Clinton Mola stated his Bristol Rovers side ‘left it all on the pitch’ after their 1-0 loss to Reading in Sky Bet League One.
Sam Smith netted the Royals’ winner in the second half with a low finish through Josh Griffiths, with his goal coming soon after Shaq Forde received a second yellow card for kicking the ball away.
The hosts had won four of their previous five games and would have been confident going into the final stages. However, the Pirates displayed plenty of determination and went close to grabbing a deserved equaliser several times.
Mola stated that the defeat was difficult to take but insisted that his side pushed until the end to try and score.
“It’s a tough one,” said the defender. “I think the boys fought really well, and we left it all on the pitch. Before going down to ten men, we were well in the game. We were pushing, and the goal was coming.
“When the red card did happen, we pushed them until the end. On another day, we get one goal or even two. But everyone fought hard, and at the end of the day, it’s a performance to be proud of.
“We were definitely the better team after their goal. When we went down to ten men, we kept pushing and didn’t just sit off. We kept creating chances.”
The Gas have won once on the road in the third tier this season, with Clinton Mola scoring in a 3-1 comeback victory over Burton Albion.
Drawing on their travels with Rotherham United and losing the rest away from home, Mola knows the Gas must improve their form away from the Memorial Stadium, but was pleased with the way Rovers stayed in the game.
“We know away from home, we need to be better,” said Mola. “Today was definitely a better performance. We made sure to stay in the game, and on another day, we nick the lead. It’s unfortunate today. Even with the red card and went down to ten men, we just kept pushing with our press and kept giving it a go.
"I think that’s the most important thing, that we’re just in the game until the very end.
Mola was playing against Reading for the first time since leaving the Royals in the summer and went close to a scoring return in the final stages. His swivelling effort across the goal was pushed away by Joel Pereira before the goalkeeper made an even better save in the final moments, tipping his goal-bound strike from range away from the top-left corner.
The defender reacted to his second chance and believes the next two games will give Rovers a chance to build momentum.
“I could not have hit it any sweeter, but it’s unlucky that it didn’t go in,” he said. “We’ve just got to move forward and look to the next one. We’ve got a couple of cup games now to focus on.
“Then we’re back in the league for Lincoln City, but I feel our attention shifts to the cup game to try and get momentum.”
