By Deadly Submarine
March 7 2005

It had been dubbed as the game that would go some way, if not all the way to deciding which team would take the final automatic promotion slot in League One but after such a great early start, this game went horribly pear shaped for Tranmere who are now staring the play-offs square in the face.

 

As Prenton Park filled up beyond it usual ranks, the anticipation of what was to come was high with some home fans firmly believing that today was the day that the promotion race would be blown wide open.  Going into the game, Rovers found themselves four points behind second placed Hull City meaning that a win would close the gap to just a single point but an almost unthinkable defeat would render a seven point gap and little hope of an automatic slot.

 

It all looked rosy for the home faithful when Rovers took a 7^th minute lead through a Ryan Taylor free-kick but despite them continuing to edge the first half, their frustrating knack of late of losing early leads once again came back to haunt them as they gifted Hull an equaliser just two minutes before half-time.  A defensive mix up involving Taylor and Goodison allowed Ellison to round Achterberg and score.  Tranmere shot themselves in the foot twice more in the second half allowing first ex-Rover Jason Price and then new signing Craig Fagan to score which out the game beyond them.

 

Tranmere made two changes to the side that started the 1-1 draw with Bournemouth last week with the suspension of defender Mike Jackson resulting in a defensive re-shuffle.  Ian Goodison moved in from left back to central defence in place of Jackson whilst Gareth Roberts moved from left midfield to left defence.  This meant a start for Theo Whitmore who played in the left midfield berth for this game – the second time this season he’s played out of position against Hull. 

 

Tranmere’s other change was Eugene Dadi returning from a groin injury to replace Chris Dagnall upfront.  Dagnall was joined on the bench by Gary Jones, Danny Harrison, Steven Jennings and Russell Howarth.  Hull City’s new signing, striker Craig Fagan had to be content with a place on the bench whilst former Tranmere player Jason Price made a surprise start for the Tigers.

 

Tranmere began the match the better side and after only two minutes a Ryan Taylor cross was headed wide by Iain Hume.  As Rovers looked exciting going forward and Hull were as yet not really in the game, hopes were high for the home fans.  It got so much better after just seven minutes when Hume was fouled some way outside the Hull penalty area and as Taylor stood over the free kick my last words were ‘this is going over the bar’ as the Rovers Number 2 has been known to do quite often.  How wrong could I have been? Ryan Taylor struck a sweet free kick that beat keeper Boaz Myhill and Prenton Park erupted into joy.

 

After the goal, Rovers continued to have the better of the game throughout the first half and it looked as if three points from the game was a distinct possibility.  We should have known better as Tranmere’s knack of throwing away leads again came back to kick them where it hurts once again and what a terrible throw away it was.  Taylor and Goodison got in a mix up just outside the Rovers area that allowed former Chester player Kevin Ellison to nip in and round John Achterberg for the equaliser.

 

The timing of the Hull goal was a kick in the teeth but Tranmere still had it all to fight for in the second 45 minutes.  The start of the second half was a tight affair but it would be fair to say that Rovers never looked totally uncomfortable with what Hull had to throw at them.  However after having been pegged level by a defensive slip in the first half, Tranmere found themselves behind just after the hour after more defensive frailties.  The Rovers back line seemed to hesitate as the Tigers pushed forward and Achterberg inexplicably came charging almost thirty yards out of his goal allowing Jason Price to score from distance into an empty net.

 

Brian Little threw on Chris Dagnall on 68 minutes in place of Dadi in an attempt to claw back but just a minute later the game was effectively over as substitute Craig Fagan scored on his debut after a through ball by Tigers captain Ian Ashbee.  Rovers collapsed and lost any shape they had and the scoreline could have been worse when Ellison hit the bar from distance and the ball rebounded to Price who headed over the bar.

 

Hall had a late chance for Rovers but it was not to be and their promotion hopes are now effectively over.  They also slipped down to fourth place on Sunday after Sheffield Wednesday’s fourth straight League win, 2-0 at home to Doncaster.