We can’t worry about other teams, says Tranmere’s Danny Holmes

Feb 14 2013 by Nick Hilton, The Liverpool Post

TRANMERE should not be worried about losing pole position in the League One table as much as putting their own game right, says Danny Holmes.

Rovers will attempt to regain some momentum after three defeats in four games when they play host to Shrewsbury Town tomorrow.

A victory could lift them back to the top of the table, a position they lost after Bournemouth and Doncaster Rovers edged ahead of them in midweek.

Full-back Holmes said: "We just need to concentrate on getting our own performances right and let the other teams take care of themselves. We can't get too worried about what teams around us are doing.

"We've got home games coming up against Shrewsbury and Swindon Town (next Tuesday) and we need to win them both. Our performances at home have not been good in recent games and we have to put that right.

"We want to go back to Prenton Park, give a performance for the fans to get behind and get the result we want."

Holmes acknowledges Tranmere need to come faster out of the blocks at the beginning of games, having paid a high price for sluggish starts in recent matches.

He said: "We need to start games on the front foot. If we can start games in the way we have been playing in the second half, we should be all right. Maybe at home we have just turned up and expected to win games. You can't do that in this league because any team can beat any other on the day."

Tranmere will be without the attacking threat of Jean-Louis Akpa Akpro for the Shrewsbury and Swindon games as the French striker serves out a three match suspension for his dismissal in the defeat to Carlisle.

Manager Ronnie Moore has concerns over the fitness of midfielders Andy Robinson (back) and Adam McGurk (sciatica).

New leaders Bournemouth are now clear favourites to win promotion to the championship, quoted at 9/4-on by some major bookmakers.

Tranmere, quoted at 9/4 to win promotion, are sixth in the betting, behind Bournemouth, Swindon, Doncaster, Sheffield United and Brentford.

The bookmakers favour Bournemouth because they have momentum (five straight wins) and powerful financial backing from Russian investor Maxim Demin, a multimillionaire petrochemicals trader who bought a 50% stake in the club last season.

Holmes secured his own future at Prenton Park by signing a new two and a half year contract at the end of last week.

The 24-year-old, a Rovers fan who grew up little more than a mile from the ground in Woodchurch, had no hesitation in agreeing a new deal, in spite of being linked with moves to Glasgow Rangers and Liverpool last year.

Holmes said: "It was pretty easy to negotiate a contract because I wanted to stay here. To get it done early is good for me because now I can just concentrate on trying to play well for the club.

"It was always in my mind to re-sign. I would love to help push this club into the Championship. If we do that, we will be at the level I want to play at with Tranmere, a club I love."