Another good performance and a deserved victory for Rovers. In difficult conditions, I thought it was a really entertaining game, very open, with Grimsby willing to commit men forward and attack. However, there is no doubt we had the extra level of class in the creative areas and deserved to win.
I thought Ollie Banks was the difference tonight. While the midfield has been excellent in his absence, he gives us that extra vision and creativity, in addition to great quality from set plays. He effectively had two assists tonight, with quick thinking from a free kick leading to the first goal, and a superb. slightly wind-assisted cross for the second. I thought he was the best player on the pitch.
Elsewhere, I could understand the sponsor's choice of Davies as man of the match, as bizarre as that seems in a game we won 4-1. He is on top form at the moment and made four or five excellent saves, a number of them at key moments in the game. He was also very unlucky with the penalty, a brilliant one-handed save which should have been followed up and cleared by the Rovers defence. Pringle had a really effective game, not doing anything spectacular but always making himself available for the ball and rarely giving it away. Jennings was excellent aside from the goals, and Jake Caprice continues to bomb forward and cause havoc down the right hand side.
With other results largely going our way, we now have a five point gap to eighth place, and a four point cushion to fifth. We are only four points behind MK Dons in third, who we are still to play at home, and if this form continues for a couple more games, automatic promotion becomes a real possibility.
What a season we are having.