Yeovil did a job on us’, admits Tranmere manager Parry

Feb 28 2011 by Nick Hilton, Liverpool Daily Post

Yeovil did a job on us’, admits Tranmere manager Parry

MANAGER Les Parry admitted: “Yeovil did a job on us” after Tranmere slipped to a 1-0 home defeat in front of the biggest crowd of the season at Prenton Park.

More than 8000 people, taking advantage of a £5 admission offer, saw Rovers lose to a 77th minute strike from Glovers’ midfielder Oliver Johnson.

Parry said: “Yeovil came to close the game down, packed the defence and hit us on the break and it worked. That’s not a criticism. They did a job on us.

“There are games like this. I know the crowd were not happy but it was never going to be an attractive game because of the way they approached it. There was very little we could do about that.

“You’ve got to try and grind results out of these situations and if we had to take a 0-0 then so be it. To concede a goal like that was devastating.”

Tranmere lost all three points after full-back Michael Kay, attempting to bring a headed clearance from goalkeeper Tony Warner under control near the touchline, surrendered possession to Johnson, who floated a long-range chip into the empty goal from a tight angle.

“You can’t take anything away from the lad, it was a great finish,” Parry said. “Michael did not put it on a plate for him.”

Tranmere’s third defeat in a row was not as costly as it could have been. Results elsewhere kept them six points clear of the League One relegation places. But Parry was concerned by a drop in performance level.

He said: “We went off the boil towards the end of the first half and we said to the lads at half-time that we needed to lift it. But it was always difficult. We needed to try and get the ball down and get it wide because that’s where the spaces were. But we were not doing that on a regular enough basis.

“Yeovil had four men sat in the middle of the back and Enoch Showunmi found it difficult to hold the ball up because of the number of bodies around him.

“I thought we lacked a bit of energy. It is always difficult when you feel you’re banging your head against a brick wall.”

Parry added: “I said to the lads after the game, I don’t mind taking responsibility for things and facing up to them. Sometimes you as players have to face up to them as well. Some will have to look at their performances and ask themselves the same question.”