Vital Statistics
Founded: 1883
Owner: Wael El-Qadi
Last Season: League One - 14th
Nicknames: The Pirates, The Gas
Rivals: Bristol City
Major Honours
None
Scheduled Matches
Portsmouth vs Bristol Rovers: Saturday, April 24th (3pm)
Bristol Rovers vs Portsmouth: Tuesday, December 29th (7:45pm)
Bristol Rovers: A brief history
Rovers were formed in an Eastville restaurant and were originally named Black Arabs FC after the rugby club which were known for wearing black shirts. The name was changed after a season to Eastville Rovers and then eventually to Bristol Rovers before the turn of the century.
In their most recent guise, Rovers played at Eastville stadium where a fire broke out in 1980. In 1986 the club were forced out of their home and played at Bath's Twerton Park until they moved back to Bristol to their current home ground; the Memorial Stadium a decade later. A new stadium for Rovers is set to be built eventually.
Rovers' only trophy triumph of note was their 1972 Watley Cup win. The tournament was a short-lived competition played in the 70's between the top scorers of each division. Having been relegated into non-league for the first time at the end of the 2013/2014 season, Rovers bounced straight back into the Football League with a win over Grimsby in the following season's Conference play-off final and then won back-to-back promotions by finishing third in League Two the following year.
The Manager: Ben Garner
The 40-year-old hasn't played professional football but holds the UEFA Pro Licence and has held coaching roles at Crystal Palace and West Brom before being offered his first managerial role last season, replacing the outgoing Graham Coughlan.
Match To Remember: Portsmouth 3 Bristol Rovers 2 (League Two - 19/04/2020)
Adam Webster's strike from outside the box gave Pompey the lead only for Matt Harrold's deflected effort to level the scores. Wes Fogden gave Pompey the lead again with a deflection of his own only for Harrold's header to equalise. Fodgen's tap in won the game in the second half, essentially securing Pompey's Football League status and Andy Awford's position to become permanent manager.
Match To Forget: Bristol Rovers 2 Portsmouth 0 (League Two - 21/12/2013)
A goal either side of the break for Rovers consigned Richie Barker to defeat in his first away match in charge. The horrid salmon kit emphasising just how pathetic his men were on the day and he publicly lambasted the display afterwards.
The Stadium: The Memorial Ground (Capacity: 12,000 - Away: 1,100)
The Memorial Ground is certainly one of the most unique grounds in the Football League with all four sides very different from one another. The majority of Pompey fans will be situated in the open west terrace of the East Stand, which does get very cramped and is fairly shallow.
The Pompey fans who wish to be seated can do so in the South Stand which looks more like a giant tent, complete with portaloos and segregation for the home supporters too.
The West Stand is probably the best looking of the bunch and houses anyone brave enough to do corporate at the Mem. However, it is flanked by two "not-so-nice" looking stands just to give the round more of an "uneven" feel.
If you look to the right then you will see the Blackthorn Terrace which is home to the noisiest Gasheads who can belt out a good rendition of "Goodnight Irene" now and then. If you continue looking to the right you're bound to catch some abuse from the Rovers fans on the elevated East stand as they stand on the overhang overlooking the away supporters.
Overall, you can see why Rovers wish to move to a new stadium given the facilities at the Memorial Ground but it's a unique place that sells a damn good pasty and is surrounded by some excellent pubs too. If you can brave the crowded open terrace then it's an away day well worth doing.