Ethan Hoijord

Port Vale (A) Match preview:

Saturday 14th November 2020

English Football League Two

@ValePark

This Saturday, Rovers play their fourth game under the leadership of Ian Dawes and Andy PArkinson. So far,the duo have a 100% win record; beating Accrington, Wigan and Harrogate Town in the process. The football played at the moment is of complete contrast to the football that was seen throughout Mike Jackson’s tenure. Tranmere are now playing with a complete sense of freedom, with fluidity and power in the attacking areas, strength and the ability to control games in midfield and the defence has a great ability of keeping clean sheets whilst helping the forwards as they successfully move the ball forwards. However, the team face their biggest test of the season so far, this weekend .. arguably. The ‘super whites’ will travel to Stoke-on-Trent to face play-off candidates Port Vale. A win could put the Merseyside outfit four points away from the play-offs, touching distance with how many games are left to play without finding their new manager. However, a defeat could put them five points away from the relegation places. I believe that the positive outcome will happen, especially with the high quality of performances we have displayed recently.

There are a few absentees, going into this fixture, for Dawes’ and Parkinson’s team. Two full-backs are unavailable; Liam Ridehalgh came off with a groin injury in the midweek fixture and he will require a scan as well as young loanee Lee O’Connor who is on international duty with the Republic of Ireland. Midfielder Paul Lewis returned to light training, late on this week, this means that he is closer to returning yet the upcoming fixture may come too solemn. Forward Stefan Payne is out with a  long-term injury, he is in the recovery process of an operation. There is also a slight doubt on another forward getting game time, Morgan Ferrier played a half of the midweek ‘papa johns trophy’ tie, since picking up a ‘long’ term injury at the start of this season.

The hosts this weekend play at Vale Park, which can hold over 19000. Unfortunately, due to COVID-19 restrictions, there will of course be no fans allowed into the stadium. However, the last time many travelled from Merseyside to Burslem Tranmere were victorious 2-1 on a dark early February night. Hot-shot forward James Norwood scored a brace, in a run that would see Tranmere finish in the play-offs to then be promoted at Wembley. John Askey manages his side at Vale Park, he was appointed a few days before the game that I have described above, replacing Neil Aspin in early February 2019. The 56-year-old, who started his professional playing career at the club has led his Vale side to safety despite a relegation scrap and has placed his sights further towards the top end of the table. Finishing 8th in the table, as his club aimed to finish within the play-off positions. This season, promotion is again the only target. They have started the season off in a good manner, with six league wins from a total of ten league encounters. Victories over Cheltenham Town, Salford City and Oldham Athletic being three of them six. However, they have been knocked out of both the FA Cup and EFL Trophy within the first two games of these competitions. Non-league Kings Lynn Town were victorious at Vale Park, 1-0. After a win at Southend United in the EFL Trophy, Fleetwood Town had too much quality for their visitors in the second tue of that competition. Thus, Rovers are up against good opposition this weekend. Especially as the defence aim to hold their own against Mark Cullen who is the hosts’ leading goal scorer this season with two goals in five games. Cullen is a 28-year-old striker from Ashington, rising through the ranks at Hull City and Newcastle United he has since featured for Luton Town and Blackpool amongst others before signing for the Burslem promotion candidates in 2019. Whilst at Stockport County, assistant manager Stuart Watkiss described the forward as an ‘out and out goalscorer’; who’s ‘finishing is his best part of his game’. Thus, Tranmere certainly have to be on their best form to keep him quiet and to send three points for the league table back on its journey to Merseyside.   

Head to head:

Played – 94, won – 40, drew – 23, lost – 31

Predictions: 

Line-up; Murphy,Feeney,Nelson,Monthe,Macdonald,Lloyd,Spearing,Woolery,Vaughan,Blackett-Taylor

Scoreline; 

Port Vale 1 Tranmere Rovers 3 

If you want to get further into the matchday ‘mood’, why not read my Q+A with a ‘Valiants’ fan?. I aim to understand more about the state that the hosts find themselves in whilst also aiming to get the opinion of Tranmere, from the replier.

Wigan Athletic v Tranmere Rovers – Match Preview

@Prenton Park

EFL Trophy

Wednesday 11th November 2020 – 6:30pm

This upcoming Wednesday evening, Tranmere turn their attention from league to cup action as they look to battle it out against Wigan Athletic in the EFL Trophy. This game will be Ian Dawes and Andy Parkinson’s third game in charge for Rovers, interim managers following Mike Jackson’s departure. So far, they have a 100% win record together and the team has improved massively with their newly found attractive style of play. On the Weekend, Tranmere beat Accrington Stanley in the FA Cup. Thus, if Tranmere win their next game they have beaten two league one sides in consecutive fixtures. With that in mind, supporters shall turn their attention to the squad members that are available/unavailable for selection and the position that Wigan find themselves in going into this fixture. This is Rovers’ final group game of this season’s newly named ‘papa john’s’ trophy and a win will see them through to the knock-out rounds.

Going into this game, Rovers have two unavailable squad members. Midfielder Paul Lewis was substituted off five minutes into Saturday’s fixture at home to Accrington Stanley, with a suspected leg injury. However, the complete details are unknown to the public. Striker Stefan Payne, following a groin operation, remains unavailable as the 29-year-old battles through his recovery process. Two out, two in? Striker Morgan Ferrier could make a possible return to Prenton Park after being on the receiving end of a hamstring injury. Also, newly recruited midfielder, Danny Lloyd, could make a possible debut at Prenton Park. The 28-year-old signed a short-term contract and will look to impress at the first time of asking. The Liverpudlian has represented many football league clubs across his career. However, Rovers fans will remember him most as being the scorer of a hat trick whilst playing for Peterborough United as the ‘Posh’ knocked their hosts out of the FA Cup. It would certainly be exciting to see Lloyd and Ferrier make their seasonal debuts together on Wednesday evening.

