BRISTOL ROVERS boss Steve Evans savaged his own player Jack Sparkes as he slammed his “atrocious” display in their defeat to Cambridge.
Rovers’ relegation fears continued after a 3-1 loss to promotion-chasers Cambridge United.
Ben Knight scored the opener before Rovers star Joe Quigley levelled from the spot just before half time.
Knight then added a second with a penalty of his own before Kelland Watts made it three in the last ten minutes.
And after a difficult defensive display from Rovers, veteran boss Evans singled out left-back Sparkes for criticism.
The former Portsmouth star picked us his tenth yellow card in the defeat, which means he’s suspended for Rovers’ trip to Oldham on Tuesday.
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But Evans brutally claimed Sparkes, 25, wouldn’t have played in the game anyway after his “atrocious” outing.
The ex-Rotherham boss blasted: “He deserves to go. He was atrocious today, anyway.
“He wouldn’t have played at Oldham. So, there we go. So he’s out for Tuesday, doesn’t matter to me, because he wouldn’t have played anyway. He was atrocious.”
Evans said his entire defence were responsible for a poor display at the back, including Yusuf Akhamrich.
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He added: “Defensively, we were poor today, the whole back five were poor.
“Yusuf has many plaudits and Jack Sparkes, too, but they didn’t help the middle three, who were having a very difficult afternoon by their own standards and their own performance levels.”
Sparkes only joined Rovers on a free transfer last summer and has played 26 times so far after a brief stint with Peterborough last season.
He previously played a key role in Portsmouth’s promotion season from League One in 2023-24, featuring 42 times as John Mousinho’s side won the title.
Evans went on to admit his side were “comfortably beaten” by Cambridge, who are second in the League One standings.
“Yeah, beaten by the better side. Comfortably beaten. We didn’t help ourselves enough.
“The performance looked a little bit disjointed, a little bit nervy.
“Cambridge are a top three side, aren’t they? And they’re a good side, and they’re probably playing with a lot of confidence, particularly here at the Abbey. It is always a tough place to come.”