The consequences of defeat this afternoon would have been little more than mild frustration, and the bounty of victory holds little more substance than a sound base for an enjoyable Saturday evening.

It’s easy to see why today sometimes felt more like a boozy third round FA Cup party than a ‘business end’ clash between two top-half sides.

Tranmere desperately needed a win to keep their play-off push on track and, to their credit, they deserved something from the game.

Temporarily free from the shackles of expectation and pressure Forest rolled into town and did just enough, riding the pressure with confidence.

The chances against us by far outweighed the ones we created but it never looked like being Tranmere’s day.

A hard-working display from the forwards, occasional gritty defending and plenty of good luck were enough to bag the points. Not what anybody could call a vintage display, but it was at least an enjoyable afternoon.

The early second half goal woke up the slumbering element of the travelling contingent and, certainly where I was standing, it was something of a carnival.

'Squaring up'

Frankly I didn’t take in a great deal of the second half football at all, it was far more amusing to watch the scousers turning scarlet with rage and ‘squaring up’ from 50 metres away.

Oh, that loveable scouse sense of humour eh?

Shirts were off, shoes were off, red and white tape was flying about and a small number managed to make a tremendous amount of noise by strategically thumping part of the Prenton Park roof.

I usually find monotonous thumping and ‘clap, clap, clap’ songs to be a tedious way of fashioning an atmosphere, but this afternoon in the sunshine it was thoroughly enjoyable.

On the back of a truly daunting non-event on Tuesday, and so much away day fury this season, it was exactly what a lot of people needed.

So why do I have absolutely no confidence whatsoever that we will get the job done so comprehensively when the pressure returns?

If we do win at Wembley (provided we are even there) I think I might just have a breakdown.

I just hope the players finally realise how crucial the next few weeks will be.

Ratings

Smith – 6 – steady, but all three or four efforts on target were simple.

Chambers – 6 – not a bad performance but he has to be partly responsible for McCleary being out of the game. Like many of his colleagues, Chambers is sometimes too comfortable with going sideways.

Breckin – 7 – useful in the air today, particularly in defending their constant wave of corners (I counted at least 10, and I wasn’t even paying full attention).

Morgan – 9 – he got absolutely everything right; this is a man at the very top of his game and I really hope he can keep it up – he’s the nearest thing we have to a “fan’s man” these days.

Bennett – 6 – full throttle, as ever, but I wish bookies would take bets on where his crosses will land – top left of the stand, or top right.

McCleary – 6 – looked useful in bitesize patches, but he wasn’t really involved. He’s an attacking winger, which I think we’re all happy about, but when he isn’t involved he needs to improve on coming deep to force the issue.

Perch – 6 – he was steady today, but in a high tempo, high pressure game I still want him as far away from the action as possible.

Clingan – 6.5 – besides squandering another useful set piece he was busy and competent.

Cohen – 7.5 – as hard-working as ever, but considerably more inventive.

Ormerod – 7 – he is doing a fantastic job for the football club. By no means does he send the crowd wild with excitement, but he’s extremely busy, and a genuinely good footballer.

Tyson – 7.5 – his confidence is coming back, and his pace gifted us the crucial first goal which effectively won us the game. He was bullied all day by “Goodison”, the unit, and this culminated in a jab to the face late on that went unnoticed by the referee. His frustration showed in a “2-0” gesture to the home fans at full time.

Subs:

Commons – 6.5

Thornhill – 6.5

Not a fantastic game, but a tremendously enjoyable outing and a good win.

Oh how I’d settle for a similar summary of a certain game in May.

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