Wigan Athletic play in the third tier, a tier above their upcoming hosts. Their home ground is named the ‘DW stadium’ and this can hold 25,138 people. They are managed by the mancunian John Sheridan who, throughout his playing career, appeared more than 100 times for Leeds United, Sheffield Wednesday and Oldham Athletic. In 1991, he won the football league cup whilst playing for Sheffield Wednesday he won the football league cup. However, his only promotion as a player came at Bolton Wanderers as they won the football league first division in 1997. He transformed from player to coach whilst completing his coaching badges during his time at Oldham Athletic where his role went from co-caretaker to permanent manager. Across his football management career he has been seen in the Boundary Park hot-seat three times on a permanent basis. This is Sheridan’s first full season as ‘Latics’ manager, overseeing a squad that was relegated from the championship due to administration issues. There were many departures in the summer at the DW Stadium, six players were sold for over £500,000: defenders Antonee Robinson and Cedric Kipre left the recently relegated club alongside midfielders Jensen Weir, Alfie Devine, Joe Williams and Jamal Lowe. There were also a number of squad members that departed on undisclosed fees, free transfers and through being released. Coming into the club were players such as centre midfielder Matt Palmer on a loan basis until christmas and attackers such as Dan Gardner and Will Keane. There were others that came into the club. However, I believe that the players mentioned are players that, if played, should cause Tranmere many problems. 

Forward Joe Garner is the club’s top scorer so far this season, with seven goals in thirteen appearances. Thus, he shall be Tranmere’s greatest problem this Wednesday. 32-year-old Garner started his career at his hometown club Blackburn Rovers, the strikers best run of form coming at Preston North End where he scored 49 goals in 129 appearances as he guided the club to the championship through a play-off promotion. He has since gone on to represent Glasgow Rangers and Ipswich Town. 

So far this campaign, the ‘latics’ have picked up seven points from eleven league one encounters, seeing them rooted at the bottom of the table. They were also knocked out of the FA Cup and EFL Cup at first time of asking. They were defeated, after added time, by Chorley 3-2 and the scoreline finished the same against Fleetwood Town as the ‘latics’ travelled to the fisherman’s home ground of Highbury. In the EFL Trophy, they have played at home to Liverpool U21s and Port Vale, a win tonight would see them progress to the second round.        

Did you know?

Wigan Athletic won the FA Cup as little as seven years ago; Roberto Martinez’s ‘latics’ beating Manchester City 1-0 at Wembley Stadium. Young forward Callum McManaman starred in that game, receiving the ‘man of the match’ award. However, it was his team-mate Ben Watson that would score the winning goal.

It is always difficult to predict the teams that a manager will set out for an EFL Trophy tie. Thus, it is also difficult to predict the scoreline that the ties will finish in. However, if I had to guess the eleven that will be chosen by Dawes and Parkinson this would be it.

Team – Murphy, O’Connor, Nelson, Ray, Ridehalgh, Macdonald, Banks, Spearing, Woolery, Smith, Blackett-Taylor 

Scoreline – Tranmere Rovers 3 Wigan Athletic 1

Supporters can view this game through the use of ‘Ifollow’. They can also, if they have enjoyed this match preview, read a piece in which I have sent questions over to a Wigan supporter.

Tranmere Rovers v Accrington Stanley

@PrentonPark

FA Cup

Saturday 7th November 2020

This Saturday, Tranmere progressed into the second round of the FA Cup competition with a win over Accrington Stanley. This was Ian Dawes and Andy Parkinson’s second game together as joint interim managers, meaning that with them at a position of power Tranmere have won two from two. This weekend they faced a team of a better standard, from a league above, in Accrington Stanley. Thus, the performance that followed would have to be of good quality. It was an exciting game between two good performing sides, despite the difficult weather conditions of a cold Merseyside afternoon in early November.

First half –

Little happened before the first substitution of the afternoon, both sides looked set to pose an attacking threat but nothing much was created before the injured Paul Lewis was replaced by Otis Khan. Liam Feeney soon linked up with Corey Blackett-Taylor to pose a threat to the Accrington defence, Feeney played a good pass out to Blackett-Taylor who looked to get at his man but the defender got a touch in before he could get going. At the other end, loanee full-back Lee O’Connor put a brilliant block in as he dived to get his body in the way of Pritchard’s shot. The first goal of the game came when Khan led a break away counter attack from an Accrington corner. Youngster Blackett-Taylor drove past many defenders before firing a shot, out of the reach of the visiting goalkeeper, into the far corner. Sykes soon headed wide from a deep cross into the Rovers box for the visitors. Both sides were attacking and defending extremely well. Rovers nearly got their second of the game when Khan’s shot inside the box was tipped around the post by Baxter. This happened before Vaughan turned his man brilliantly and fed winger Feeney who saw his shot cleared away. The scoreline was levelled when Bishop headed in at the far post. In an attempt to add another, Accrington man Pritchard paced down the left but O’Connor did well to tackle him and kick it back off him for a goal kick. At the other end, Vaughan came close to adding another for the hosts when Feeney delivered a brilliant cross from the left but the cross could only travel inches away from the striker’s foot. Accrington’s last attack of the first half came when Bishop nodded the ball down to Charles. Charles was unable to control the ball properly and poked it wide from inside the box. For the hosts, Feeney supplied another great cross but this was flicked away at the far post by Sykes. The last chance of the half for Dawes and Parkinson’s men came when Morris’ fierce shot from inside the box hit the bar.

