Tranmere Rovers 4 - Torquay United 1

Dadi                           Akinfenwa

McAteer

Jones

Hall

Not the best game to go to if it was your first. Huge amount of possesion by Tranmere but they weren't able to cap something of at all in the first half. But the better team easily won on the day.

Tranmere stick with a 4-4-2 formation, to much of the dismay to a majority of the fans. Mark Rankine wasn't even on the bench after he was still 50% fit. Whitmore was dropped to the bench and Harrison and Hall came in. Both Hume, suspension, and Dagnall, fitness, were left out and Eugene Dadi and Jones were put in their place to form the striking partnership.

The game was slow, but controlled by Tranmere. And before even quarter of an hour was played, Eugene Dadi picked up the ball. He turned and gave himself space and took on the last defender and driven the ball low into the corner of the net from the outside of the box.

The one time Rovers made a mistake it cost them badly. Both Jackson and Sharps went for a ball, and both missed it leaving Torquay's Tony Bedeau with miles of space on the right flank. He raced down the pitch a crossed an average ball across the goal, but we didn't attack it and left it sail across to Adebayo Akinfenwa who headed in the ball, against the run of play.

Dadi was looking alot like the player we saw last season and impressed, but he recieved a dubious booking and Little didn't want any more suspension, so he took action at half time. Youngster Steve Jennings replaced him. Little now went back to a 3-5-2. Jennings went in the centre and Hall pushed upfront.

This gave Hall mountains of space and he used it well, changing the face of the game.

Tranmere didn't have lots of oppurtunities until, captain McAteer decided to take the game by the scruff of the neck. Picking up the ball, he found himself with acres of space. And before a defender could reach him he hit a low ball into the back of net.

Now Tranmere played better and Gary Jones shuold have made it a third, when Ryan Taylor crossed the ball into the box, Jones only had one defender on him woh was smaller than him, it was easy. Instead his heaer goes up and up into the Kop. But Jones did get his goal after good work form McAteer and Hall linking up, Hall pulled a through ball to Jones, who found himself with ample time and he neatly slotted in the ball.

There were plenty of chances and the game took another lift when supersub, Theo Whitmore came on. Straight away he looked skillfull and clever on the ball. He used his skill to get past the defenders and was one on one with the keeper when it just looked like he'd passed to him. The skill before did deserve a goal.

It might not have been Whitmore who got the last goal of the game, but it was his fellow countrymen, Paul Hall. This goal was made entirely by Hall. He saw his oppurtunity and seized it brilliantly to score the goal of the game. He jinxed past a number of player and still outside the box whipped the ball in the net, curling past the keeper. A brilliant way to cap of a man of the match performance.

My Man of the Match:

Paul Hall : At first didn't do much but as the game progressed so did he. Showing of why he should be in the team 24-7. Easily outplaying the opposition and showing great movement to create and start moves and caping his performance of withh a great goal.

Rovers Team  and Ratings :

Howarth 7, Taylor 7, Goodison 5, Sharps 6, Jackson 6, Hall 9, Roberts 8, McAteer 6 (Whitmore 6), Harrison 8, Jones 7, Dadi 7(Jennings 7)

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