Tranmere (h) - League - 28th December 2004

[Andy]

After Hull gave them a thumping last weekend, can we do the same?

[Stu]

You've got to feel sorry for Tranmere, by the 46th minute and with the scores at 1-0, they were using their 3rd keeper of the match.

Starting keeper Achterberg went off injured after being on the end of a hefty challenge. New keeper came on, first thing he did was pick the ball out the net, he then gets hit with a hefty challenge and doesn't re-appear after half time. They stick Theo Whitmore in goal (think he is a central midfielder) and he concedes 5 in 45 minutes.

[Magic Man Fan]

It said on Sky he conceded more goals in 45 minutes than he's scored all season :)

A lot will depend on who they get in on loan. If they can't get anybody and they have to play their 18 year old third choice we might get lucky. I really think we can beat both Wendy and Tranmere.

[Stu]

Maybe I'm being pessimistic, but I don't see us getting 3 points.

I've got us down to lose at Wendy. They cannot continue to bottle in front of their home fans, sooner or later they'll come good as they're quite clearly a good side. If they had a home record like ours, they'd be well out in front I think.

Whilst I think Tranmere will be a real test, 1 points.

Those are based on my predictions that we're still nothing more than a mid-table side. Its these, and Brentford, that will determine whether our recent upturn in form is down to playing cack teams or because we've really turned the corner.

[Magic Man Fan]

Bradford are flying high Stu and we played them off the park. Its that I'm basing my optimism on although I agree we need to beat these teams coming up to prove we've got what it takes.

[Stu]

True, but Bradford had also lost 2/3 on the bounce since then AND were missing both their first choice strikers. Which is why although it was a great result, I don't neccessarily think it was a great result. Added to that, that despite our domination, we still dropped two points through our own doing.

[Magic Man Fan]

No probs...its about time we disagreed on a few things at the same time :lol:

[PerStener]

We will be victorious today.
victory 3-1 after a good battle

[PerStener]

Starting lineup.

Murphy

McShane, Emblen, Bennet, Aranalde

M Standing, S Osborn, D Wrack,

P Merson,

M Robinson, J Leitao


Subs: M Paston, M Wright, D Taylor, M Kinsella, J Broad


Wright on the bench and no Herivelto.

[LankeySaddler]

victory - pah we was useless today USELESS!!!! :evil:

[Neuromantic]

Hello there, just got back in, that today was awful, pathetic, shaemless, no passion - nothing.
I thibnk today showed mersons inexperience, where was the substitutes? We had taylor on the bench, a winger let us remember and we dont use him when we blatantly needed width, most narrow ive seen us this season.

Player ratings:

Murphy - Not much to do but poor handling of 2nd goal.
Zigor - see belew
Emblen - good
Bennett - good
Mcshane - showed inexperience not a right back?
Wrack - very poor
Osborn - busy best midfielder today
Standing - busy but ineffctual
Merson - nothing cam off, needs to do dimple thing more
Leitao - work ethic as normal ut never looked like scoring
Robinson - no service

Wright - poor


the Zigor section

Absoloutely disgraceful performance today, worst ive seen of a walsall player for some time. no passion, cant cross, awful defending, backs off, to blame for second goal. Absolute waste of time and a no hoper, need to get rid and get some quality in on the left back position. Really i am lost for words for how bad he was today, well ive said this last few seasons - crap player. :twisted:

[Walsall Supporter]

Just back, the 0-2 score line, personally doesn't tell the true story, we didn't play that badly, just very poor defending and I thought Murphy was certainly at fault for their second, if not for their first goal.

Good crowd over 7200, shame the result was awful.

We had the run of play for quite a bit of the match, but never really got our act together in the box. The ref needed glasses and the one linesman needs to take his exams again. and they both missed blanant fouls againsnt our men.

C'est La Vie, here's to the next match

[Neuromantic]

i think one of the words that describes us today was - ineffectual

[Dave Gittins]

We could and should have gone in at half time in the lead. Merson came close and I felt that Tranmere should have been reduced to 10 men when Leitao was chopped from behind on the edge of the box when clean through - the ref saw nothing wrong with this.

Second half was a completely different story, Aranalde was very poor today, one of his worst games for a long time. Midfield couldn't get a grip, Leitao and Robinson ran but got no service at all. As Wednesbury has already said nothing came off for Merson.

We are still in need of cover for right back, McShane did a reasonable job until he had to go off but Mark Wright is definately not a right back, he is too lightweight in that position.

When it became transparently obvious second half that Tranmere had got the measure of us that should have been the time to change things around, as has already been said Merson's managerial inexperience showed through by failing to make any changes at all.

The play offs are starting look a bit out of reach again.

[rolo]

merson on radio dingle "i pay good money to the defenders to close the ball down". he's having a laugh.we never close down.that's how they got both goals.ziggy as to be dropped after this non performance.