Half time – Tranmere Rovers 1 Accrington Stanley 1 

Second half –

Early on in the second half, Rovers posed many threats to their opponents defence. Blackett-Taylor took on Charles before he tried to cut it back to Khan, the ball being intercepted. Feeney’s deep corner met the head of Ridehalgh, the defender diving to meet the cross. However, he failed to divert his header on target. Although Tranmere started the half off in a positive fashion, it was Accrington that came closest to turning the scoreline in their direction of victory. Nottingham struck the ball on to the post from a 25 yard shot. A second change for Rovers came when Kaiyne Woolery replaced Corey Blackett-Taylor, the youngster had certainly impressed with his forward play. An Accrington man was booked when Butcher dragged Khan back. Khan was attempting to get away from his opponent on the wing. Substitute Kaiyne Woolery soon displayed his talent when he flicked the ball onto Khan in the box, Khan’s shot was parried away by Baxter for a corner. Davies was called into action when he made a good save from a Pritchard shot, the ball was heading in the direction of the top corner. Centre-half Manny Monthe nearly poked the ball in from Feeney’s corner, the visiting defence managed to scramble clear. The game was won for Tranmere with a brilliant header, from Monthe’s defensive partner, Peter Clarke. Clarke met Feeney’s corner and netted his second competitive goal of the season. There was little action after this until full time. However, Accrington man Burgess was booked for dragging back Kaiyne Woolery as the forward countered. Both sides aimed to get another goal, yet the game was to finish Tranmere Rovers 2 Accrington Stanley 1.

Full time – Tranmere Rovers 2 Accrington Stanley 1

Facts and stats –

Possession – 53%/47%

Shots – 9/18

Shots on target – 5/5

Corners – 7/7

Fouls – 13/9

Quotes from the manager – 

“On the whole, I thought the team deserved the win. The way we applied ourselves on the pitch, both with and without the ball, was outstanding. Anyone who watched the game would have been entertained and also understood that we deserved the win. We know what to expect when you’re playing an Accrington side: they’re always going to be 100 per cent and well-organised. We looked at the team and just knew it was going to be crossed into the box and set-plays to deal with. If you look at the size of our side compared to theirs, I thought we defended excellently. It was an important win, to show everybody from the outside, and even in the changing room, that Tuesday wasn’t just a one-off- it’s a platform to build from. Like I said after Tuesday, it wasn’t perfect by any stretch and we need to improve. There were more signs of improvement today and we’ve got to continue that work. Regarding Corey, we know what he’s capable of doing. He was great today; he’s looking sharp in every game and took his goal brilliantly. I’m made up for him,” stated Dawes. We were just trying to get him into a position where we could utilise his strengths. He is better when he is higher up the pitch and the idea is to get him higher up and in contact with James Vaughan. Over the last couple of games, it has worked. The players that are attacking the ball for corners and crosses know they can commit when Feeney is crossing,” said Dawes. “They know that, more often than not, the quality is going to be there. When you’ve got that belief that the ball is going to be in the right area, you can attack it properly. Credit to Feeney for the delivery, but Clarke was outstanding again.” 

(Quotes taken, as ever, from the club’s official website) ‘https://www.tranmererovers.co.uk/news/2020/november/dawes-delighted-as-tranmere-secure-back-to-back-wins/’)

With Tranmere next in action on Wednesday night in EFL Trophy action, why not read my piece ‘meeting the opposition’ where I speak to a Wigan fan about his opinions of the states that the two clubs find themselves in. 

On Saturday, Tranmere Rovers travel to Vale Park to face Port Vale in a League two encounter. With that in mind, I placed questions towards my friend ‘Scott Challinor’ who supports the ‘valiants’. I thought it would be interesting to see the thoughts of a fan who’s club will soon face Rovers, to see their opinions of Tranmere and their opinion on the state of their club at the moment amongst other subjects. 

How long have you been a supporter of Port Vale? How did you discover the club?

I have supported Port Vale for, an estimated, 19 years. The 2000/01 season was the first that I can remember, I was six then. The highlight of that season was winning the LDV Vans trophy (now the ‘papa johns’ trophy) in Cardiff with a 2-1 win over Brentford. How the fortunes of both clubs have changed since! I remember clearly, our captain that day, Matt Carragher walking up and lifting the trophy. It was one of the first Vale related memories I can picture in my head and it has stayed with me ever since. I was born into a family of Vale supporters so my dad indoctrinated me and started taking me along to games.

Where did your club finish last season?

Last season Port Vale finished 8th in League Two. We were short of making the play-offs by an agonising 0.08PPG (points per game) after the season was curtailed! Hopefully we can go one better or even further this time around.

What are your thoughts on your current manager? Who is he?

Our incumbent gaffer, John Askey, I’m very pleased with. He came to Vale Park after an underwhelming spell at League 1 Shrewsbury, who won four of his 17 games in charge over a five-month spell, yet expectations were high there at the time after Paul Hurst had taken them into the League 1 playoffs the season prior before departing for Ipswich. At the time, that ill-fated spell in Shropshire was Askey’s only experience managing at EFL level, so some Vale fans could be forgiven for their initial reservations. However, something had to be said for his masterminding of a modern football miracle prior to joining the Shrews, in which he took Macclesfield Town back into the league on a budget of less than £500,000. It was his knack for being able to forge a team greater than the sum of their parts at that level which was largely behind the decision to bring him into the Vale hotseat in January 2019, where he would be tasked with turning around an ailing side in the thick of a relegation fight. Not only did he manage to keep the Vale in the division relatively comfortably after taking a few games to get the team playing his way and buying into his ideas, but after a summer where he was able to stamp his mark on the team and backed by the club’s new owners with a three-year contract, he transformed a side bereft of confidence into playoff contenders within a season. Ten games into the new season, he appears to be managing heightened expectations from the club’s supporters well within the camp, with the Valiants sat within the playoff spots and in touching distance of the top three.

Askey is a stickler for the 4-3-3 formation with a high pressing style, which has been the tactical tweak behind much of Port Vale’s recent success, allowing the team to remain defensively rigid while creating plenty of goalscoring opportunities. It is worth noting at times that he has been subject to criticism for a hesitancy to make substitutions until late on in the game even when things have not been going the way of his team, but after a few early season hiccups, his game management does appear to be improving in that respect. On the whole, I can’t complain much!

