Promotion heroes to relegation minnows: The 18 ex-Bristol Rovers players that are now free agents

With the vast majority of clubs now having published their retained lists, the free agent pool will be utilised throughout the Football League and possibly by some Premier League sides too.

It will play a crucial part in Bristol Rovers' transfer activity over this summer with the Gas set to be busy after seeing 13 players depart at the end of last season. Additionally, there could be further departures with Luca Hoole, Scott Sinclair and Jordan Rossiter yet to sign their offered contracts while the club are expected to receive serious interest in Player of the Season Antony Evans with Portsmouth already linked.

No doubt there are some eye-catching potential deals out there after players throughout the pyramid departed their respective clubs at the end of their contracts and you would hope that Rovers soon experience their first breakthrough of the summer.

Amongst the plethora of free agents currently available are a handful of players who have got Bristol Rovers on their CVs, be that a brief loan or a beloved stalwart who may well have been part of memorable promotions or forgettable relegations.

In truth, there isn't an abundance of names that are currently unattached to a club who made a major impact during their time playing for the Gas. However, how many of these below trigger any memories?

John Akinde

A rare breed being a player that transferred directly from Bristol City to Rovers on loan back in the 2010/11 season, the striker is looking for his 10th permanent club after being released by Colchester United.

Now 37, Akinde's move from City to Rovers will be what makes him most memorable in these parts as opposed to what he actually did in either side's shirts. Zero goals in 18 appearances for the Gas, the move certainly wasn't a classic for the right reasons.

Harry Anderson

Although he was only at Rovers for two seasons, the winger is still regarded as a modern day club hero for his contributions in the 2021/22 League Two promotion season. Anderson played in 44 of the Gas' 46 league games that campaign, chipping in with key goals in wins against Rochdale, Sutton United, Stevenage, Crawley Town and Northampton Town. He also played the full 90 minutes of the legendary 7-0 final day victory over Scunthorpe United at right-back, providing an assist.

The 27-year-old only managed 12 league starts in League One the following season though and wasn't offered a new deal with then-newly-promoted Stevenage taking him on. However, it hasn't worked out at the Lamex with the winger going on loan to Colchester in January before being released this summer after just three appearances for Boro.

Jamal Blackman

For younger readers who played career mode on FIFA, the fact that Jamal Blackman is now 30 is mind blowing having been consistently one of the high-potential young players in his position. A perfect example of the merry-go-round that is the Chelsea loan system, the goalkeeper had as many as eight loan spells from the Blues with his brief stint at the Mem in 2020 pre-pandemic his penultimate temporary move.

Since his couple of months at Rovers, during which he played 10 matches, the shot stopper has gone on to play for Rotherham United on loan before permanent stints at LAFC, Huddersfield Town, Exeter City and Burton Albion, from whom he has been released after making just eight appearances.

Billy Bodin

Probably one of few where you could certainly argue a decent case for Rovers bringing back their former player, Bodin will always be fondly remembered for his contributions at the Mem in blue-and-white quarters. The winger helped the Gas to promotion into League One in 2016 and then was a reliable operator in the third tier with a total of 37 goals and 17 assists in 107 appearances before moving up to the Championship to join Preston North End in January 2018.

It didn't quite work out with PNE but it certainly did at Oxford United where the forward made 106 appearances, scoring 25 goals and providing 14 assists with five strikes last season to help the U's on their way to promotion via the play-offs. One of those goals came against Rovers and, at 32, Bodin can evidently still do a job at this level.

Lee Brown

With 319 games for the Gas under his belt during a seven-year stint, Brown is up there when it comes to the club's record appearance makers. The defender was a kingpin for Rovers when securing back-to-back promotions from the Conference to League One between 2014 and 2016 before then making another 74 appearances in the third tier with the Gas.

The 33-year-old returned closer to his hometown of Farnborough by joining Portsmouth in 2018 and has been at Wimbledon for the past two seasons. The Dons have offered Brown a new contract but there is yet to be confirmation as to whether or not he's signed it.

Mustapha Carayol

The Gambian winger only played one season at the Mem before making the step up to Championship side Middlesbrough and, since then, hasn't quite lived up to the hype that was placed on him at that time.

Carayol scored six goals and provided seven assists in 35 matches during the 2011/12 season for Rovers as a 23-year-old which earned him a six-figure move to Teeside. However, the move didn't quite work out as he endured loan spells at Brighton and Hove Albion, Huddersfield Town and Leeds United before a permanent move to Nottingham Forest in 2016. The winger also played in Turkey and Cyprus before returning to England with Burton where he's been for the past two seasons.

Luke Daniels

One that certainly doesn't stand out in the history books, the goalkeeper played nine games for the Gas as a loanee in 2011 as they were relegated to League Two but has gone on to play in the Premier League and Championship.

After returning to parent club West Bromwich Albion, Daniels had another loan at Southend United before permanent stints at Scunthorpe United, Brentford, Middlesbrough and Forest Green Rovers who have released the now-36-year-old.

