Tranmere’s Joss Labadie is confident Rovers will bounce back to top form

Sep 15 2011 Liverpool Daily Post

MIDFIELDER Joss Labadie expects Tranmere to bounce back from successive League One defeats when they play host to Wycombe Wanderers this weekend.

Rovers lost their unbeaten home record in a 2-1 defeat to Carlisle United on Tuesday – four days after losing 2-0 to big spenders Huddersfield Town at the Galpharm Stadium.

But Labadie does not believe the two setbacks will change the course of Tranmere’s encouraging start to the campaign.

He said: “Wycombe are going to look at our last two results but we are not going to let that faze us.

“We are going to come out with all guns blazing and try to get back onto the winning track. I’m very confident we can do that on Saturday.

“No one likes to lose. We had a really good start to the season and we need to push on again after those two defeats.”

Labadie, back in the first XI against Carlisle after starting the Huddersfield game on the bench, featured prominently in Tranmere’s improved second-half showing.

The 21-year-old peppered the Carlisle goal with a succession of long-range efforts after Lucas Akins brought Tranmere back into the game with his 51st minute strike.

But Tranmere’s pressure did not bring an equaliser after the visitors struck twice in the first half.

“We gave Carlisle a two-goal start,” Labadie admitted. “We started the game quite well then let things get a bit lackadaisical. Those two goals killed us.

“We gave it a good go to get back into the game. I think I had three or four shots. I was just trying to hit the target. I’ve got a couple of goals this season and I want as many as possible.

“At half-time the gaffer and the coaching staff said we were not winning enough second balls and we had to address that. I thought we did pretty well and were the better team in the second half.”

Parry believes Labadie is facing a “big season” at Prenton Park. Labadie made such a positive impression during a nine-game loan spell from West Bromwich Albion towards the end of the 2009/10 campaign that he earned a two-year contract with Tranmere.

He played 39 games last season without always fulfilling the promise he showed in the loan spell. This season Labadie has been on the bench more often than the starting XI and lost his place at Huddersfield to 18-year-old prospect Max Power.

Parry said: “I had a sitdown with Joss last week and told him I need the old Joss Labadie back.

“I think he has been just that little bit off the pace. His performances have not been up to where they were in his first season and a few times last season.

“It is a big season for Joss because he is out of contract at the end of it. He needs to put in some performances either to stay here or get himself somewhere else.”

Parry acknowledges that scoring goals remains the issue causing most concern for the side. He will continue this week with his attempts to recruit a midfield or attacking player on loan to add creativity to the team in the absence of hamstring injury victims Andy Robinson and Martin Devaney.

“Lucas’s goal against CarlisleŠwas the first one we have had this season from a striker,” Parry said. “It is a little bit more of a worry if you are not creating chances. But once you create them, someone has to put them in.”

Two of the players Tranmere targeted as potential loan signings over the last week suffered training ground injuries before a move to Prenton Park could be arranged.

Parry added: “We will be looking. We need a player with a bit of craft and guile who can do what Andy Robinson does for us. But we also need to take a close look at the DVD of the Carlisle game and assess how we performed.”