What are your expectations for this season?

This season I would like to see us finishing at least in the playoffs, remaining in touch of that elusive top three with a view to sneaking in if possible. After a promising campaign last season, in which we looked primed to reach the playoffs had the season run its course, I don’t think it is unreasonable to expect the club to improve on that and finish in the top seven at least, particularly after such a strong summer of recruitment. With a bit of luck concerning player fitness and availability, I’m quietly hopeful that we could sneak into the top three. Between 3rd and 5th is roughly where I would expect us to finish.

Which one player is your danger man? Why?

Overall, I would say David Worrall. He is a conventional winger capable of playing on either flank and can even slot into the centre of midfield or a number ten role if required. His relentless work rate is a consistent element to his game, he is willing to track back and he always looks to take on his fullback when going forward and has the ability to deliver a dangerous cross into the box: very much a striker’s dream for forwards such as Tom Pope, who I anticipate will be starting too.

What is your score prediction for the match at Prenton Park?

You won’t like this one but 2-1 to the Vale! After dispensing with Mike Jackson I expect a reaction within the Tranmere camp and that will make for a tight game, particularly with the attacking players included in that arsenal of options. However, with Vale in hot form and key players such as Scott Burgess, David Amoo and Tom Pope back in the team and producing the goods of late, I think we’ll have just enough to see off what I anticipate will be a stern challenge. I do expect Tranmere to quickly rise up the table over the coming weeks with the right managerial appointment, so a win here could be a valuable one for us in the context of the whole campaign.

Random fact about your town/club?

Two of Port Vale’s most famous fans include pop sensation Robbie Williams (who had a hand in designing this season’s kits) and darts legend Phil “The Power” Taylor. Other than that, a more obvious fact is we aren’t named after a place! It’s widely speculated that the name Port Vale is derived from the building in the district of Longport where the club was founded, or the local Trent and Mersey Canal network.

Do you support/like any other club other than Port Vale?

I always look out for Derby County’s results because one of my best friends is a lifelong supporter. We’ve played the Rams in a couple of good spirited and highly entertaining pre season friendlies in recent years too (one which finished 5-3), so I always wish them well. Other than that, I follow OGC Nice in the French Ligue 1. I studied languages at university and spent eight months on a work placement in the city of Nice and put my spare time to good use going and watching them in the 2015/16 season. A certain Hatem Ben Arfa was their star man at the time. I was privy to their fixture against a star studded PSG team and a very impressive 3-0 victory at home to a Lyon side with Alexandre Lacazette leading the line. Nice finished 4th that year and qualified for the Europa League!

Proudest moment as a Port Vale supporter?

Promotion in 2012/13. From the beginning of the League 2 season in administration, few would have predicted that we would end up securing passage to League 1 with a game to spare. Everything about that year was magical. Boyhood Vale fan Tom Pope  scored 33 goals in all competitions for us that season and was deservedly named League 2 Player of the Year. I’ll also leave a special mention for Pope’s goal in our FA Cup tie at Manchester City last season: a textbook header which sent 8,000 travelling Valiants wild. Not only did we manage to score against the defending champions of England who regularly hit six or seven past clubs bigger than us without conceding, but that goal saw Pope surpass Martin Foyle and become Port Vale’s post-war record goalscorer. I’ve never been so happy with a 4-1 loss!

What is your opinion of Tranmere Rovers?

I do view Tranmere Rovers as a similar club to ourselves, by that I mean: historically higher than League 2 and happening to have fallen on hard times. Much like us, Rovers can also consider themselves very hard done by to be where they are given the way that last season ended. In another world, we could well be previewing this game as a League 1 fixture.

To focus on the harsh reality however, Rovers have undoubtedly had an underwhelming start to the season which I think has surprised a few that may have tipped them to be up there. However, seasons are not won and lost after ten or eleven games and with players such as James Vaughan, Jay Spearing and Otis Khan coming through the door over the summer, I expect over the course of the season that such quality will tell and I wouldn’t be surprised to see Tranmere steadily improve and be in and around the top ten by March/April and looking to mount a late playoff charge. That 2-2 draw at Salford shows just what even a depleted Tranmere team is capable of doing with the right application.

I am hopeful that we can cash in on Rovers’ poor run of form to maintain our momentum in the league here, but I am expecting a difficult game. Sooner or later Rovers will pick up and a win in this game could prove vital at the end of the season.

I would like to thank Scott Challinor for his time answering the questions that I placed towards him, this league encounter should be an interesting occasion and I hope that readers enjoyed this Q+A.

(A photo from my seat when I went to Vale Park in February 2019. James Norwood scored two as Tranmere were victorious 2-1)

Grimsby Town v Tranmere Rovers – ‘meeting the opposition’

On Saturday, Grimsby Town travel to Merseyside to face Tranmere Rovers in league two action at Prenton Park. With that in mind, I placed questions towards my friend ‘Aaron Rattray’ who supports ‘the mariners’. I thought it would be interesting to see the thoughts of a fan who’s club will soon face Rovers, to see their opinions of Tranmere and their opinion on the state of their club at the moment; amongst other subjects.

How long have you been a supporter of Grimsby Town? How did you discover the club?

My earliest distinct memory of supporting Grimsby is when I was six years old and I was mascot in a televised fixture against Derby County. Steve Livingstone was knocked unconscious that game with a fractured skull following a clash of heads with Danny Higginbotham, I do have photographic evidence that I was mascot three years earlier against Barnsley. Unfortunately, I don’t remember that occasion. I live in Grimsby, thus they are my local club.

Where did your club finish last season?

Last season, we finished 15th in League Two after the season was curtailed early.

What are your thoughts on your current manager and the state of your club at the moment?

