Gas were 2-0 up before being pegged back – but won it on penalties
(Image: Bristol Post)
Bristol Rovers advanced to the last 16 of the Vertu Trophy with an impressive win against fellow League Two side Cambridge United, although a penalty shootout was required after the visitors equalised in stoppage-time.
Ellis Harrison scored a first-half brace for the Gas in the third meeting between the sides this season. Harrison’s first came from the penalty spot in the ninth minute before he emphatically finished past Ben Hughes from the edge of the box after receiving a Luke Thomas cross nine minutes later.
But two late goals from Cambridge – the second in stoppage-time – sent the game to penalties. But Luke Southwood saved twice, before Kamil Conteh slotted home the winner.
Darrell Clarke made three changes to Saturday’s team, with Kacper Lopata, Josh McEachran and Freddie Issaka coming into the team. The 47-year-old opted for the same 3-4-2-1 formation, with Harrison playing as the lone striker.
Eight minutes into the game, Rovers were given a penalty when Issaka was taken down by James Gibbons, who had misplaced his back pass and compounded his error by fouling the on-loan youngster. Harrison then slammed his penalty past Hughes to give Rovers an early lead.
The advantage became two, nine minutes later, with a long Luke Southwood ball finding Thomas, who cut back and played it to Harrison. He clinically finished past Hughes for his second of the night.
The U’s then had a number of chances, with Ben Knight coming close on a couple of occasions. His best opportunity came in the 25th minute when he fired over from the edge of the box after receiving the ball from Elias Kachunga. Knight and Kachunga threatened to combine later in the half, but were met by a solid Rovers backline, who defended crosses well when the visitors found space on the flanks.
The Gas made three changes at the break with Kamil Conteh, Ryan Howley and Fabrizio Cavegn coming on to replace Josh McEachran, Joel Cotterill and Harrison.
Rovers struggled to create anything after the break, with the visitors dominating possession. Sullay Kaikai had the first big chance of the half in the 59th minute, but his effort was well blocked by Lopata.
After a long spell of pressure, the U’s halved the deficit. Rovers were unable to clear a corner properly, and the ball was eventually scrambled home by Kelland Watts.
Cambridge kept pushing forward after Watts’ strike, creating opportunities through Kaikai and Gibbons, with the latter seeing his glanced header in the 78th minute just go over the bar.
Rovers were inches away from putting the tie to bed when Taylor Moore saw his effort cleared off the line from a corner in the 82nd minute. Time looked like it was running out for the visitors, but in the first minute of added-time, Cambridge won a penalty when Liam Bennett was fouled by Southwood. Kaikai slotted the penalty into the bottom corner.
The visitors were then inches away from winning the game in the dying stages, when Southwood expertly denied George Munday. The Rovers shot-stopper foiled the substitute after he had received the ball from a long diagonal ball that was headed down to him.
Southwood, who had given away the late penalty, then saved two spot-kicks in the shootout to deny Kaikai and Munday.
This gave Conteh the opportunity to win it for the Gas, and he slotted the ball under Hughes to secure a 4-2 shootout victory and put Rovers in the round of 16.