English-born Ghanaian midfielder and Bristol Rovers academy graduate Kofi Shaw was delighted to make his first start in Sky Bet League One against Peterborough United.
The Gas began slowly and were 3-0 down heading into the final twenty minutes after goals from Kwame Poku, Ricky-Jade Jones and Malik Mothersille.
Luke McCormick and Gatlin O’Donkor came off the bench to score for Rovers, but the Posh survived a late comeback to claim the victory.
Shaw was replaced by McCormick after an hour and was happy to make his first league start.
“I’m really happy to make my first league start for the club,” said Shaw. “Obviously, it was a nice stadium as well, so hopefully I can get many more to come. It is 100 per cent worth it after all the work in the academy.”
Shaw praised the players around him and is confident that Rovers will begin to move in the right direction if everyone works hard during the week and on the weekend.
“There’s great players and people here,” he said. “You have to have good people around you to help you succeed, and I feel like I’ve got that.
“We’re going in the right direction. We’ve just got to keep working every day and during the games to try and put the performances in and hopefully get a win next game.”
Shaw was one of four players who came into the side after Matt Taylor’s men lost 4-0 to Wigan Athletic last weekend. The youngster suggested that the team started slowly but improved as the match progressed.
“It was an unlucky performance,” he said. “We didn’t start as we wanted to, but as the game progressed in the second half we got better.
“It was a hard game to get into, but I gave it my all. Hopefully, in the next game, I can build on that and do even better by getting a goal or an assist.”
Rovers will look to recover from three consecutive defeats in the third tier when they face Wycombe Wanderers at The Memorial Stadium next Saturday.
Shaw is excited to see the fans after a positive experience in his last home outing in the Bristol Street Motors Trophy.
“I’m really excited to see the home fans again,” said Shaw. “My last game playing there was against Tottenham Hotspur Under-23s, and the fans were really good.”