Ian Holloway manages the club. He is clearly a well known character with experience of managing at a higher level having spent the vast majority of his career in the premiership so he certainly has that ‘pedigree’, before COVID he was marking marked improvements which was unfortunately cut short and reset so he is trying to build a squad back up from a worse state than he found is in. Given his ‘pedigree’, I do hope that given time he can have us challenging at the top end of the league soon.

What are your expectations for this season?

We have started very slowly this season. This is probably to be expected given the condition every squad finds itself in following the COVID outbreak and the lack of match fitness. We have several key players injured/unfit but in general we are a very young and inexperienced squad and we need the experienced key players fit and playing, if we can get them all fit I like to think we can finish in the top half of the league table. This would be something to build on.

Which one player is your danger man? Why?

Our danger man is Owura Edwards who is sadly injured at the moment. The young forward is on loan from Bristol City and is a very raw whilst being a great talent. He always looks to create and on his day, he will create. Hopefully when players such as: Bennett, Scannell and Williams get fit they can complement him well.

What is your score prediction for the match this weekend?

I’ll go for a 1-1 draw just to keep us both content, it’s certainly a league encounter that’s hard to predict.

Random fact about your town/club?

From one goalnet to the other, is a steep incline of 6 feet. There are many many unique facts about the town and the club.

Do you support/like any other club other than Grimsby?

I do like Liverpool, everybody else seems to hate them so somebody needs to like them.

Proudest moment as a Grimsby supporter?

15th May 2016, the national league play off final against Forest Green Rovers. On that day, Grimsby fans went through every single emotion possible , excitement and hope leading up to the game, nervousness, joy and delight. When Bogle scored a quick fire double to put us 2-0 up, anxiety and worry when Marsh Brown pulled one back and town started to sit very deep inviting pressure (we had a habit that season of messing up a 2 goal lead). Again nervousness, as the seconds seemed like minutes and minutes seemed like hours as Forest Green started to turn the screw and then immense pride when Nathan Arnold rounded the keeper to put us 3-1 up in added time! Six years of pain, agony and nightmare was over. Hopefully we never return to the fifth tier.  

What is your opinion of Tranmere Rovers?

A big club at this level who should really be challenging at the top end of the league table this season.

I would like to thank Aaron for his time answering the questions that I placed towards him, this league encounter should be an interesting occasion and I hope that readers enjoyed this Q+A.

(Grimsby Town manager – Ian Holloway)

Wigan Athletic v Tranmere Rovers – ‘meeting the opposition’ ahead of an EFL Trophy tie.

On Wednesday night, Wigan Athletic travel to Prenton Park to face Tranmere Rovers in the EFL Trophy. With that in mind, I placed questions towards my friend ‘Jordan Kenyon’ who supports Wigan. I thought it would be interesting to see the thoughts of a fan who’s club will soon face Rovers, to see their opinions of Tranmere and their opinion on the state of their club at the moment amongst other subjects. 

How long have you been a supporter of Wigan? How did you discover the club?

I have supported Wigan Athletic from birth, 18 years ago. I live in the town, that’s how I discovered them. They are the closest football club to where I live.

Where did your club finish last season?

We originally finished 13th but due to going into administration we had a -12 points deduction which dropped us down to 23rd. Thus, we were relegated due to being in administration.

What are your thoughts on your current manager?

John Sheridan is the manager of Wigan Athletic. He’s not doing a bad job, it was never going to be an easy role this season as the squad is full of youngsters.

What are your expectations for this season?

This season, my expectations are just to stay in league one. We’ve got a good enough squad to do so but I imagine it may be a struggle.

Which one player is your danger man? Why?

I believe ‘Joe Garner’ is our danger man. He’s got experience in this league, he’s a good target man and he always challenges for the ball. If he plays, he should pose many questions of the Tranmere defence. This season, the experienced forward has five goal contributions in 11 games (5 goals).

What is your score prediction for the match at Prenton Park?

It’ll be hard to call, as you never know the line-ups the managers will set out for an EFL Trophy tie. It’ll be interesting to watch though, as Tranmere are in the league below Wigan and I believe you would have to go back to 2003 to see the last time the clubs came head to head for a ‘competitive’ fixture.  

Random fact about your town/club?

It’s not entirely random, I think everyone knows that, we’re a town that is famous for our pies.

Do you support/like any other club other than Wigan?

I like Rangers due to having family ‘up there’ who support them.

Proudest moment as a Wigan Athletic supporter?

My proudest moment as a Wigan supporter has either got to be the FA Cup final victory against Manchester City at Wembley. Or, seeing the fight that the players put in to try to stay in the championship last season knowing that if we stayed up we were going to be deducted 12 points. The fight the players put in to try to stay up by more than 12 points was unreal, unfortunately we failed to do so but I couldn’t be more proud of the players and the passion they showed.

What is your opinion of Tranmere Rovers?

My opinion of Wigan’s hosts on Wednesday night is that they’re not a bad side, it’s just a pity that the pandemic ruined their season last season and saw them demoted. In my opinion, the season should’ve been classed ‘null and void’.

What are your thoughts on the EFL trophy?

I completely disagree with the EFL Trophy, I think it’s a ‘load of rubbish’. It’s just a pointless trophy that includes under23 sides from the ‘premier league’, why not put clubs in the trophy that play in the ‘non league’? The EFL Trophy should be solely for the clubs that play in the EFL. 

I would like to thank Jordan for his time answering the questions that I placed towards him, the tie should be an interesting occasion and I hope that readers enjoyed this Q+A.

Two games, one week. From league to cup, what happened? What is soon taking place?

