‘EFL have sold us out for a grubby few quid’

On Tuesday, Rovers played in front of their lowest attendance at a competitive game.

One thousand four hundred and eighteen souls attended Tuesday’s fixture between Reading. Sorry, did I say Reading? I of course mean Reading reserves. Welcome to the bizarre world of the Checkatrade Trophy, known as the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy until this season.

Firstly, let’s not get carried away by the result. Losing to them (we lost 3-2 in case you missed it, as most of us did) doesn’t mean we’re in crisis, just as only narrowly losing to Chelsea doesn’t instantly make us a Premier League club in waiting. I can proudly state I wasn’t at the game so I couldn’t tell you a thing about the performance but I imagine it had a bit of a pre-season feel to it.

As for the competition itself, this is the ultimate case of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. Okay, the old ‘Paint Pot’ wasn’t hugely attended in the early rounds (for reference, our 2nd round game with Wycombe last year saw 3,200 through the door), but for the clubs of the two lower reaches of the Football League, it was OURS. Our chance to get to Wembley, our chance to get to a cup final.

Then came our friends at the newly re-branded “EFL”, so-named to be easily recognisable to a broader audience of potential fans, viewers and commercial partners. Because no-one knew what the Football League was, apparently.

Cynically announced on the opening day of this summer’s Euros, this year’s competition now has 16 new teams. When this farce was announced, it was said that the 16 teams would be Premier League under-21 sides. Except that it ended up being changed to under-23 sides with X number of over-age players, and only 10 Premier League clubs were interested. Which resulted in an embarrassment at EFL HQ when they had to go cap-in-hand to 2nd tier clubs to allow their reserve sides to enter.

The powers-that-be provided three cheap defences for this; more prize money, the elite youngsters are getting game time, and, after all, the EFL clubs voted for it.

Well, shame on those clubs. Thankfully, Rovers didn’t vote for it, realising that some things are worth more than cash, that a few crumbs from the Premier League table wasn’t worth cheapening Leagues One and Two by reducing them to 2nd class status.

As for game time, there’s a crazy idea doing the rounds to ensure Premiership youngsters get game time. How about not allowing the richest clubs to stockpile 50 or 60 youngsters each?

Once upon a time, these players came through the league structure, playing for their local sides and being bought if they were of sufficient quality. Now, if a Bristol Rovers or a Wycombe has a kid with potential, he’s usually snapped up at a tribunal before he’s left school.

Again, the EFL chairmen voted for that in exchange for a grubby few quid. It’s not as if the top tier sides can’t afford to treat us lower league ones with fairness   they just spent a billion quid in three months.

As if having to play in this insult of a tournament wasn’t bad enough, we’re now being ripped off by Swindon. They failed to read a weather forecast predicting heavy rain and decided to water their pitch before Saturday’s game, resulting in the game being abandoned amidst scenes of Gasheads taking cover in laundrettes and recreating that Levi’s advert.

Attending re-staged games is hard enough on the fan’s wallet – you get no refund from British Rail or the petrol pump, after all – so for Swindon to charge those who attended full price is a disgrace. What’s more, they’re doing it to their own fans too. 

Luckily we had the twice-yearly merry-go-round that was Transfer Deadline Day to hopefully brighten our spirits. All three signings look like decent additions; Hiram Boateng in particular is the missing piece in the puzzle that is our central midfield. Chelsea fans have high praise for the pair we’ve borrowed from them, too – Jake Clarke-Salter has been touted as John Terry’s heir apparent, no less.

While I’m personally a bit uncomfortable with having six long-term loanees in the squad, it’s a sign of how the club is seen outside BS7 that we’ve brought in lads from top division clubs. Mr Al Qadi is mending a lot of bridges it seems!