Tranmere 4-2 Gillingham

[DWaltz]

Will post my views on game and performances.

Before the game was suprised to see no Broomes not even in the bench, wasnt suprised that Ricketts wasnt involved he needs more training and reserve games before he is ready for the squad. From what I heard today Broomes has left because Shotton is signing this week on loan.

Overall performance was good at times but still things to work on in training but people watching today I dont see how you can knock Barnes style. We looked more fruitful going forward when we passed it, we looked ***** when we banged it forward to nobody. We look dangerous with full backs bombing on, works a treat with Welsh sitting back to cover them. Bit suspect defensively at times but also at times we did well, both there goals where good hits from edge of the box we just had to close them down more. As a unit with long balls and crosses etc we kept Jackson quiet and looked okay at the back.

I think people need to get use to the fact that while Barnes is in charge we are going to be a little bit like Newcastle under Keegan. We are going to score goals but I can see us shipping them too. I can see a lot of 2-2, 3-2,4-2 games for us this season.

Great result though, Gillingham played some good stuff at times they wont struggle this year. After all moaning espically on this board, with games like that I cant see why people think we will struggle.

Individually:

Daniels - Couldnt do anything about either goal. Only had 1 other save to make right at the end, great save tipping shot over the bar. 7

Logan - Quick, Sharp, Good Touch. Very good performance going forward and looks solid defensively. 8

Cresswell - Good first half, espically going forward. Faded a bit second half but doesnt look out of place. 7

Gunning - He looked composed AT TIMES with a few little runs in the first half but then second half we just hoofed the ball to nobody. Looks OK defensively but we need to replace him in my opinion. At times gap between goodison and gunning was too big. 6

Goodison - Looked off the pace first half but second half he was immense. Some great tackles and some great composure. 7

Welsh - Was fantastic for me today, great goal. But his overall defensively play was great. Won a lot of tackles, didnt give the ball away much just won it and gave it to the full backs. Will be a big player for us I think. 8

McLaren - Off the pace today and sloppy at times. Think he is one of our better players. Doesnt usually give the ball away much but today he did a fair few times. Still think when him and Welsh gel they will be good partnership. I like McLaren but was off the pace today. 6

Shuker - Looked lively, he hoofed and puffed but didnt quite break for him at times today. He was very lively though but on a few little runs he didnt quite pick the right option or was unlucky to be tackled. Hope he continues to look lively though. 6

Mahon - Was poor apart from a few crosses in the first half, was very non existant. He kept going inside to allow Cresswell to slip Moore or Curran in down the flank. Think he would rather play centre midfield but I cant see him playing there. Needs to do more than he did today but again when he gets into the swing of it I feel he will be a big player for us. 5

Curran - Was poor today, gave the ball away too much and didnt make it stick. Didnt really have a sniff at goal. 5

Moore - 2 good poachers goals inside the 6 yard box. Plenty of work rate and good running off the ball. 7

Subs:

Edds - did okay when he came on to be fair in his unusual left midfield position. Showed his versatitly but had a solid 15 mins when he was on. 6

Gornell - I still dont rate this lad from just 1 game but he did play well when he came on so I eat my words. Great finish for his goal and I think he headed it back across for the fourth goal for Moore to tap in? Not sure though. Still think he has a lot to improve on and I wouldnt start him every week but I was more encouraged with waht I saw today. 7

Finally..

Barnes and McAteer - picked the team I knew they would which was the right team to pick. Changed it at 2-2 brining Gornell on and it changed the game in affect. I am fully behind the philopshy they are trying to instill at the club. We didnt actually play as much football today as we did in against Liverpool XI but when we did get it down like Barnes wanted we looked great. Barnes and McAteer were very passionate on the sidelines too and I for one have said it all along i think there doing a great job. 8

 

[Mal]

Thanks for the report. Not sure I can recall last time Tranmere scored four goals back to back. Apart from the nerves, I think a team that actually scores goals reasonably freely is a team I want to watch, even if it concedes as well. However, if what you say is true, the defence could be improved soon.

 

[roverstillidie]

Without Goodison's masterclass we would have lost. Defence was solidish but the midfield did very little to protect the defence, sitting far too deep and Curran was hopeless. Good game all the goals were excellent, the team did try to pass the ball around but not as well as they did on Tuesday. Quick word for Gareth Edds who actually did very well when he came on and gave the team some options down the left side that the seemingly absent Mahon didn't. Promising.

