Prenton Park blockbuster worthy of the big screen

Nov 17 2008 by Nick Hilton, Liverpool Daily Post

IF only this one had been on the telly, then the nation’s armchair football fans would have gained a very different impression of Tranmere Rovers than the one they took from watching last Thursday’s grinding FA Cup replay win over Accrington on Setanta.

The 5,019 paying customers inside Prenton on Saturday were regally entertained and kept on the edge of their seats until the final whistle.

The game had cracking goals, bizarre goals and a torrent of near misses, mostly in the Southend goalmouth, not to mention a subplot of rising tensions that led to two red cards in the final 20 minutes.

Tranmere, putting together the most compelling 45 minutes of attacking football they have produced all season, should have had the contest won by half-time. Five goals before the interval would not have flattered Ronnie Moore’s team. They had to settle for the two finished with finesse by Ian Moore and Bas Savage in the opening quarter hour and still could not take an advantage as Southend replied with a pair of goals that owed much to good fortune.

Rovers, rather than being fatigued by a second game in three days, were energised. Some of their football fizzed like champagne released from a shaken bottle.

After a run of games in which goals had become scarce at both ends of the field, this was a timely reminder of Tranmere’s potential to play exciting football. The Prenton Park regulars showed their appreciation with a rousing ovation at the final whistle, even though the result was a disappointment.

There were several positive elements at work. The manager tweaked the team’s tactics by adding an extra attacking player, Chris Greenacre, and they returned to playing a 4-4-2 formation with relish.

Southend, one of the better teams in League One, came with positive intentions of their own.

The result was a good advert for League One football but not a perfect one, because players on both sides lost some discipline and referee Craig Pawson lost some control in the final phase.

The source of most of the aggravation was a running battle between Tranmere skipper Antony Kay and Southend’s Lee Sawyer. The pair took a dislike to each other from fairly early on and niggling exchanges of words, pushes, prods and tackles escalated.

Kay was on a yellow card from the 11th minute for a mistimed challenge on Southend full-back Dan Harding. Sawyer went into the book on the half-hour for a foul on Kay.

Each of them diced with a second yellow but it was Southend striker Francis Laurent and Tranmere midfielder Steve Jennings who made the misjudgements that cost them dismissals.

No player could have taken more satisfaction from the afternoon than Aaron Cresswell. The 18-year-old followed up his first league appearance at MK Dons a fortnight earlier with a strong an enterprising performance on his home debut.

The left-back showed a sweet left foot when he strikes a dead ball and went close to giving Tranmere a fourth minute lead. Southend goalkeeper Adam Federici did well to keep Cresswell’s curling freekick out of the top corner.

Four minutes later Moore put Tranmere ahead by meeting a low right wing cross from Chris Shuker with a perfectly struck volley into the bottom corner.

The visitors drew level with their first attack on 10 minutes. Kevin Betsy opened up Tranmere with a diagonal run across the penalty area. His low cross ricocheted off the back of the Alex Revell’s legs and looped over Danny Coyne and dropped into the net.

Tranmere responded by regaining the lead on 14 minutes when Savage cleverly made space 22 yards out to fire a right foot shot around three markers and beyond Federici’s dive into the bottom right-hand corner.

Southend had to hang on desperately for the next 20 minutes. Moore fired over from 15 yards after being set up by Savage, who then blazed high from much closer range. Federici kept Jennings’ rising shot out with a sprawling save, Moore missed the target after good work by Shotton, then crossed for Kay’s header to force Federici into another good save.

Much to Tranmere’s frustration, Southend levelled for a second time of 35 minutes. This time the visitors earned some of their luck as Hal Robson-Kanu’s fierce 25 yard shot crashed against the upright. Ian Goodison hesitated, allowing Betsy to block his attempted clearance, which rebounded past a startled Coyne into the net.

Tranmere went close to regaining the lead as Kay stabbed Cresswell’s cross wide, Greenacre’s diving header just missed the target and Savage had a penalty appeal turned down.

Southend delivered a couple of reminders of their own threat on the break but the visitors lost much of their appetite for going forward after a Laurent’s 71st minute dismissal. The striker aimed a head but at Ryan Shotton. Twelve minutes later Jennings followed him down the tunnel.

Pawson looked to have played the advantage rule in allowing Sawyer’s tackle on Kay and then Jennings late tackle on Sawyer to pass unpunished. But the South Yorkshire official changed his mind, and after consulting with an assistant, raised a second yellow and the red card to Jennings.