to evaporate allowing the hosts to scrambled a third in the 71st minute through McDonagh again.

Ten minutes later, Rovers did grab a goal through the tenacious Dylan Gould who chased down the ball as it headed to the keeper. It seemed it was a lost cause but Gould stole the ball and rolled it into an open net.

There was still time for drama in added time when a flurry of tackles led to a red card for Swindon’s Sal Abubakar. Players from both teams went flying but his tackle had seemed the most dangerous and he received his second yellow.

It barely mattered to the game though as the hosts comfortably saw out the final minutes.

Next up:
Hartpury (H), Saturday 5th September @ 3pm