 

[DWaltz]

Edds did well yeah but against a Gills side throwing everyone forward, he didnt really have a right back to face. I doubt he will ever start there ahead of Mahon so i wouldnt get too excited about that. Edds is NOT a left winger he was playing there for a bit of protection.

Welsh protected the back four very well, he won alot of balls on edge of our own box and then kept it by giving it to either full back. I dont think we would have lost without Goodison he did well once it went to 2-2 but before then Goodison wasnt that good. Gunning did well first half, Goodison was poor. Goodison did well second half and Gunning was poor. Logan and Cresswell were both solid and great going forward.

Honestly feel we just need once centre half to go with Goody and we have a team that is better than last seasons team. Ideally I would have Shotton to play centre half with goodison and then Broomes on bench and then also Ash Taylor is there for cover. Although unfortunately Broomes has left I have been told. I did get told tho Shots could join this week on loan till Jan.

I cant see how you can see we sat deep, we only sat deep when they had the ball in our half in which case you have to sit deep. the 2 central midfielders sit in so that a striker cant come off the defence into the little pocket between defence and midfield. They also sit in because Logan and Cresswell are bombing on a lot under Barnes. Welsh is meant to sit deep even when we go forward its his job. McLaren was poor and unlike him today. He is usualy better than that and he will play a lot better than that. Shuker and Mahon were hardly deep espically Shuker everytime we counter attacked he seemed to be the person who was up there with Curran or Moore.

Curran I agree was hopeless, he didnt even work that hard like he usually does.

 

[Ian]

I agree with most of DWaltz's match report, so I wont repeat what he has written.

What I would say is that I've been entertained the last two visits to Prenton Park. 10 goals in total, 8 from Tranmere, it's certainly entertaining stuff.

Got a little nervy towards the end of the first half when The Gills looked their strongest, but I can safely say, there are positive signs, and listening to JB's post match conference, I liked what I heard.

It was little more difficult to play the passing game because the opposition didn't give us any time on the ball and I think that's where the likes of Mclaren suffered today. He was too slow and it showed.

But what I like most is the attitude and Barnes must be given credit for that. At 2-2 we didn't give up. Im 100% sure we would have sat back on that with Moore in charge, but they don't give it up and it's refreshing to see the team still getting forward looking for more. And it paid off. At 3-2 we were still looking for a fourth and got it.

Maybe the scoreline flattered us a little, as Gillingham were a good side. But it was a good game to watch and only 5000 turned up to see it. Shame..

Finally, well done to Gornell. I've been a little damning on the lad, but he scored a great goal and looked good when he came on, so well done to him.

Roll on Tues!

 

[The Bootle Rover]

Not worrying much at all now

A decent performance today and a result that will make other opponents think twice.
I do however have to disagree with the comments on Ian Goodison - without his cool as a cucumber display we would no doubt have been beaten, he gave a masterclass in defending becoming more and more dominant as the game progressed.
Substituting anybody while leaving Shuker the shocker on the pitch mystifies me. Again and again things broke down with him, surely he must be replaced soon?
The two most positive things to come out of todays game were; this team will get better, having 10 to 12 games under their belts should produce an improved understanding and, contrary to what has been forecast the passing game that John Barnes insists upon is bearing fruit and is not the pointless exercise we were led to believe.
I am sure the team can give us a good season and I think we can finish in the top half at least.

 

[DWaltz]

After it went to 2-2 he gave a masterclass yeah but before that he wasnt bad but he was hardly outstanding. Logan defended better than him today over 90 minutes he had to cover 3/4 times because there was a gap between Gunning and Goodison that was too big. Gunning is inexperienced but Goody should have noticed it. Goodison was fantastic the last half an hour but before then he was the same as the others he didnt stand out until it was 2-2. Daniels only had 1 shot to save apart from the goals.

Shuker wasnt as bad as Mahon today, Shuker deserved to stay on ahead of Mahon. Yeah things break down but as a winger that happens. Wingers are either outstanding or crap because thats the role they play. Shuker was quite lively today on counter and yeah a few times he did break down but he looked more intrested in Mahon. Shuker has poor decision making.

What did Barnes say post match? I cant access Tranmere Player.