On Tuesday night, Tranmere Rovers won their second league encounter in six. This came a few days after sacking manager Mike Jackson as performances turned sour. Now, ‘things’ are looking more positive. It has always been evident, on paper, that this season Rovers have a great squad on paper. Players such as James Vaughan and Corey Blackett-Taylor can fire the ‘whites’ to victory and the strong defensive veteran Peter Clarke can keep the Rovers in the games with his amazing ability in battle and his leadership to his fellow defenders. The squad just needs a manager to lead them to victory and to inspire them to a high quality performance on a consistent basis. Dawes and Parkinson were the two interim managers that inspired the team to victory with a very high quality performance in midweek.

Tranmere travelled to Yorkshire, to face Harrogate, and left with a sense of pride with what they had put on display. Otis Khan got his first goal contribution of the season, after signing for the Merseyside club from Mansfield Town in the summer, with a beautifully placed finish into the bottom corner of the net out of the reach of experienced ‘Sulphurite’ goalkeeper James Belshaw. It was evident that Dawes and Parkinson had worked well with the time that they had, as the performance was a complete contrast to those seen recently. Going into this game, Rovers’ last two league encounters finished in a 4-0 defeat away at Crawley Town and a 1-0 home defeat to Morecambe on Halloween. The Halloween performance frightened Jackson’s role, he was soon sacked. On Tuesday night, Tranmere were perfect from the first whistle. The defence defended appropriately to stop any real threat from their hosts, the midfield supplied the attack and the front men put the Harrogate keeper under threat many times across the evening’s fixture. Corey Blackett-Taylor showed the quality that he possessed as he ran at the opposing defence which saw him create many chances for the other forwards as well as coming very close to firing past the shot stopper, Belshaw, as he saw himself placed on the initial eleven for the first time this season. It was recently revealed that Blackett-Taylor had a heart issue, it was nothing too serious but Mike Jackson thought it was better to not risk the forward’s health as he was undergoing checks on his heart rate through different activities at many different speeds and exercise difficulties. It’s certainly beneficial for Rovers to have the youngster available and his performance in midweek proved this. The pace that he possesses was shown in the first minute, driving forwards past the hosts defence before firing just over the bar. Little in the means of attack was created by Simon Weaver’s side, this was a testament to Rovers’ solidarity. The best chance of the game for the hosts came when Davies was unable to catch from a cross in the last minute of added time, the ball fell to a Harrogate man but again Tranmere were able to defend perfectly. Other than that, Harrogate had a succession of corners and ‘pop shots’ from a wide range and that failed to phase their opponents goalkeeper. In truth, this was a game dominated by Rovers’ attacking attempts and although the scoreline finished looking like a close game had just been played out. The scoreline should’ve been wider. In the last minute of the first half, Vaughan broke through one on one with the hosts’ keeper but managed to get only as close as the post. It would’ve possibly resulted in a goal if he had passed to midfielder Paul Lewis who was running alongside him, he was placed in a better position. However, with a successful performance going forwards and with Vaughan as the attacking talisman Rovers fans should be proud of the performance from their number 9. Kieron Morris may have been able to double the scoreline in the first half, the ball falling to the forward at the edge of the box and he volleyed it at the first time of asking. This strike was defended perfectly, unfortunately it was his own team-mate that was the defender. Thus, with Blackett-Taylor’s pace as he has recently returned from injury and with the attacking ability of all of the other Tranmere forwards; in particular, James Vaughan the ‘whites’ shall look forward to the weekend with a lot of excitement as they head into the first round of their FA Cup campaign. Speaking of attacking threat Corey Blackett-Taylor was, unsurprisingly, Tranmere’s man of the match. Ian Dawes and Andy Parkinson, in their first game of interim management, were able to reignite the pride and confidence in a beaten Tranmere team and excite the Tranmere faithful.

—————————————————————————————————————————

Now it’s time to look forward to this weekend, it’s looking extremely positive in terms of availability; it has been revealed in Thursday’s press conference that the only player unable to perform is Stefan Payne who is recovering from a recent operation. This means that Morgan Ferrier is able to grace the turf of Prenton Park, for the first time this campaign, since picking up a difficult injury. This is very beneficial to Tranmere’s attacking threat as last season Vaughan and Ferrier partnered up together and managed to share a run of great goal contributions that should’ve kept Tranmere in league one, if it wasn’t for COVID restrictions and the ‘unfair demotion’.

The first challenge of Rovers’ FA Cup campaign is Accrington Stanley, the cup tie will be played at Tranmere’s Prenton Park stadium. ‘Accy’ are managed by Merseyside-born John Coleman who has been their manager for six seasons. Nineteen seasons, if you take into account his role as manager at the ‘Wham’ Stadium from 1999-2012. John Coleman had a fairly average playing career in the lower leagues. He scored 49 goals in 89 appearances for Southport in the mid 1980’s as a forward and he featured for clubs such as Runcorn and Macclesfield Town. However, it is as an Accrington Stanley manager that he has truly impressed. At ‘Stanley’ he has won four promotions as manager, taking the club from the seventh to third tier, across a 19 year period that started in 1999. 

Accrington Stanley are a tough team to beat, they are currently placed 14th in league one after winning four in seven league encounters and their goals have been spread fairly across a group of players. One player that the Tranmere defence should keep an eye on this weekend is 25-year-old midfielder Dion Charles who has so far got three goal creations in the five appearances he has made for the Lancashire club, he joined the club last year after impressing for Southport. Joe Pritchard is another player to keep an eye on.

Last season, Accrington Stanley finished 17th in the league one table. The season ended on a PPG, points per game basis, Accrington had 1.14PPG compared to Tranmere’s 0.94 although the latter had a game in hand. They exited two cups, FA and EFL cup, in the first round with narrow home defeats to Crewe Alexandra and Sunderland. They managed to reach the quarter finals of the EFL Trophy, winning their group by 4 points and getting past Bolton and Fleetwood before they met Salford City at Moor Lane and were defeated 2-1. 

