Many Happy Returns to Tranmere…
Morecambe made a nostalgic trip to the Wirral Peninsula today to visit Tranmere Rovers’ Prenton Park. It was nostalgic for two reasons. The last time the Shrimps played here, Derek Adams’ team won to put themselves just one match away from the Play-Off Final at Wembley and two games away from promotion to League One for the only time in their history. Secondly, for Morecambe boss Ged Brannan, this was a return to a former stomping ground at which he spent almost ten years as a player. He made 238 appearances for Rovers altogether (during which time he scored no less than twenty goals) before being transferred for a massive quarter of a million pounds to Manchester City in March 1997. Our Ged wondered – publicly – what sort of reception he would get here tonight after Morecambe’s relatively easy home win over seemingly doomed Sutton last Saturday. Inevitably, it would be mixed: many home supporters in the ground this evening wouldn’t have a clue who he is, given the over half a century which has elapsed since he was one of their own.
Just prior to Ged’s time with them, Tranmere’s goalkeeper was Nigel Adkins. Later, the native of Birkenhead would graduate as a physiotherapist at The University of Salford before joining Scunthorpe United and switching roles eventually to become their most successful Manager of recent years. (Favourite chant of the Irons at the time, referring to the particularly obnoxious Portuguese gentleman who was in charge of Chelsea at the time: “Who needs Mourinho?; We’ve got our Physio!”) Nigel’s star has waned a little over the years since taking Southampton to back-to-back promotions which ended in the Premiership but he was in charge of his home-town club – where his football career started as a 17-year-old – again this evening. Under his stewardship, they have won the relegation battle they were in when he switched from Technical Director to Manager last season but their form has been a bit iffy this season. They have won two of their last six League Two games but lost three, most recently at struggling Doncaster last Saturday, where they went down 2-1. They started tonight’s match in eighteenth position in the Division; five points and six places short of Morecambe but having played two games more. In their eleven previous encounters, Tranmere have beaten the Shrimps five times and lost to them four times, most recently in north Lancashire last August in the reverse fixture when they went down by the only goal of the match.
Morecambe went into this match on the back of three wins and a draw in their last six league games. Our Ged said this about what he expected as a result of tonight’s visit to his first professional club:
“When you’re round and about the Play-Offs; you’re doing a good job. I think we’re doing a good job. I want to go there and put a really good performance in for our players; for our fans; for the club. Hopefully, there’s no reason we can’t get three points and win the game. They’re a hard-working team; it’s going to be a really, really tough game. There’s no easy games in this league – I know everybody keeps saying that – but after looking at Sutton on Saturday: My God, it was a really tough game; battered and bruised after the game, the lads (were). It’s going to be another tough game – so we have to pull our sleeves up and put another performance in.”
It was dry and quite mild by the side of the Mersey as Morecambe started the game. Not a lot happened until the fourth minute. Then, a hopeful ball was punted forwards towards the half way line by Tranmere; Morecambe Skipper Jacob Bedeau made a half-hearted attempt to kick it away but, in doing so, allowed a far more determined Harvey Saunders to nick the ball and keep running towards the away penalty area on the Rovers’ right. He looked up and saw unmarked strike partner Rob Apter arriving right on cue at the far post, slipped the ball to him and it was the easiest of openers for the home team as the Blackpool loanee (who just happens to be Ged Brannan’s Godson) Apter tapped it home. With only nine minutes on the clock, Morecambe went two-nil down. The Super Whites were attacking up their left flank this time; the ball was played forward towards Saunders; he got in front of Chris Stokes in the penalty area – and Chris brought him down from behind with a badly-timed and frankly doomed challenge . It was an obvious penalty which Connor Jennings duly dispatched without any problem at all.
After that, though, Morecambe belatedly woke up – and they played nearly all the positive football from then until the end of the half. Julian Larsson – totally anonymous last Saturday – looked dangerous on the Shrimps’ left; the movement of Charlie Brown and Ged Garner up front was good and Joe Adams was again instrumental in midfield where Nelson Khumbeni also played his part. The visitors forced four corners during the half to Rovers’ none and also created some good chances, many of which – from Garner and Adams repeatedly – were well blocked by the men in the white strip. But the Shrimps managed to pull a goal back after just a quarter of an hour. Larsson cut-in from the left, constantly tried to find space for a shot and finally took one. It hit a defender but rebounded to Brown, who spun and immediately lashed it past Luke McGee in the home goal to reduce the arrears with a tremendous reaction volley. Two minutes later, Garner struck another fierce shot straight at the home goalkeeper, who did well to hold onto it. Then Julian tried his luck again with 25 minutes played – this time, his dipping volley from just inside the penalty area to the left of centre went flashing narrowly wide of McGee’s left-hand post, with the goalkeeper a mere bystander. Try as they might, though, Morecambe couldn’t find the opening to bring the scores back level and they trailed back to the Dressing Rooms a single goal in arrears.