 

[Boz]

Thanks for the reports. It's frustrating that I won't make a game til Charlton and good to get different perspectives on what's going on. Psychologically, it was important to get a league win under our belts, as it is a tough start to the season. Shotts didn't make the bench for Stoke today, seeming to give support to him coming on loan. Ryan's best games last season were at right-back though, so with Broomes going hope we get another central defender in. Finally any idea why Mahon & Curran were so out of sorts today?

 

[SCooperSomersaults]

I thought it was a really entertaining game today. Tranmere didn't play fantastically well but played the game the right way and so did Gillingham. I really enjoyed the game of football, first time in a long time where I've seen 2 good passing sides.

Don't think we played all that well today. We did at times, especially in attack. Logan shone as the star man for me, some great runs down the right, and then some great crosses and 3 assists I think from him today. He looks a really good player and glad we have him from Man City.

Welsh's goal was superb, a great strike with his left foot and contender for goal of the season already. But Gornell's goal was also well taken and Thomas-Moore's headers were of good quality too (in terms of the build up as well as the finish). And their goals weren't bad either, all in all a good game, six goals, entertaining play and it could be a good season like this. Really enjoyed it. Roll on Tuesday.

 

[DWaltz]

Curran seemed frustrated, balls werent quite dropping for him. For all my doubts Gornell was quality when he replaced him.

Mahon just couldnt get in the game really. He wasnt bad when he got the ball but most of the game passed him by. Still think Mahon will be a huge player for us this year though.

 

[SonkORLY?]

I tend to side with SCoops...apologies in advance for being "negative" but for the majority of today Gillingham were the definetly the better side but we had 4 chances and scored them all, a bit like Tuesday. Second half was entertaining because it was close, and when Gornell came on we (for the first time) looked like the better side...but I thought we were quite poor in the first half especially. I'm never going to like how Barnes has our central midfielders sitting so deep, I think it causes us problems in posession, but it's not going to change so I may as well stop banging on about it.

Logan and Cresswell were both good (especially first half) Welsh played pretty well and scored a great goal. Moore was anonymous but popped up to score 2 headers so fair enough. Gunning looked great at times, then a bit lost, but this is only his second ever professional game and taking that into consideration I think he's one to keep hold of as he should come on leaps and bounds as he gets games under his belt. Goodison was good, Gornell was superb when he came on. Shuker and Mahon were poor, Mclaren typically useless. Curran's anonymity, like Moore's, can probably be attributed to a lack of genuine service.

Would like to see Barnett start at some point...

 

[Mal]

Statistics are useful to define majority. According to BBC

Tranmere (first) / Gillingham

Possession 49%/51%
Shots on Target 6/4
Shots off Target 3/4
Corners 1/5
Fouls 9/7

That says that there was a slight advantage to Gillingham in possession, more shots on target by Tranmere. Guess quality was better than quantity as far as possession goes.

Depressingly, most league 1 games seem to average around 18 shots per game. Having said that I suppose it is an attempt every 5 mins.

 

[SCooperSomersaults]

Yah first half we started great, got a goal and pressed for another and had a couple of half chances. Then Gillingham bossed the rest of the half and could and maybe should have gone in at half time in front.

We seemed more vulnerable when we had just scored, which is so often the case for many sides. We got "excited" if you know what i mean, and lapses in concentration normally cost goals, especially against a side with some good attacking players like Gills have, Barcham and Jackson are very good at this level.

Thought Gunning did ok, but some very stray passes but looked promising. He's tall and strong in the air, but didn't quite read the game as well as you may like from a centre half. Thats where Goodi came to the fore, he was excellent alongside the young lad.

McLaren and Welsh were poor imo. Welsh didn't do the "breaking down the play" he says he's good at, but he scored a great goal, although after watching the tv last night it wasn't quite as far out as i thought from the kop! lol. McLaren was caught in possession so often, dallying around and seemingly not having a clue what to do with the ball, not what i wanna see from him.

Lots of things to work on, but we won the game and scored 4 goals in the process. Not too bad a days work. With time, we should get better as a side, who knows what the season will bring for us...?

 

[Boz]

Interesting post-match comments from Barnes, highlighting the lack of supply to the strikers in the 1st half. If we are going to do a Keegan, would like to see a more creative player ie Mahon or Barnett in central midfield, at least for the home games. Ricketts doesn't look like getting a first team start any time soon and Broomes is here for a month.