Bristol Rovers v Oxford preview

Team news for Saturday's League Two clash between Bristol Rovers and Oxford United at the Memorial Stadium.

Bristol Rovers welcome back Eliot Richards into their squad for the league opener. The striker missed the midweek League Cup defeat to Ipswich due to international duty with the Wales Under-19 squad. Defender Gary Kenneth (hamstring) is ruled out while loan goalkeeper Sam Walker will make his league debut for Rovers. Matt Gill is expected to retain his place in midfield after coming through Tuesday's match unscathed as he continues his comeback from a knee injury. Midfield trio Ollie Clarke, Seanan Clucas and Matthew Lund were all introduced as substitutes in that game and could be in contention for starting places should manager Mark McGhee wish to change things around. Stoke loanee Lund was particularly impressive and will be hoping for his full league debut for the Pirates. Meanwhile, Oxford could hand a debut to defender Alex Evans. Evans, signed from Cardiff, was unavailable for Tuesday's Capital One Cup victory over Bournemouth as his international clearance had not come through, but the move has now been ratified and he is in contention at the Memorial Stadium. Boss Chris Wilder could still be without striker Jon-Paul Pittman as he struggles with a stomach strain. However, there are no fresh injury concerns to deal with following the penalty shoot-out win over the Cherries, though Wilder does have a lengthy injury list to contend with. Michael Duberry, Andy Whing, Peter Leven and Liam Davis all remain sidelined while the game may also come too soon for Harry Worley, who is recovering from an ankle injury.