It’s fair to say that Tom Nichols has not had the best of times since joining Bristol Rovers in 2017.

The striker had a good goal return during his days at Exeter, which earned him a move to Peterborough. He scored 11 league goals for them in a season-and-a-half but moved to Bristol Rovers in July 2017.

Two seasons later, he had only added two league goals. One of those, against his former employers Posh, was a penalty. One goal per season in League One is not a good return from a striker and few would have him marked out as a candidate for the striker’s role at the Memorial Stadium this season.

However, a bright start has seen him amongst the goals already; is this the season Tom Nichols finally comes good at Bristol Rovers? We shine a spotlight on his campaign so far to find out:

In all competitions, the 26-year-old has bagged three in each of his last two seasons. Already, with just seven appearances and two starts, he’s within a solitary goal of matching those efforts. He’s got two in two now, one of those coming as they beat Oxford 3-1 and another in the brave 2-1 defeat to Brighton and Hove Albion in the EFL Cup.

Seven outings, two goals. That’s just under a goal every three games and the sort of form a decent striker is expected to reproduce at this level. Is it luck though, being in the right place at the right time? Or is he showing an upturn in his form?

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There is plenty of cause for optimism around his appearances this season. It’s worth noting that of his five appearances from the bench, he played 71 minutes of football. He bagged within five minutes of coming on against Oxford and only got five minutes against Tranmere. He’s very much a bit-part player which is what his goals return from the last two seasons justifies.

However, he’s averaging 2.23 shots per game at the moment, a good return for a striker, especially from one looking to enter a game that’s already in full flow. His legs might be fresher to find those chances, but he also must get up to speed quickly when entering the fray.

His shooting accuracy is also very good. 66.7% of his shots are on target, a high average for any striker at all. 50% is usually a good figure, with some so-called prolific strikers in the division around the 35% mark. There is an element of quantity over quality with some strikers and their gift is finding numerous chances and taking a few.

Nichols seems to be the other way around this season; he’s taking the few chances he does get. He’s keen to get in the box as well, making 3.72 touches in the 18-yard area per game. If he keeps that up for the longer spells he gets on the pitch, he’ll be past the three-goal mark before he knows it.

He’s also assisting his fellow strikers and that’s almost as important as scoring goals. He’ll be keen to get on the scoresheet and wipe the memory of two tough seasons, but if he keeps up with 1,49 shot assists per game, he’ll be warmly received by his teammates whenever he does come on.

Tom Nichols has a lot of work to do to prove to the Gas fans that he’s the man to lead them up the table, but his early season stats suggest he might have finally found his stride after a couple of truly dire seasons.