Monday 24 April 2017

Tranmere Secure Second Against Southport

A comprehensive win for Tranmere
over their local rivals Southport.
Written By: Mark Armstrong

Result: Tranmere Rovers 4-1 Southport
Date: Saturday April 22 2017
Competition: National League
Venue: Prenton Park, Tranmere
Attendance: 6,159

Tranmere Rovers officially confirmed a second-place finish, giving them an advantage heading into the Play-Offs, as they defeated local rivals Southport 4-1.

Lincoln City had confirmed their title win earlier in the day with a 2-1 win over Macclesfield Town, but it was still imperative for Tranmere to head into the forthcoming Play-Offs on the front foot by securing the highest possible position in the meantime.

Tranmere had previously drawn 1-1 with Southport, and claimed a 1-0 win last season from a James Norwood penalty, and it would be Norwood who shone again here on a day where sunshine met a cold breeze at Prenton Park.

After a fairly slow start, and a near-miss when Andrai Jones almost capitalised on a defensive mix-up, Rovers took the lead on 25 minutes, when Norwood slotted home a hard drive from inside the penalty area. He went down in the aftermath with a slight knock, cutting short his celebrations, but he ploughed on as Tranmere looked more buoyant after taking the lead.

Southport, who were already relegated yet had held their own for the most part, began to struggle to cope with the more vibrant home side, and one became two on 46 minutes as Norwood came up with a superb, if somewhat cheeky, lob over goalkeeper Chris Cheetam. If the first goal was important, the second goal was crucial, as it gave Tranmere a cushion and a chance to sit back a bit. Tranmere looked much more comfortable from that point on, and Connor Jennings added a third with a fine curling effort on 50 minutes.

As good as Tranmere looked, they suffered a big set-back on 54 minutes when Spencer Myers, who only joined Southport on loan from Fleetwood Town a few weeks ago, came flying in with a hard challenge on Lee Vaughan. The Tranmere defender went off on a stretcher after several minutes of treatment, and the news that both he and fans feared has since come out that he suffered a broken leg. Well-wishes to Vaughan, as Tranmere now have to find an alternate defensive strategy for the Play-Offs.

Myers was lucky not to see red for his rash challenge and home fans were not pleased that he remained on the pitch, so they were incensed when Myers stepped up to slot past Tranmere keeper Scott Davies on 61 minutes, although it was merely a consolation at that point for the 160 travelling supporters. That was underlined when Tranmere wrapped it up by making it 4-1 on 71 minutes, with James Wallace setting up Jennings nicely to put it in, albeit with a slight deflection to guide the ball home.

So, Tranmere will head into the Play-Offs in the strongest position possible, aside from the injury to Vaughan. Given their perseverance and sheer effort this season, it's a shame that they weren't able to catch Lincoln for the title, but if the Super White Army still have a promotion to celebrate on May 14, nobody will be complaining, and this victory was another big step towards Tranmere's biggest couple of weeks in a long time.

Man Of The Match: James Norwood. Another strong display from Tranmere's number ten, who never gives up in tracking the ball down and trying to create chances, and he came up with two big goals to add to the dozen he'd already scored this season.

Monday 10 April 2017

Tranmere Looking Fine And Scoring Nine

That scoreline says it all:
Tranmere Rovers 9-0 Solihull Moors.
Written By: Mark Armstrong

Result: Tranmere Rovers 9-0 Solihull Moors
Date: Saturday April 8 2017
Competition: National League
Venue: Prenton Park, Tranmere
Attendance: 5,001

Tranmere Rovers delivered their biggest win of the season, and their biggest margin of victory in many years, as they demolished Solihull Moors 9-0 to keep up the pressure on Lincoln City.

With five wins in a row, and with the dramatic last-minute 3-2 home win over Sutton United fresh in mind, it was imperative for Tranmere to continue the momentum, and the huge scoreline suggests that they are up for the challenge as the final few weeks of the season approach.

Ironically, it was Solihull who could have taken the lead first, albeit in unusual circumstances. Solihull started slightly stronger before Tranmere came into the game with a few opportunities, but a defensive mix-up saw Tranmere captain Stephen McNulty head the ball over his own goalkeeper Scott Davies. Solihull's Omari Sterling-James tried to capitalise on the good fortune, but the ball trickled out past the post just in time to avoid Tranmere's blushes.

Fortunately for the home side, things began moving moments later when, on 20 minutes, Cole Stockton headed home from close range following a perfectly-timed cross by James Norwood. 1-0 became 2-0 just a few minutes later when Stockton delivered a fine curling effort from outside the penalty area.

A chance for Stockton to get his hat-trick in pretty short time was denied when Solihull shot-stopper Danny Lewis saved Cole's penalty attempt, but right on half-time, Stockton slid in to convert for both his and Tranmere's third goal.

It was only three minutes into the second half before a low-range effort by Connor Jennings boosted the score-line and effectively ended Solihull's hopes of a stunning comeback. Jennings headed in his second goal off a corner to make it 5-0 just two minutes later, but whilst the pace slowed down from there as Tranmere looked to concentrate on their defensive game, just to make sure that they maintained a clean sheet, they were back scoring on 68 minutes as Andy Cook slotted home off a cross by Lee Vaughan.

At that point, it seemed that Tranmere's work was done for the day, but with a significant goal difference margin between them and Lincoln to attempt to trim down, Rovers went in for the kill: Liam Ridehalgh curled in a fantastic top-corner free kick on 84 minutes, Jennings became the second Tranmere player to net a hat-trick when he delivered a stunning curler of his own right on 90 minutes, and Aaron Collins completed the scoring in stoppage time for a quite frankly incredible 9-0 victory.

Tranmere were rampant, and their fans were jubilant and excited at just how ruthless the home side had been. Solihull, for their part, were swept aside akin to a tornado heading through a busy city, such was the futility of any potential resistance. Not that this changed the gloom amongst the players or for the 85 fans who admirably stayed for the whole match despite the massive scoreline, nor for manager Liam McDonald who held a post-match team talk on the pitch in front of the away support.

The only downside to the day's activities was that Lincoln had claimed a fairly late win over Eastleigh to keep hold of top spot. However, although Lincoln have a game in hand over Tranmere, the ruthless manner in which Rovers went about business will send a shiver down Lincoln spines; if they slip up at any point, Rovers will be right there to capitalise. The race for the National League title appears to be an intriguing and unpredictable one that will go right down to the wire, but if this 9-0 destruction is any indication, Tranmere have what it takes to push Lincoln all the way to the finish line.

Man Of The Match: A rare three-way tie. Cole Stockton could have had four when all was said and done, and Connor Jennings' own hat-trick cannot be ignored. However, James Norwood was superb all afternoon in chasing the ball down and setting up several goals before being substituted to a huge ovation.