[Neuromantic]

Zigor to be sacked and pillaged after tht performance! Disgraceful!

[Neil Ravenscroft]

But, on the other hand, in the WM interview, Merson had a go at players for "hiding" when we went behind. As he was the biggest culprit himself, that's a bit rich.

[ShropsSaddler]

Couldn't agree more Neil. The performance was absolutely inspired by the manager. If things go against you, put your hands on your hips and look fed up! That attitude spread to 5 or 6 of he players today. The only ones to come out of that game withany credit were;
McShane - made a couple of superb last ditch tackles
Emblen - superb performance
Bennett - worked hard
Osborn - the best of the midfielders. Why don't people start booing Standing and Wrack instead! Osborn was always available for the ball and didn't hide from the game at all.

The rest were very poor. No service to the front two but they didn;t try to create anything either.

[WSOne]

Murphy was at fault for their second but to be fair the sand pit in front of him didn't help!
Emblen had another good game but McShane wasn't that convincing at right-back.
Aranalde was absolutely shocking. Not sure why Merse dropped Herivelto. Anyone know?
Just about summed up the thieving Scousers when one of them tried to nick the match ball!

[r_a_perks]

was on WM that Merson couldnt get a licence for herivelto.

Merse is very much looking forward to the pace he will add though

[Neil Ravenscroft]

Just about sums it up as far as I'm concerned. There we were, still playing extremely narrow, against a team playing 3 5 2 and very wide, so their wing backs must have thought all their Christmases had come at once. At half time, it's crying out for a change. Did we get one? Did we buggery. Instead we carry on with the ineffectual tactics, while they get more and more confident and we look less and less like changing anything, mainly because it's more of the same on the bench. The one day we need Herivelto there, he isn't picked. (On WM it was Nhelko Merson was talking about not being available because of his work permit not arriving yet, not Harry).

Your four are the four I'd have picked as the only decent performers on the day, with Emblen just shading Osborn for man of the match (for us, that is).

[Redordead]

Zigor must have had a pedometer for xmas and was just checking how far he could walk in 90 minutes. I wouldn't even give him 1 out of 10.
I said to my son he deserved shooting for that performance the reply "that's no good he might survive that" came back. Just about sums it up

[Exile]

Was hoping our Indian Summer would turn into a full-blown recovery. Doesn't look like it's going to happen. Still too many questions and not enough answers. Christmas games make or break a season, and ours is being well and truly broken.

[geoffwhiting]

I have no words at the moment to describe my anger at this debacle against a team that, at half-time, I described as very ordinary and expressed amazement that they were in the top four or five.

I became more and more angry as the second half wore on and absolutely nothing was being done to change things around.

Up front we were doing nothing at all - except the out-of-the-blue effort from (?) Jorge (?) that smacked off the post.

By the end I was absolutely seething - no substitutes brought on even though we became progessively more and more inept. Was it managerial inexperience? Who knows, but surely if Merson couldn't see that changes were needed, Frank Barlow should have. I just kept staring at the bench and wondering when someone would start warming-up, but apart from the enforced change when McShane was injured, there was no sign.

I agree with others about the decent players today, Emblen, Bennett, Osborn - please don't let me hear anyone criticise Ozzie today. But Zigor? - positively lost for much of the game.

[Neil Ravenscroft]

ucow has pointed out on another thread that Zigor has, in fact, picked up a rib injury and was struggling to run (which explains a lot when you think about it.). Howver, it doesn't explain as to why the hell he wasn't subbed, if that was the case!

[Neuromantic]

never knew Zigor has a had a rib injury fro the last 4 years? :D

Totally agree geoff as always!

[salty saddler]

I am surprised just how little comment there has been on the abysmal performances put in by Joe Murphy. He has lost us more points through errors than Wright, Arinalde and Roper put together in the last ten matches. 'Hell Joe' gave them them two goals today. Time for Mick Kearns to prove his worth. As goalkeeper coach has he been involved in recruiting the recent rash of disatsers who have tried to stand in for Wacca?
Osborne showed nothing to merit selection.
Robinson's lack of effort, interest and inability to hold the ball was infinitely worse than anything produced by Gary 'no goals' Birch.
Step forward. Herivelto, Fryatt and Paston and we will still make it to Cardiff.

[Neuromantic]

salty u got a brain? Get off Ozzies back cos he put ina good performance today, give the lad credit

[sj]

Geoff got to disagree with you on this one. Tranmere were a good footballing side. Midfield is where we lost it today. We were simply out battled. We were weak they were strong. We were slow on the break they were swift. We didn't give the man on the ball an option they gave three or four.

We were beaten by a better team, thats football.

Agree with you about the subs though and with others about the lack of width. We should have Harried them.

[salty saddler]

sj (and others)
...in goal was where we lost it (again) today.
Murphy is useless.
Reflect and concur.