BRISTOL Rovers manager Paul Trollope believes he is gradually assembling a squad that will be able to compete in the Championship.

He believes that with the summer recruits of Daryl Duffy for £100,000 from Swansea City and Jeff Hughes on a free transfer from Crystal Palace, his side are capable of challenging in the upper echelons of League One next season.

Trollope, who has gained a reputation as one of the best young managers in the game, feels Rovers could have an outside chance of reaching the play-offs this season and are on their way to reaching his main long-term target of challenging their fierce City rivals in the Championship.

He said: “I’m not going to shout and scream about a play-off challenge but I certainly feel we’re shaping a group of players who can challenge.

“Once you’ve done that you want to create a group of players who can play in the Championship and we feel that we’ve got a few who are capable of that.

“When we get there, and we will get there, we want to be able to sustain it so that means piece by piece, brick by brick, but we feel we’re well on the way towards it.”

Bristol Rovers have certainly made progress since Trollope became manager with Lennie Lawrence as Director of Football.

In their first full season in charge in 2006/07 they won promotion from League Two via the play-offs and last season they made national headlines by reaching the FA Cup quarter-finals for the first time in 50 years.

Some felt that the cup run may have thwarted their attempts of making a serious challenge for the top six, but Trollope feels they are better equipped to do so this campaign.

He said: “The play-offs were a long shot. When we were in the quarter final of the cup we had three or four games in hand and people assumed we were going to do what we did in the previous year where we caught up very quickly and very well.

“We finished 16th and we feel with the addition of one or two more we’ve got a squad capable of finishing in the top half of League One and when you’re in that position you never know in terms of making the play-offs.”

Trollope has been pleased with pre-season preparations and particularly with how well Duffy and Hughes have fitted in.

However, he said there may be a couple more new faces before the end of the transfer window on August 31.

“Duffy has got a couple of goals and Hughes has put in some assured performances,” he said.

“They’ve fitted into the group very well, they’ve been very much part of it and I think the fans will see they are quality additions for us.

“We might see a bit of a change either loaning one or two or one or two permanent things.

“We’re happy that we got Duffy and Hughes, they were the top two targets, but if other things come available to bolster us then we will do it.”

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