Moore 'upbeat' about Rovers' prospects after battling point

ON the week he was nominated for his latest EFL award for his outstanding work in the Bristol community, Taylor Moore produced his biggest moment on the pitch for Bristol Rovers since his arrival last summer in the 1-1 draw at Wrexham on Good Friday.

- Dan Hargraves

The defender has had to wait five-and-a-half long years to get himself on the scoresheet, making his header against the Red Dragons a collector's item. Goals for Bristol City against Preston North End and for Southend United versus Gillingham in 2019 are the only other times the 27-year-old has put the ball into the back of the net in a competitive match.

Rovers haven't taken advantage of the powers set-pieces behold frequently enough this campaign, with only Crawley Town (three) having scored fewers goals from such situations than their eight. However, a delightful corner delivery from Matt Butcher was met with a header accurate enough from Moore to turn past Arthur Okonkwo to hand the Gas a crucial lead at the promotion contenders.

It was so nearly the perfect away display from Inigo Calderon's side in North Wales; how often have Rovers been able to say that this season? A controversial equaliser from ex-Bristol City midfielder Matty James in the 76th minute eventually broke the Gas' resistance and, although they had to settle for the draw having taken the lead, it could prove to be an immensely valuable point come the end of the season, and Moore could be looked back on as one of the heroes that helped Rovers secure League One survival.

"Honestly, I'm really upbeat," the centre-back said post-match. "It's a good point. Every point matters from now until the end of the season, we know that, and we knew that coming away to Wrexham and being the club that they are at the moment, in the form that they're in, it was incredibly important that we put in a performance, but more importantly, we got a result.