By Deadly Submarine
April 5 2008
Deadly Submarine takes a brief look and gives his views on this afternoon's 2-1 defeat at Walsall which damaged Rovers' play-off hopes as Leeds leapfrogged them into sixth place and still have a game in hand as do many of the Teams around Tranmere in the League.
Walsall 2 - 1 Tranmere R
Weather Report
Sunshine and hailstones in the West Midlands - a typical Spring day all in all really but pretty cold, especially into the second half!
Crowd
5,745 at the Bescot (now Bank's) Stadium and most of the noise seemed to come from the 760 Away Fans in one end of the Ground - the Walsall fans were asleep for most of it apart from when appealing for ridiculous decisons.
Referee Watch
Carl Boyeson (Yorkshire) - My main gripe would be the inconsistency of the referee and his assistants but the penalty and red card were the correct decision and he did not in my opinion cost us the game, especially as the subsequent penalty was saved. A few decisions should have gone Rovers' way in the second half but not as bad a performance as some Rovers fans will make out - 6/10
Best Moment
The early goal was a great moment but Danny Coyne's penalty save made it feel (for a few minutes) like maybe it was going to be our day at the Bescot.
Funniest Moment
Seeing the Clown outside the Stadium was quite funny but little did we know then that Walsall would have an even bigger one playing Number 28 for them today.
Tranmere Man of the Match
Danny Coyne - A crucial penalty save and a number of other great stops kept the score-line down as Rovers battled with ten men after the red card.
Opposition's Main Man
Edrisso Sonko - Substituted early in the second half but had a great game when he was on the field and he's the one who stood out for me.
Connections
Once again there were no connections from the past between the two playing squads this week.
Rovers Fans
760 Rovers Fans made a lot of noise at times and deserved a better result than they witnessed.
Summary
After going ahead early, Rovers allowed too much pressure thereafter resulting in a penalty and red card incident which should have served as a warning.
Despite the penalty save there was yet more pressure and the equaliser was only four minutes in coming. The winning goal was a great effort from the substitute and despite a late rally, the result damaged Rovers' remaining hopes of a play-off place.
Entertainment Value
An early goal, a penalty, a red card, an own goal and a great third goal. This game had it all in terms of entertainment but sadly the result was the wrong one. - 8/10
Atmosphere
The atmosphere was average as a whole but the Superwhite Army made lots of noise and got behind their beleaguered team till the end - 6/10
Link to Ronnie Moore's Post-Match Comments
Link to Walsall Match Stats and Information
