Joey Barton insists Bristol Rovers will be ready for a "feisty" game against Cheltenham Town after a relatively serene win at MK Dons in midweek. At a sparsely-populated Stadium MK, Rovers were in control against a Dons side devoid of confidence and clinched victory thanks to Antony Evans' second-half penalty.
That win made it seven points from a possible nine in the past fortnight for the Gas, lifting them up to 15th in League One. But Barton knows Saturday's trip to Gloucestershire will be a very different test, with Wade Elliott's Robins sure to pose a more physical test amid the more humble yet atmospheric surroundings of Whaddon Road.
The injury woes that had caused Barton plenty of problems during the first 10 games have relented, with the returns of Lewis Gibson and James Gibbons helping to shore up the defence. Cheltenham – 19th in the table – meanwhile, are set to be without star striker Alfie May due to a foot injury.
The Gas may be in good form going into the game, but Cheltenham have won three of their past five and they are starting to settle in under Elliott, who succeeded Michael Duff in the summer after his move to Barnsley. Barton expects a difficult challenge but he is confident the Gas stretch their winning run to four games in all competitions.
"It’s the beauty of League One, isn’t it?" he said. "You’ve got Pride Park, Hillsborough and Fratton Park and Bolton. You’ve got some really nice stadiums and then some nuts and bolts places you’ve got to go to.
"Our place will be tricky for some people to come to, it’s a bit of an eclectic bunch of stands, but it works and it can be an intimidating atmosphere. For us, going to Cheltenham with a tighter pitch, the fans right upon you with that local feel, you have to adjust.
"I think Exeter is a similar feel, so it makes us feel like our fanbase is massive when we play at those places. Even the other night, it looked like we had more fans in because they were all in one area, even though they probably had more fans and they were spaced out. It felt to us like we had more fans in the stadium and they were louder because they were all together and their fans were spaced out and couldn’t really generate an atmosphere.
"I don’t think that will be the case at Cheltenham, so it will be good. I think it makes the atmosphere better in the stadium. I prefer it, I would prefer to play in a small stadium that was full to the rafters than a big lovely stadium like MK’s but it was empty. It was almost like we were back in the COVID days a little bit, apart from our fans.
"You have to adjust and we will be ready for a feisty game because Cheltenham will be keen to protect their stadium and get their season going. For us, we want to beat them and we’ve got to be ready to do what’s necessary."
Elliott, a midfielder for Burnley and Bristol City among others in his playing days, has taken 14 points from his first 12 games. A slow start followed Duff's departure, but they have won their past four games at home, including a 1-0 victory over Bolton Wanderers on October 4.
Barton and 43-year-old Elliott are yet to face each other in a game, but the Rovers boss believes his counterpart has done well in "tricky" circumstances.
"They usually stick together, coaching groups, so I didn’t know what had gone on there, whether he’s settled in the area with kids or whatever, but I was expecting him to go with Duffo up to Barnsley," Barton said.
"He’s stayed and he’s taken over there and it’s tough to follow, especially when you’ve been a coach, the old manager and, obviously, they’ve had real success with Michael there. You kind of got to change because you don’t want to do what the old manager has done, but also when it’s been successful it would have been a really tricky job for Wade.
"I think he’s made a good fist of it. I think they started a bit sluggish but they seem to have got in a groove now. I’ll know a bit more after the game on Saturday, I’ve never coached against him before. When you have coached against them before, you can work out what they are going to do or what some of their moves are. It’s the first time I’ve coached against one of Wade’s sides so I’ll know a lot more about his style after we’ve traded on Saturday."
May has three goals to his name this season and he scored 23 in the third tier last season. Barton admitted it is a "plus" that the 29-year-old is set to miss out, but he believes Cheltenham have other threats for Rovers to deal with.
One of those is Gas academy graduate Ryan Broom, who is back for a second spell at Cheltenham after a stint with Peterborough United. Barton revealed the Gas considered signing Broom when he was transfer listed by Posh.
Defending set-pieces, the Rovers boss said, will also be a key area of focus for the Gas with the physical threats of the Robins.
"It will be a 5-3-2, very similar to what MK tried to do against, albeit with a different feel," Barton said. "I don’t think they will be building up as much at the back as MK and the goalkeeper won’t be starting a lot of the attacks like the MK keeper does.
"But with Sercombe in there, he’s obviously got a good rapport with the club. He’s predominantly someone who has been industrious and will go and get the ball back for you.
"Broom, last time I saw him at Cheltenham was when they played Accrington in the FA Cup years ago. Michael was the manager and Broom was playing right wing-back and he nicked a decent move to Peterborough playing that position. At Plymouth and at Cheltenham, he’s been used in more of an attacking midfielder. He was a player we considered in the summer when we knew he was coming out of Peterborough.
"For us, if May doesn’t start, he’s a real threat in your box and he always looks like he’s got a goal in him, so that will be a big loss for them, but again, one man’s disappointment can be another man’s opportunity and we mustn’t lose sight of how hard you’ve got to work for a point in this league.
"We need to be as good as we can be to deal with Cheltenham’s threats and set-play threat because they are a very competent team, but we are very confident if we get ourselves right, we are more than a match for anyone in this division."
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