Joe Day

Another player that didn't set the world alight during a brief spell in BS7, the goalkeeper made 20 appearances on loan from Cardiff City with the Gas in 2021 but couldn't prevent them from finishing rock bottom of League One.

That summer, Day remained in South Wales by joining Newport County and, after loan spells outside of the EFL at Woking and Yeovil Town, the shot stopper has been released by the League Two outfit.

Neil Etheridge

A player that's better known for what he's gone on to do since his time at Rovers, the goalkeeper has enjoyed an outstanding career which has seen him compete in the Premier League as well as earn 78 caps for his native Philippines.

Now 34, Etheridge made 12 appearances for the Gas during a brief loan from Fulham in the first half of the 2012/13 season and has gone on to play for the likes of Cardiff City, Charlton Athletic and Birmingham City with recently relegated Blues releasing the back up shot stopper.

Josh Hare

Unfortunately another member of the most recent relegation squad, Hare had some bright moments in blue-and-white quarters but was ultimately one of many not deemed good enough by the time Joey Barton arrived at the club. Signed from National League Eastleigh in 2019, the right-back had a decent start to life for Rovers before the turmoil of the 2020/21 campaign, at the end of which he was released.

A move back to Eastleigh was then followed up by a transfer to Dagenham and Redbridge a year later with the National League side releasing the now-29-year-old.

Joe Jacobson

Although the midfielder is best known for spending the last decade at Wycombe Wanderers, Jacobson did spend two-and-a-half fresher-faced years at Rovers between 2007 and 2009. The Welshman joined from Cardiff City in February 2007 and helped the Gas get over the line in the League Two promotion race before ending up with a total of 84 appearances for the club.

A move to Oldham Athletic in summer 2009 was also followed by transfers to Accrington Stanley and Shrewsbury Town before the midfielder ended up at where he's called home for the past 10 years, although the 36-year-old will now be seeking pastures new this summer.

Joe Martin

Eleven appearances during a four-month loan stint from Stevenage in the 2018/19 season makes the left-back another for the unmemorable category.

Having come through the youth systems at West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur, Martin has since played for Northampton and Ebbsfleet United, making the 35-year-old another former Rovers player to have been released by a National League club this summer.

Rollin Menayese

A product of the Cardiff City academy, the defender joined Rovers in 2017 from Weston-super-Mare before spending the second half of the 2017/18 season on loan at Swindon Town. After making 28 appearances for the Gas, the young centre-back reunited with former manager Graham Coughlan at Mansfield Town in 2020.

Now 26, Menyanese has since played for the Stags as well as Aldershot Town, Hartlepool United and Walsall, with the League Two side releasing him this summer after playing just nine games last season, six of which came on loan at the Shots.

Deon Moore

Making a grand total of three appearances for the Gas having joined as a youngster from Merstham in 2018, Moore is another player who had a forgettable stint in BS7. Most of his time while contracted to Rovers was actually spent on loan with spells at Bath City and Billericay before a permanent move to Hemel in 2020.

Moore did manage to get himself back into the Football League when signing for Sutton United from Lewes in January but they were relegated from League Two with the 25-year-old's contract also expiring.

Gabriel Osho

As will be the case for the majority of his Luton Town teammates, the past season would have been a fairy tale for Osho who made 21 appearances in the Premier League for the Hatters. Unfortunately, Rob Edwards' side couldn't secure top-flight survival with the club and the centre-back still in negotiations over a new deal.

The 25-year-old actually never made an appearance for the Gas during a brief loan spell from Reading in 2019 but has been outstanding since joining Luton after being released by the Royals in 2020.

John-Joe O'Toole

Aside from being part of the Rovers side that was relegated out of the Football League in 2014, the midfielder contributed an eye-catching goals return with 18 in 64 appearances over two stints with the Gas. After impressing on loan at the backend of the 2012/13 season, Rovers then signed O'Toole permanently from Colchester.

However, having earned himself a bit of a pantomime villain status while in BS7, the then went on to Northampton Town in the summer of 2014 before eventually ending up at Mansfield Town. The 35-year-old featured in 16 of the newly-promoted side's 46 League Two matches last term but won't be returning to the Mem as an opposition player this season, at least not for the Stags.

Harry Pell

Very much a youngster when he sported the blue-and-white quarters, Pell made 10 appearances for the Gas between 2010 and 2011 having joined from Charlton Athletic as an 18-year-old. However, the midfielder joined Hereford on a free transfer the following summer.

Now 32, Pell has been able to establish a career in the Football League for himself and is expected to re-join Cheltenham Town this summer having been released by Wimbledon.

David Tutonda

Last but not least (and we may well have missed one or two players) and it's another member of the 2021 relegation squad. The left-back only spent one season in BS7 and it was one of the worst in the club's history as they finished bottom of League One.

Tutonda made 22 appearances for Rovers before joining Gillingham on a free transfer and then Morecambe, for whom he played regularly last season despite being released.