The second half began as the first one had finished – Morecambe bossing the play and keeping a high press which saw most of the action confined to the Tranmere half. After 66 minutes, though, the hosts could – and should – have increased their lead. Apter found himself free on the right with a clear run on goal as an unmarked Saunders ran down the centre of the pitch alongside him, waiting for a tap-in. But the pass to allow him to finish never came – Apter greedily tried to take all the glory for himself which allowed Archie Mair to save bravely at his feet. With that golden opportunity squandered, Tranmere’s best chance to guarantee a win tonight was lost.
This is because Morecambe continued to ask nearly all the questions from here until the end of the game. Our Ged shook things up with the same substitutions he made on Saturday and one of the replacements – Jordan Slew- drew a good save from McGee after 79 minutes from close range. He missed the target with another tame effort just a minute later. But he wasn’t to be denied much longer. In the eighty-first minute, Adams was again influential on the Morecambe right before he slipped the ball to Senior on the wing. The full-back played a superbly angled ball low towards the far post where an unmarked Jordan was lurking to tap it home his time. Two-all – and deservedly so for Morecambe if only for their never-say-die attitude so far. And still the visitors continued to ask most of the questions. Having said that, Jennings only just missed the target in the 88th minute with a fierce strike before Senior forced a routine save from the home stopper right at the death.
Referee Ben Speedie added-on four minutes at the end of the game. It was in the final one of these when sub Gwion Edwards seemed to be lining himself up for a shot on goal centrally from about thirty yards out after brilliantly bringing-down a lofted aerial ball on the half-way line and charging forwards. He was unceremoniously stopped in his tracks, though, by substitute Paul Lewis, who was immediately booked for his trouble. The subsequent free-kick – although a long way out – was barely within striking distance of the goal. But the shot which substitute Jacob Davenport came up with – a looping, powerful effort right up into the top corner of the net high to McGee’s right – was simply out of this world. What a time to score your first goal for the club…
So from seemingly self-inflicted disaster, Morecambe battled back to take all three points against the Super White Army tonight and – in doing so – enjoyed their second Double in a row. It is said that you can’t give a side a two-goal lead and expect to win. Normally, this is nearly always the case – but not tonight. It was a really well-deserved win – despite the catastrophic first ten minutes, Morecambe were the better, more creative team throughout the evening.
The latest win on the road pushed the Shrimps up to eleventh in League Two. The loss saw Tranmere drop to eighteenth in the table. With an ending as frenetic and exciting as the one witnessed at Prenton Park tonight, Ged Brannan probably needed peeling off the Dressing Room ceiling at the end. But this is what he said about tonight’s outstanding win when he finally calmed down sufficiently to speak to the media:
“We started the game quite well but gave two silly goals away. We played really, really well first half. It kills you when you get beat (with) a goal like that late on, it really does. I seen him lining up: I’m thinking “Don’t shoot; don’t shoot! – just whip it in!” And there we go – right in the top corner. And I got booked for it – I never moved a muscle: all the staff are on the pitch – and I got booked! I thought we were the better team tonight, overall. It’s good to come back here and get a win!””
Tranmere Rovers: 1 Luke McGee; 2 Lee O’Connor (21 Josef Yarney 81’); 5 Tom Davies (C); 6 Jordan Turnbull; 7 Kieron Morris (Y) (11 Josh Hawkes (Y) 68’); 8 Regan Hendry (Y); 18 Connor Jennings; 19 Harvey Saunders (Y) (14 Kristian Dennis 87’) ; 23 Reece McAlear (22 Paul Lewis (Y) 67’); 25 Rob Apter; 27 Connor Wood.
Substitutes not used: 13 Joe Murphy; 12 Charlie Jolley; 26 James Norris.
Morecambe: 30 Archie Mair; 3 David Tutonda; 4 Jacob Bedeau (C); 8 Joe Adams (Y); 9 Ged Garner; 11 Julian Larsson (14 Jordan Slew 61’); 12 Joel Senior; 15 Chris Stokes; 18 Jake Taylor (16 Jacob Davenport 75’); 20 Charlie Brown (19 Gwion Edwards 62’); 38 Nelson Khumbeni (Y) (6 Yann Songo’o 75’).
Substitutes not used: 21 Adam Smith; 22 Kayden Harrack; 23 Max Melbourne.
Ref: Ben Speedie.
Att: Unknown (About 400 from Morecambe.)
