Colwyn Bay too had a few chances, with a couple of them created by Paul Henry, as terrible first touches saw him give the ball away in dangerous positions, but The Seagulls couldn't capitalise and as a result Collister was rarely tested, with any of their few shots going wide or over, whilst a break down the middle almost came ot a goal, but for Cresswell to brilliantly muscle the striker off the ball.

Rovers though did defend well, with the likes of Cresswell and Jones in particular commanding at the back, as they won several important tackles and headers against their taller opponents.

However, it was the home side who took the lead just before half-time, as a flowing move eventually saw the ball reach the left-winger who whipped in a good cross that was headed powerfully into the net by the number ten after Luke Waterfall had missed a header.

The second half was much more open, with both sides having several chances to change the scoreline, whilst both managers appeared to have told their places to calm down, as the hard tackles of the first half were no longer present.

The first goal of the second half was scored by Colwyn Bay, and it was probably the pick of the goals on the night. A quite superb ball was played over the Tranmere defence from midfield, splitting centre-backs Waterfall and Jones and allowing the Colwyn Bay striker to nip in and find the back of the net from just inside the penalty area.

With the hosts now two up, Tranmere's heads seemed to drop, and a third goal was only just around the corner. Inevitably, it soon came, and it was another fantastic goal, as The Bay scored a 25-yard free-kick, with the taker smashing it into the left-corner and once again leaving 'keeper Collister with no chance.

Colwyn Bay saw another chance go unluckily over, before Josh MacAughley missed a simple chance for Rovers. The striker picked up an immaculate pass from Ryan Fraughan on the edge of the area and rounded the 'keeper before smashing his chance wide, whilst a few minutes later Aaron Cresswell hit one effort horribly wrong, sending the ball high and wide into the fields behind the goal.

Rovers boss Shaun Garnett made four subsitutes, with Ashton Taylor and Josh MacAughley amongst those replaced, and first year scholars including Ashcroft and McReth joining the action.

Said subsitutes made an immediate impact, with McReth scoring a fantastic solo effort. The youngster showed increadible pace, skill and ball control to sprint down the left-wing, cut inside past several defenders and score from an increadibly tight angle inside the penalty area.

Few chances remained in the game, although Rovers almost scored when a looping back-pass from a Colwyn Bay defender went horribly wrong, forcing the 'keeper to leap up and catch the ball. From the resulting indirect free-kick, Aaron Cresswell saw his powerful effort blocked.

The game then finished in a 3-1 defeat for Tranmere, although the youngsters could hold their heads high after putting in a good display against a much stronger, taller and more mature opposition.

Although the formation leaving just MacAughley upfront might need to be worked on, the likes of Wilson, Corrigan and Jones put in good performances, whilt Aaron Cresswell was the pick of the Tranmere players on the night.

However, Ashton Taylor looked indifferent in midfield as opposed to defence where he has played for the last 18-months, whilst Paul Henry was poor on the night, his first touch letting him down on several occasions, and Ryan Fraughan was fairly anonymous.