Tranmere Rovers vs. Peterborough United match preview

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By Matthew Jones
September 2 2010
Total Tranmere brings you all the stats, facts and team news you need to know ahead of Saturday's League One match with our indepth Match Preview

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Copyright Historical Football Kits and reproduced by kind permission.

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Tranmere Rovers face Peterborough in League One at Prenton Park this weekend hoping to end a run of four successive home games without a win.

The Posh arrive at Prenton Park as one of the favourites for Promotion this season, and in Gary Johnson they have an experienced manager who know's what it takes to win promotion from this division, having previously done so with Bristol City, as well as having enjoyed success lower down the ladder with Yeovil Town.

Tranmere though will be hopeful of picking up at least a point after some encouraging signs against Accrington Stanley, as well as a late, confidence boosting come back against Dagenham Redbridge last weekend.

Peterborough United Factfile:

Ground: London Road
Formed: 1934
Nickname: The Posh
Manager: Gary Johnson
League Finish 2009/10: 24th (Championship)
Kit Colours: Blue shirt with white trim on sleeves, blue shorts with white trim and white socks with blue trim (home), red shirt with white trim on sleeves, red shorts and white socks with red trim (away), light blue and white striped shirt, black shorts with white trim and light blue socks with black trim (third kit)

Previous Meetings:

Tranmere and Peterborough last met during the 2008/09 season, a year which for Peterborough ended in promotion and for Tranmere ended in heartbreak as they finished seventh in the league, missing out on a play-off place by just two minutes.

Rovers and the Posh actually met four times that season, twice in the league and twice in the F.A. Cup, with the sides drawn against each other in the second round of the competition and after a 0-0 draw at London Road, Peterborough won the replay 2-1 thanks to an extra time winner from Craig MacKail-Smith, this after Aaron MacLean had equalised in injury time of the normal 90 minutes.

The league game at London Road came in September and also saw a comeback from Peterborough, as Darren Ferguson's side came from 2-0 down to draw 2-2.

Tranmere took the lead in the seventh minute as Chris Greenacre headed home Ian Goodison's cross, before the striker doubled Tranmere's lead on the half hour mark as he ran on to Bas Savage's header, rounded 'keeper Lewis and slotted home.

Peterborough pulled one goal back before the break, MacKail-Smith smashing home from George Boyd's cross with 41 minutes on the clock, whilst the striker came close after the break, twice forcing Coyne into good saves in the Tranmere goal.

Rovers' resistance was eventually broken though when on-loan defender Zakuani headed home Martin's corner with thirteen minutes left.

The Prenton Park meeting between the two sides came in March and for the third time that season, the game ended a stalemate as, again for the third time in the season, Peterborough came from behind to earn a 1-1 draw.

Tranmere took the lead on sixteen minutes when midfielder Charlie Barnett smashed the ball past Joe Lewis from a tight angle after Edds' deflected shot had fallen nicely for the former Liverpool man.

Jennings and Thomas-Moore both came close for Rovers before Craig MacKail-Smith scored his third goal of the season against Rovers with a shot that went through Achterberg and into the goal.

Vital Stats:

In 25 meetings between the two sides at Prenton Park, Tranmere have picked up twelve wins, with Peterborough victorious on seven occasions and six matches ending as draws

Tranmere have won just one of their last thirteen matches against the Posh

Rovers have netted 39 times in their 25 home games against Peterborough, with The Posh scoring 21 times

Tranmere have won two of the six September meetings between these two sides, with two games drawn and Peterborough winning on two occasions

Seven of the last twelve games between these two sides have been drawn

On This Day:

2007: Morecambe win on their first even visit to Prenton Park, beating Rovers 1-0 in the Football League Trophy

1993: Aldridge, Kenworthy and Muir score for Rovers in a 3-1 win over Notts County in Division One

1985: A 0-0 draw against Chester is not enough for Tranmere as they're knocked out of the League Cup 3-1 on aggregate

Tranmere have played 21 games on this day, picking up nine wins, seven defeats and five draws. In these 21 games, they have scored 35 goals and conceded on 33 occasions.