This pre season, they bolstered their ranks with the signings of young forwards Ryan Cassidy and Thomas Allan, on loan until the end of the season. Aswell as capturing the services of 25-year-old defender Cameron Burgess from Scunthorpe United, the Scotsman was on loan at Salford City throughout the last campaign. These are a few signings from the list of many, Tranmere’s visitors this weekend certainly had a strong recruitment process over the summer as they look to progress in all areas moving forwards.

From my understanding, Tranmere has met Accrington Stanley on ten different occasions. The most recent meeting being a 2-1 victory at the ‘Wham’ stadium in league one action, one game before the league season was forced to finish early due to COVID restrictions. It was a great day in Lancashire for the Rovers faithful who travelled in their thousands.

Played – 10     Won – 6     Drew – 2      Lost – 2 

——————————————————————————————————–

Interim manager, Mike Jackson’s assistant, Ian Dawes met the press to discuss this weekend’s FA Cup encounter;

“The big thing for us moving forward is number one, the players looking like a team on the pitch, both with and without the ball and number two, to play a little bit more relaxed when in possession. We want to enjoy having the ball more, be more positive and create more chances. We want to take the game to the opposition more often. When you are low on confidence, and things are not working out, you can go into a little bit of a shell, and you can be nervous in possession and make mistakes. One mistake can lead to another and then everyone is giving the ball away. The players on Tuesday realised they have to get over that, enjoy the game and if mistakes happen, we have to respond in a more positive manner. Play on the front foot and enjoy the game! The big thing for us now is momentum, we have to not take just the result on Tuesday but part of the performance into Saturday’s game. We know Tuesday’s performance wasn’t perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but it was a good start. There were some positive signs without possession but more with the ball, we created a few chances and arguably could have scored more on the night.  We have to take that positivity into Saturday’s game and not fear anything of Accrington and go and take the game to them. The FA Cup is a fantastic competition. I was lucky a couple of seasons ago when I was at Blackpool, we played Arsenal in the third round and it was a great occasion for everyone. It is a competition where anything can happen. We know we have to be at our best to win the game because Accrington are the type of team that if you don’t turn up and be at your best, they will hurt and beat you. If we turn up with the right mentality, we can take the game to them and get a result.”

(quotes taken, as ever, from the club’s official website) ‘https://www.tranmererovers.co.uk/news/2020/november/dawes-previews-this-weekends-fa-cup-tie/’

—————————————————————————————————————Thank you very much for reading, stay safe and keep supporting our beloved Tranmere!

Harrogate Town v Tranmere Rovers

English Football League Two

@Wetherby Road     

K.O Time – 7pm

A few days on from Mike Jackson’s dismissal from his role as Tranmere manager, the ‘whites’ travel to the North Yorkshire town of Harrogate for their second meeting against the ‘Sulphurites’ so far this season. It’s set to be an interesting fixture, Ian Dawes and Andy Parkinson will take interim charge of Tranmere as Rovers continue the search of starting a new era with a yet to be appointed manager. The Tranmere faithful will be hoping for an improved performance from their side after a poor run of league results, they have lost 4 out of their last 5 league encounters. However, facing Harrogate away from home isn’t the best of fixtures if you are wanting to turn your fates around.

This Tuesday, centre-half Manny Monthe and forward Kaiyne Woolery are available for selection. Recently, Monthe has struggled with a knee problem however he played all of the minutes throughout the weekends fixture and has come through those minutes unscathed. Woolery played 70 minutes on Saturday and also came through unharmed. It is beneficial to the interim managers that these players are available. 

Centre-half Mark Ellis is doubtful to start the encounter against Harrogate. The defender picked up a knock in the 4-0 hammering away to Crawley Town.

Forwards Stefan Payne and Morgan Ferrier are unavailable for selection. Payne is recovering from a recent groin operation and Ferrier is struggling with a hamstring issue.

Harrogate have had a very successful few years, since the 2017/18 season they have been promoted twice going from the national league north to the football league. As little as twenty years ago, they competed in the Northern Premier League which is the seventh tier. Last season saw Harrogate earn two trips to London, to play at Wembley Stadium. One game resulted in promotion to the football league, following a victory against Notts County. However, due to the COVID restrictions they are still unable to play their other Wembley Stadium fixture in the FA Trophy final against Concord Rangers. Following their promotion, they have started life in the football league in a great manner. They have so far played ten league two fixtures, winning four and spreading the other results evenly across draws and defeats. In the EFL Cup they beat Tranmere on penalties to set up a tie against West Brom. The ‘baggies’ were able to beat Harrogate 3-0 however Harrogate had better luck against premier league opposition in the EFL Trophy. They drew 2-2 at Grimsby before beating Leicester City 3-1. On the weekend, Newport County were able to defeat Harrogate 2-1 in South Wales. ‘Sulphurites’ star man and captain Josh Falkingham saw himself get sent off after receiving two yellow cards, he will be a great miss in the upcoming midweek league encounter for the hosts. Simon Weaver’s side beat Southend United 4-0 on the road to start the season off in a great fashion before going on a run of victories against Bradford, Barrow and Grimsby. Tranmere’s defence must keep an eye on forward Jack Muldoon who has eight goal involvements in ten fixtures so far this season; six goals and two assists.

From my understanding, Tranmere have only met Harrogate on one occasion before this week’s fixture. That occasion was an EFL Cup tie two months ago. The game resulted in a 1-1 draw and it thus went to penalties. Harrogate won 8-7 on penalties to end Tranmere’s EFL Cup run at the first round.

Played – 1

Won – 0

Draw – 0

Loss – 1 (after penalties)

Predictions:

Team; Davies, O’Connor, Clarke, Monthe, Macdonald, Spearing, Young, Lewis, Feeney, Vaughan, Blackett-Taylor.

