Salford City stunned by Bristol Rovers after late drama

Bristol City 2 - 1 Salford City

Salford captain Luke Garbutt missed a penalty deep into stoppage time as Bristol Rovers came from behind to seal a dramatic win.

Author | Liam C

Stadium | Memorial Stadium

Garbutt’s effort was kept out by Luke Southwood in the seventh added minute, capping a breathless contest in which Ellis Harrison and Fabrizio Cavegn turned the game on its head to halt Salford’s push for top spot in League Two.

Matt Butcher, who spent part of last season on loan at Rovers, struck against his former club with a fine left-footed effort from distance after just 11 minutes to give Karl Robinson’s side the lead. But despite their dominance, the visitors were pegged back in first-half stoppage time when Harrison tapped in after Southwood’s long free-kick was flicked on by Alfie Kilgour.

READ MORE | A tale of two penalties at Boundary Park

Darrell Clarke’s side adjusted after the break, switching to a four-man defence, and it proved decisive. Cavegn struck the winner midway through the half, slipping the ball through the legs of teenage goalkeeper Matt Young after muscling past Adebola Oluwo.

Salford’s frustration boiled over late on with Haji Mnoga dismissed before Garbutt’s missed penalty ensured Rovers stretched their unbeaten run to eight matches.

Best Salford reaction

Salford boss Karl Robinson told his club’s media outlets: “We deserved way more than a point. No individual game ever defines you, but sometimes when you see a performance like I did today, I think that could define us. We’re not what we used to be, we’re far from that. We’re a team that’s aggressive, we’re positive forward-thinking, and we are relentless in trying to achieve our goals. Today I’ve seen a group of players that have given me everything.”

Salford City fan @paulhandley6945 commented on a highlights video: "Was at the game.. good day out.. apart from the sloppy gift for them to level just shy of half-time. Second half, much flatter performance.. then they were gifted, to a fair degree, another. Had a lifeline at 95 + 5 but poor penalty. In football, most times if you don't fully capitalise whilst in the ascendancy, it comes back to haunt you. Yesterday's encounter being a classic example of that.. should have been 3 up during the first half-hour. On the plus side, Gillingham lost and just dropped a couple of places.. with a home league match next, so hopefully back to the top 2 or 3 after that."