The Form Book:

Peterborough first two away games games: LW
Tranmere Rovers first four home games: LLLD

Having won three of their opening four league games, Peterborough United have so far justified the pre-season tips that they would be one of the teams challanging for automatic promotion this season.

The Posh however have only played two away games so far this season, with their only defeat to date coming on the road.

Gary Johnson's side started the season with successive wins, beating Bristol Rovers 3-0 at London Road, before knocking Rotherham United out of the League Cup thanks to a 4-1 victory.

The Posh however were then humbled in their next game, losing 5-1 to Bournemouth at Dean Court, before turning their form around for the next game as they beat Huddersfield Town 4-2 at London Road.

Peterborough then booked their place in the Third Round of The Carling Cup, where they will meet Swansea City (who of course defeated Tranmere) thanks to a 2-1 win over Cardiff, before in their most recent game, Peterborough beat Plymouth Argyle 3-0.

Gary Johnson's side come to Prenton Park lying second in NPower League One, having picked up nine of an available twelve points thanks to three wins and a defeat from their opening four games.

Tranmere Rovers have not had the best start to the season, having lostthree and drawn one of their opening four home matches this season, and having won just once in their opening seven matches.

However, Rovers have, on the main, looked stronger with each passing game and will hope that soon their strikers begin to click and start banging in the goals.

Rovers started the season with a 2-1 defeat to Oldham Athletic before picking up their only win of the season to date as Ian Goodison scored in a 1-0 win over Walsall in the Carling Cup.

Tranmere Rovers Ian Goodison celebrates scoring their opening goal

Tranmere then drew 0-0 at the Galpharm Stadium against big spending Huddersfield Town, but all the hard work done in those two games was undone by a 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth a week later.

Rovers then lost, undeservedly, to Swansea City in the Carling Cup second round, with the Championship side recovering from 1-0 down to win 3-1, before Rovers came from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Dagenham and Redbridge.

In their most recent game, Tranmere were knocked out of the Football League Trophy on penalties, losing 5-3 to Accrington Stanley after the game had ended 1-1 in normal time, with Enoch Showunmi scoring for Rovers, his third goal in as many games.

Rovers then come into this game in 22nd place in League One, having picked up just two points from an available twelve in their opening four games, whilst they have won one, drawn two and lost three of their six games so far this campaign.

Double Hit:

Colin Clarke is a former Northern Ireland international striker who represented both Tranmere Rovers and Peterborough United in his career.

Starting his career with Ipswich Town, Clarke failed to make an appearance for the Tractor Boys, moving to Peterborough in 1981.

Clarke stayed with the Posh for three years, and spent time on loan at Gillingham whilst with the club. He made a total of 82 appearances and scored eighteen times for Peterborough before joining Tranmere Rovers in 1984.

Staying for just one season on the Wirral, Clarke netted an impressive 22 goals in 45 games for the club, and it was to Tranmere's regreat that he didn't stay for longer as he joining Bournemouth in 1985.

Again, Clarke was only with the club for a year, as after moving up from Division Four to Division Three, he netted 26 times in 46 games and was quickly snapped up by Division One side Southampton.

A three year stay with the Saints saw him net 36 goals in 82 games before he re-joined Bournemouth and then laterly QPR and Portsmouth before retiring in 1993.

A terrific goalscorer, Clarke also scored 13 goals in 38 games for Northern Ireland before he retired for playing to embark on a coaching career.

To this day, Clarke is still in the game as a coach, and having managed the likes of FC Dallas in the MLS, he now coaches the Puerto Rico national team, as well as Puerto Rican league side the Puerto Rico Islanders.

One To Watch:

With five goals already this season, Craig MacKail-Smith is one of the men to watch for Peterborough on Saturday afternoon.

