Fabrizio Cavegn stole all of the headlines after scoring a hat-trick in Bristol Rovers’ 3-0 victory over Shrewsbury Town in Sky Bet League Two.
The striker was the difference maker against Salop, with all of his goals coming in the second half. With chances hard to come by from either side, with former Rovers forward John Marquis threatening to break the deadlock before the break after hitting the post, it was Cavegn who shifted the tide of the game firmly in the Pirates’ direction.
The 23-year-old attacker made the most of a mistake in Shrewsbury’s defence to open the scoring before two more close-range finishes completed a memorable hat-trick.
Speaking to BRTV after the fixture, Cavegn was delighted that he could start 2026 with a hat-trick and three points for the Pirates.
“It’s a perfect start,” he said. “We found the win and the hat-trick, and for me. It’s given me more confidence, and for the team to win 3-0, it’s a lot of confidence.
“It’s a good feeling to start the new year, to keep going, to go back to winning games, and it’s a very, very good feeling.”
With both teams battling towards the bottom of the table, the first goal was always going to be crucial. Moments after the Pirates were denied a penalty, with Fabrizio Cavegn fouled in the box before the flag went up for offside, Marquis thumped the post.
As the fixture went just past the hour mark, Rovers broke the deadlock through Cavegn. Luke Southwood’s long pass forward was headed back to Will Brook by Tommy McDermott, who was put under pressure by Shaq Forde, but his attempt was loose, allowing Cavegn to get there before the goalkeeper and score into an open net.
It was a simple finish for the striker, but his efforts off the ball earned him the opportunity to score.
“I saw the long ball from Luke, and then Shaq was one-versus-one there, said Cavegn. “As a striker, you have to be near the goal, near the ball, and I saw it happen, and I ran through. I was simply in front of it all; they needed that touch, and it was in.”
Forde was brought straight back into the team after missing Rovers’ fixture against Barnet through suspension and assisted Cavegn’s second strike, controlling the ball well on the right side before playing the ball across to the forward, who controlled it well before finishing.
Cavegn was pleased with Forde’s role in the goal before reflecting on his stoppage-time strike that completed his hat-trick.
“Shaq did a very good job,” he said. “He plays the ball to me, it was a very hard ball, yeah, but one touch and then I knew with the ball coming behind me, I knew what I had to do, a good touch and then a finish. You have to be quick, and it went in.
“After the second goal, I had a good feeling, but I never thought about the hat-trick or another goal. But then the next attack comes, and I saw Joel Senior with the ball, and I said to myself that I have torun in the box, and maybe the ball comes to me, or maybe not, and someone else will score. It comes again to me; I get a good touch, and then I finish it.”
“It was a special feeling. In the celebration, I said to myself, yeah, wow, it’s my first hat-trick in professional football, and that means a lot to me, and it gives me so much confidence and obviously to the club and the team. We see that we can fight and we can win games again, and it means a lot to us.”
He later added: “I keep going every day. Every game, we come and then next game I will forget about the hat-trick. Now it’s the game that you play now and if I can score again, I will have good confidence.”
The Gasheads in the away end were with Rovers all the way and got their rewards at full-time, with all three points going back to The Memorial Stadium. Cavegn’s song was sung repeatedly, with the striker delighted with the support.
“That’s the biggest thing in football, if you score as a striker, you can celebrate with your fans,” said the striker. “By the way, there was very good support from the away fans.
“It was very, very good. I’m so happy that I can score in front of the fans to show the fans that I’m here to score and help them, and I love the fans. It is very good support for every game. Away and home. I have very good support.”
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