Result; Harrogate Town 1 Tranmere Rovers 2 

Crawley Town 4 v Tranmere Rovers 0 – match report

Tuesday 27th October 2020

@BroadfieldStadium

League Two

Mike Jackon’s search for his first away win as Tranmere manager continues after an incredibly disappointing Tuesday night league performance against Crawley Town.

The ‘Whites’ went into this game with the hope of adding to the win which they picked up on the weekend after a solid performance at Prenton Park against Southend United. Crawley Town went in with the aim of halting Tranmere’s progression, up the league table, as they searched for a win after two games without. Whoever won this encounter would be above their opponents in the league table at full time, thus spectators were in for an interesting and closely contested game between two sides who were in need of a win.

The first ten minutes of the game started off well, both sides seemed to match each other in their defensive duties and both sides looked strong going forward. Liam Feeney was able to beat one man down the right but he was stopped before he could get a successful cross in. At the other end of the pitch, Tranmere goalkeeper Scott Davies was called into action and he made a great save to deny Powell’s powerful shot before the rebound was scrambled wide. It was evident that Tranmere weren’t playing well enough, the Crawley attackers were able to get past the Rovers midfield to pressurise the Tranmere defence whenever they felt like attacking. Young forward Max Watters broke through on goal before firing over the bar before full back Josh Doherty scruffed a shot from the edge of the box, the shot failed to hit the target. Crawley opened the scoreline in the opening fifteen minutes, Watters being able to reach the back of the Tranmere net this time around after a pass from a Crawley man which found its way through the Tranmere midfield. Tranmere looked for an immediate comeback through Feeney when he was able to win a corner after his cross from the right was blocked. However, nothing would come from this set piece. Loanee midfielder Jack Young released a shot from distance but he failed to hit the target with his effort. Shortly after the midfielders goal-bound attempt, the hosts managed to score two in quick succession. Nichols got into the box and buried the ball past the Rovers goalkeeper before a goal-line scramble after a cross was able to be fired past Davies. Tranmere manager Mike Jackson saw the next few moments as a good opportunity for his first substitution of the evening as O’connor replaced Ridehalgh. He was soon forced into making his second substitution, centre-half Mark Ellis became injured and was thus taken off for Sid Nelson. Not much else happened in the first half after the Tranmere substitutions were made. There were only two slight chances remaining and they were both attacks for the visitors. Forward, on loan from Reading, Sam Smith tried to latch onto a short ball back to the keeper but Morris was able to clear the ball away from his goal and wing-back Feeney’s deep cross was palmed into the path of Morris who tried to shoot but saw his effort blocked. 

HALF TIME; Crawley Town 3 Tranmere Rovers 0

The second half was more of a close contest, the hosts evidently more conservative in their playing style as they had already scored the goals that would see them be victorious over their visitors. Tranmere had the first attack of the second half, Sam Smith ran onto a long ball and was able to win a corner before Feeney’s cross was punched away. Smith was soon in action again, after he met a great pass from fellow forward James Vaughan. He tried to poke it past the keeper on the stretch but the ref soon blew for a foul. Smith received Tranmere’s first yellow card of the evening. At the other end, Davies got down well to his right to palm away Matthew’s shot. Frustrations flared through the Rovers players as it became more evident that they would return to Merseyside with no points, this frustration saw forward James Vaughan booked for a late tackle. The final Tranmere substitution of the game came within the final thirty minutes, forward Corey Blackett-Taylor replaced midfielder Jay Spearing as manager Mike Jackson aimed to get a goal to cause a late spot of bother for the hosts. This was Blackett-Taylor’s first involvement of the season so far. However, it was the hosts that came closest to scoring next as Powell fired a low cross into the box which was then scrambled away by the Rovers defence. Rovers forward Kieron Morris soon drove forward and shot from 25 yards but this attempt went sailing over the bar.  Tranmere’s final attack of the evening came when Feeney’s inswinging corner was caught by the keeper but the ref blew for a foul straight after. Crawley soon put the game to bed, in what was a terribly frustrating game for Tranmere. 

Full time; Crawley Town 4 Tranmere Rovers 0

If I am to be brutally honest I believe that the lack of passion, talent etc from the Tranmere players and the lack of intelligence from the Tranmere manager has to be questioned from what I witnessed over the course of the ninety minutes.

Tonight saw Tranmere’s heaviest fourth division defeat since the 6-0 hammering to Scunthorpe United in January 1987. This game also means that Tranmere have failed to score for the sixth time in nine league games. There are some big questions to answer over the course of the following few weeks.

Line-up:

Davies,Feeney,Ellis,Clarke,Ridehalgh,Macdonald,Spearing,Young,Morris,Vaughan,Smith

Murphy,O’connor(‘26),Nelson(34’),CBT(‘64),Banks,Khan,Burton

Stats:

Possession – 48%/52%

Shots – 18/5

Shots on target – 6/0

Corners – 5/4

Fouls – 17/19

Quotes from manager Mike Jackson after a very disappointing evening game in West Sussex:

“It’s disappointing with the goals we conceded because you then give yourself a massive uphill task to try and get back in the game. You’ve got to start the game better defensively and we had a couple of warnings with runners. I saw the guys have a go in the second half. They’ve had to try and regroup, it shocked them a little bit but I could see that they were trying to get back in the game. It was too late by then; they had a rally up and I said we needed to get the next goal- which we didn’t manage to do. What we need to do now is regroup. We’ve had a good meeting with the lads there and everyone had their say on what we need to be doing. It’s now about trying to improve on the basics, the consistency of the performance and everyone taking responsibility within that. They’re hurting. I don’t think that game tonight was anything about tactics at the start of the game. At the start of every game, you’ve got to make sure you’re defending properly and are available to get on the ball. There was no sign of that or any urgency, and we needed that. We go back to work now and will get back on the training pitch.” 

Tranmere are next in action on Saturday, they are set to face Derek Adam’s Morecambe in a league two fixture at Prenton Park.