Last updated at 15:15, Saturday, 14 November 2009

Plummeting Bristol Rovers are suffering from the loss of talismanic striker Rickie Lambert, reckons Carlisle United boss Greg Abbott.

Richard Offiong

The Pirates, who host United today, lost their star frontman to Southampton in a £1 million move in the August transfer window.

Rovers’ bright start to the season has since ended and they go into today’s game with the Cumbrians on the back of a six-game losing run – their worst sequence for nearly 50 years.

Paul Trollope’s side still boast experienced lower-league marksmen like Darryl Duffy and Jo Kuffour, but none has the pedigree of Lambert.

“Losing Lambert has taken goals out of their team and if you do that at this level, you are taking people’s arms and legs off,” said Abbott.

“We have struggled at times this season through not putting the ball in the net, but now we have got eight in our last three games and that makes things look a whole lot rosier.

“To take Rickie Lambert’s 25 goals a season out of the Bristol Rovers team is an absolute nightmare for them. At the minute they are struggling to get where they want to be.”

Abbott hopes his own August addition, Richard Offiong, can now make a lasting impact for the Blues after breaking his goalscoring duck with a strike for the reserves on Wednesday night.

The manager says he has noticed genuine improvement from the ex-Hamilton man and Offiong is expected to be pushing harder for a striking place in the coming weeks, although he will start on the bench today.

“When Richard came on against Chesterfield on Tuesday night he was effective, he won headers, put them on the back foot and showed his pace,” Abbott said.

“And in his first 45 minutes in the reserve game he looked a real handful. We are finding the better part of Richard at the moment and the goal will have done him the world of good.

“You don’t score 40-odd goals in 100 games in Scotland without having something. He is starting to show that. It has taken time but we have to show people patience.”

United were due to learn their Johnstone’s Paint Trophy northern semi-final opponents this morning. But Abbott said thoughts of a run to the Wembley final will not distract him from the job in hand as his team returns to league duties.

“Right at this moment I don’t care about the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy,” he said.

“We have to concentrate on Bristol Rovers. Anything else is irrelevant.”

Rovers keeper Mikkel Andersen, defender Danny Coles and striker Chris Dickson could return today.

“A run of consecutive defeats is not easy to take and I have to show resilience,” said Trollope.

“We have got to keep calm, maintain our belief and have a positive spirit.”

First published at 09:12, Saturday, 14 November 2009
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk