A Fans Review of the Rovers Decade
By Mark Ridgway
January 31 2010
We recently asked you the readers, via our Message Forum to fill in a quick survey reviewing the last decade of football for Tranmere Rovers and your thoughts on it. Here Mark Ridgway brings you the results which have thrown up some interesting results fromour 61 person sample...
From the years 2000 to 2009 Rovers have had experiences at the opposite ends of the spectrum, from reaching a major Wembley Final in 2000 to relegation to League One in 2001 and coming close to dropping into League Two in 2006.
Rovers have spent the majority of the decade fighting to get promoted back into what some fans see as their rightful home of the Championship and we created a survey which had 61 responses, and here we bring you a summary of what the survey told us.....
John Aldridge was voted Rovers Manager of the Decade as he got over half of the votes and comfortably beat Ronnie Moore into second place
Aldridge will be forever be remembered for his cup giant killing early in the decade, although he actually walked out on Rovers in March 2001, so winning this vote shows his success previous to that.
He guided Rovers to the Worthington Cup Final in 2000 only for Tranmere to lose 2-1 to Leicester, that same season we reached the quarter final of the FA Cup, only to lose 3-2 to Newcastle.
The next season, Aldridge famously managed us to a 3-0 over Merseyside rivals Everton at Goodison Park and masterminded one of the greatest ever FA Cup comebacks, coming from 3-0 down to beat Premier League side Southampton 4-3.
Unfortunately that same season, Rovers had a dismal time in the league and Rovers were virtually relegated before Aldridge threw the towel in.
Next the survey asked fans to name their team of the century, and it looked like this..
John Achterberg
Ryan Taylor, Clint Hill, Ian Goodison, Gareth Roberts
Jason Koumas, Antony Kay, Steve Jennings, Paul Hall
Iain Hume, Chris Greenacre
Goalkeeper
John Achterberg: The Dutch keeper was a great servant for the club over the decade.
He was in goal for the massive games against Everton, Southampton and Liverpool early in the decade and he also saved an FA Cup quarter final penalty against Millwall in 2004, before becoming player/goalkeeper coach late in the decade.
Right Back
Ryan Taylor: Ryan was a product of Rovers centre of excellence, and made his way through the ranks making a name for himself as a set peice specialist. He starred in the 2005 race for promotion before being snapped up by premiership Wigan in a big money move.
Centre Backs
Clint Hill: Another player to come through the ranks and went on to captain the side, he was a goal scoring defender with a bit of an aggressive streak. He was sent off at Wembley in the Cup Final in 2000.
Ian Goodison: The Jamaican was snapped up by Brian Little in 2004 and has been an ever present ever sinc. The defender has captained the side on many occasions and has scored just 4 goals for Rovers. Ian also won North West player of the year twice.
Left Back
Gareth Roberts: The Welsh full back also played at left midfield, and had an eye for goal, scoring some stunning goals. He signed in 1999 and played at Wembley aswell as many of the giant killings, and stayed with the club untill summer 2006. He still takes a keen interest in Rovers, being in the crowd for Rovers massive game with Scunthorpe last season.
Right Midfield
Jason Koumas: The flair midfielder scored some classy goals and was a product of Rovers Centre of Excellence. He stayed loyal with the club getting relegated and played a season in League One attempting to gain promotion back for Rovers. He joined West Brom in 2002 for £2.25m.
Centre Midfielders
Antony Kay: The Yorkshireman was signed by Ronnie Moore on a free transfer in 2007 from Barnsley. Originally signed as a defender, he spent his second season in midfield and was player of the season. After scoring 7 goals from centre back he was made captain and scored 12 vital goals the season after.
Steve Jennings: Jennings was another product of Rovers Centre of Excellence and gave 100% for the club until he left for Motherwell in 2009. The battling midfielder won numerous award voted for by the fans, and starred in Rovers race for the play offs last season.
Left Midfield
Paul Hall: The Jamaican midfielder was only here for a season and a half after being snapped up by Brian Little in 2004. In 55 games he scored 13 goals from midfield, he formed a good partnership with Ryan Taylor down the right hand side during the 2005 play off heartbreak season.
Strikers
Iain Hume: The Canadian striker was a livewire that set Prenton Park alight on numerous occasions. He rose through the ranks scoring spectacular goals all along the way. He worked well along side strikers such as Dadi and Haworth and his unselfish play helped them get many of their goals.
Chris Greenacre: Brian Little brought Greenacre to Rovers on a free in 2005 and he subsequently scored 46 goals for Rovers including an overhead kick against Oldham in only his 3rd game at the club. He was a fans favourite and unfortunately injury ruined his final season and he moved to New Zealand.
Next up on the survey, fans voted for their Game of the Decade and the Stunning Southampton comeback came just ahead of the 3-0 victory at Goodison Park.
In 2001, in the fifth round of the FA Cup, Rovers and Southampton drew 0-0 at the Dell meaning a replay was to be played at Prenton Park, with the winners playing Liverpool at home, a huge incentive!
Southampton stormed the first half and raced into a 3-0 half time lead. Aldridge rallied the troops and Paul Rideout inspired a second half comeback with a hat-trick, and with 10 minutes left, substitute Stuart Barlow slid in to smash home the winner, to complete one of the greatest comeback in FA Cup history. This game also won 'The most epic thriller' award.
Next the fans voted for their Best game of recent years and Leeds 0-2 Tranmere won just ahead of Rovers thrashing Wrexham 5-1.
In February 2008 Rovers travelled to Elland Road in need of three points to keep up their play off push. Highflying Leeds were stunned with goals from Jennison Myrie-Williams and Ian Moore on his debut against his former club.
The Black Away Kit got the nod for the best away kit, ahead of the current blue strip. The kit modelled by Andy Taylor below was in use under the Ronnie Moore reign.
The closest vote of the survey was the 'Player of the Decade' and it was a two horse race between Ian Goodison and John Achterberg.
The Jamaican shaded it by one vote, ahead of the goalkeeper. The centre back has been an ever present at the back, and Tranmere always seem to play better when he's in the team.
The biggest disappointment, unsurprisingly, was the Relegation from the Championship in 2001, defeat at Scunthorpe last season in the quest for the play off won a fair amount of votes.
The relegation was covered up by the stunning cup runs, but when the dust settled, John Aldridge abandoned the sinking ship and Rovers dropped into League One and are yet to return.
Overall fans were asked their general feelings and there are mixed views, many fans stated that they had enjoyed the season and many also said its not been bad, but hope the next decade is more successful.
Also some extra comments claimed its been very up and down, and also that the cup shocks has disguised the downward trend by the board.
If you do not already have an account Click here to Register.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2010:01:31:21:42:42 by Deadly Submarine.
we'd @#$%& this division
