‘If your name is Rory, call Nick Higgs’

It is a good time to be called Rory if you have any ambition to play for Bristol Rovers. Hot on the heels of Rory Gaffney’s permanent arrival from Cambridge United sees Darrell Clarke adding ex-Plymouth striker Rory Fallon to his promotion chasing squad. “Rory, meet Rory!” If your name is Rory, I suggest you call Nick Higgs straight away.

Fallon has been signed on non-contract terms, which in all likelihood means a week to week contract. Whilst not exactly a prolific goalscorer, he’s a tidy enough player. If he is fully recovered from his cruciate knee injury, even at 33 he could turn out to be an inspired signing by Clarke at a vital time in the season.

It follows a pattern of recent Clarke signings too, players who have been there, done that and know the lower leagues inside out. When the heat is on, experience can be everything.

Look at Exeter City the other night when they travelled to Anfield for their FA Cup replay against Liverpool. Manager Paul Tisdale, knowing that the home side would be fielding a lot of kids, chose the most experienced team that he could.

There were a few raised eyebrows at his selection, but Tisdale knew that if his experienced players could keep his team in the game for long enough, his younger ones just might have enough near the end to nick a late winner. As it was, Liverpool’s early goal put paid to all that, but it was a shrewd strategy.

Fallon will also provide additional options for the team. They did not have a traditional big unit up front, given Clarke’s preference for passing football, but there are times when only the big boot will do. Even Arsenal did it last week when they were trailing to Chelsea.

I was surprised that Rovers were held by Plymouth last week, but maybe I shouldn’t have been. Argyle have been leading the pack for a reason and in reality a point was a good result. It was certainly unusual to see a team other than Rovers securing a late winner.

This week’s game at Accrington Stanley demonstrates, if it really needed demonstrating, the reason why Rovers need to get out of League Two. Once again, we will hear that Accrington is a tough place to go and once again we will nod sagely in agreement, even though as we have previously discussed, it should not be a tough place to go at all.

Their last home game attracted slightly more than a thousand spectators, not all of whom will have been paying spectators. Let us be blunt here: this is a Conference club, at best, which is punching well above its weight.

Rovers, by contrast, are a League One club with realistic medium term ambitions of achieving sustained Championship status. This could be the game which gives us a very clear idea as to whether Rovers are likely to get promoted automatically or go into the play off lottery. I’d say it’s a must win game.

Barring unforeseen circumstances, I can’t see beyond another Rovers win this week. Darrell Clarke is a man on a mission and so far it’s been a mission of unqualified success. Fallon’s signing could just be his finest.