Guinness-Walker seals crucial win as Cobblers fight back to sink Bristol Rovers at Sixfields

Scott Sinclair’s fine finish gave Rovers an undeserved lead early in the second half but Town, who played well, did not panic and Dara Costelloe’s first goal for the club, followed by Guinness-Walker’s incredible impact off the bench, made it three wins in four games for Kevin Nolan's men, lifting them to 17th in League One.

Playing with energy off the ball and control on it, Cobblers were comfortably the better side in the first half at Sixfields but, as is often the case, the challenge of turning pressure into clear-chances was proving a difficult one to overcome.

Rovers rarely threatened themselves but they hit the front through Sinclair straight after the restart, however Costelloe levelled with a close-range header and then Guinness-Walker struck the key blow just moments after coming on as Sixfields erupted, with Town maintaining a four-point gap back to the drop zone.

Liam Shaw and Aaron McGowan returned to the starting line-up as Jordan Willis and Ben Perry dropped to the bench, and an open start to the game saw Rovers threaten first with Nik Tzanev needing to be on his guard to beat away Ruel Sortiriou’s low drive inside two minutes.

Cobblers also looked lively in attack though as Costelloe rounded goalkeeper Jed Ward but found the angle too tight before Sam Hoskins flashed a dangerous ball across the six-yard box after combining smartly with Tariqe Fosu down the right.

Although Rovers were dangerous on the break, the greater threat was coming from the home side and they almost went ahead in bizarre circumstances when Cameron McGeehan’s pass hit a defender and looped towards goal, completely wrong-footing Ward, but the ball dropped a couple of yards wide.

Another nicely-crafted move saw Hoskins in acres of space on the right but his cross was cut out before it could reach an unmarked Costelloe in the middle, while Mitch Pinnock’s fierce strike was well saved by Ward.

Goalless at the break, Town’s first half performance should have given them positives to build on but they were hit by the sucker-punch within two minutes of the restart.

They left Sinclair in oceans of space on the left and were ruthlessly punished as he finished superbly, drilling a low shot across Tzanev and in off the post.

Terry Taylor rippled the side-netting in response and then Shaw blazed over before Sinclair missed a similar chance to his goal, this time unable to beat Tzanev, and that proved a crucial moment in the contest.

Within seconds, Rovers were pegged back. Taylor’s deep free-kick looked over-hit but Max Dyche did well at the back post to keep the ball alive and then loft it across goal and there was Costelloe to nod in his first Cobblers goal.

The game was now anyone’s for the taking and Town looked the more likely with Pinnock’s dangerous cross leading to a scramble in the box but Rovers managed to get it away.

Nolan then turned to his bench and sent on Guinness-Walker, but even he couldn’t have dreamed of such an immediate impact.

Cobblers broke down the right and McGeehan lifted in a lovely cross for an unmarked Guinness-Walker and he applied a lovely cushioned finish with his very first touch.

There were still 10 minutes plus stoppage-time left to play but Town continued to play bundles of energy and desire and they refused to make life easy for Rovers, who never really threatened an equaliser.

Match facts

Cobblers: Tzanev, McGowan © (Baldwin 90), Dyche, Odimayo, Hoskins, Pinnock, Shaw, Taylor, McGeehan, Fosu (Guinness-Walker 76), Costelloe (Perry 88). Subs not used: Burge, Willis, Hondermarck, Wilson

Rovers: Ward, Sousa, Wilson, Sinclair ©, Hunt, Butcher, Hutchinson, Taylor, Thomas (Reindorf 80), Sotiriou (Lindsay 48), Martin. Subs not used: Roberts, Senior, Moore, Swinkels, Shaw

Referee: Matthew Russell

Attendance: 6,996

Rovers fans: 799