The striker, who has history already against Rovers having scored against them three times during the 08/09 season, showed himself to be a star performer in this division as he helped Peterborough to promotion that year, and is already showing his ability and goalscoring form this year.

The 26-year old started his career with St. Albans City before moving on to Arslesey Town in 2003, netting 17 times in 54 games for the club.

A year later, he secured himself a transfer to Dagenham and Redbridge for an undisclosed fee, where he established himself as a consistent and threatening performer in Non League football.

Having scored 38 times for the club from 106 appearances in the league, MacKail-Smith moved to Peterborough United for an undisclosed fee in January 2007 and has quickly become one of the most clinical finishers in the lower leagues.

Craig Mackail-Smith, Peterborough United

In his first full season with the club, MacKail-Smith netted nineteen times, including four goals in an F.A. Cup tie against Staines Town, before netting 26 times in the following campaign as he helped Peterborough to promotion for the second year running.

The goals practically dried up last season as Peterborough struggled and were relegated from the Championship, but this season the striker has once again shown his goalscoring prowess, and has, to date, netted 69 times in 162 games for the club.

MacKail-Smith wears the number twelve shirt for Peterborough, and along with Aaron MacLean, who has also netted five times this season, he is sure to be a tough opponent for Tranmere's defenders on Saturday.

Around League One:

There are eleven fixtures in NPower League One this weekend, with Brighton's game against Plymouth the only absentee after the game was postponed due to international call ups.

Carlisle vs. Swindon
Dagenham and Redbridge vs. Leyton Orient
Exeter vs. Charlton
Huddersfield vs. Bournemouth
MK Dons vs. Hartlepool
Notts County vs. Yeovil
Oldham vs. Bristol Rovers
Southampton vs. Rochdale
Tranmere vs. Peterborough
Walsall vs. Colchester
Brentford vs Sheffield Wednesday (Sunday)

Team News:

The injury problems continue to mount for Les Parry, who saw John Welsh limp off at half time against Accrington with a calf injury that will see him miss this game.

Captain Welsh joins Gunnar Nielsen, Simon Miotto, Marlon Broomes, Ashton Taylor, Alan Mahon, Joss Labadie, Nick Wood and Paul McLaren who will all miss the game through injury too, whilst Ian Thomas-Moore, Ian Goodison and Timothy Cathalina are also doubts for the game.

With nine players missing then, and a further three doubtful, Les Parry has a selection headache ahead of him, made even tougher by his small squad.

Andy Coughlin is set to take Simon Miotto's place on the bench, whilst loan signings Arnaud Mendy and Jermaine Grandison could both start and make their league debut's for Tranmere.

Ryan Fraughan is expected to start for the third game running in midfield, whilst Kayelden Brown, Lucas Akins and Adam McGurk are also all set to start, though one of these could be dropped if Ian Thomas-Moore is fit enough to play.

Jones' Prediction: Tranmere 1-1 Peterborough United

This will be a tough game for Tranmere against one of the best sides in the division, and with all our injury problems, it'll definitely be backs against hte wall for Les Parry's side.

With Peterborough in such fine form and Tranmere struggling to pick up results at home, it's hard to see Rovers winning this game, but last season this is just the kind of fixture they did win, against the likes of Southampton and Norwich City.

For that reason, I'm predicting Tranmere will sneak a draw in this game. Of late, the defence has looked stronger, especially since Max Blanchard moved back there, whilst Rovers look more capable of scoring too, with Enoch Showunmi scoring his third goal in as many games on Tuesday night against Accrginton Stanley.

The problem for Tranmere though remains in midfield, and with the likes of John Welsh, Ash Taylor and Joss Labadie all set to miss the game, Rovers could well be over run by their opponents, who certainly have a strong midfield to go with a hugely profitable attack.

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Tranmere Rovers vs. Peterborough United match preview

Posted by: Total Tranmere (IP Logged)

Date: 02/09/2010 23:31

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