Tranmere Rovers v Exeter City Match Preview

Copyright Historical Football Kits and reproduced by kind permission.

Exeter City Factfile:

Previous Meetings:

Tranmere Rovers picked up a decent point against Exeter when the two sides met at St. James' Park little over a month ago, though it could have been so much more for Tranmere, who, like the had done at Peterborough ten days earlier and would do at Charlton four days later, led a game through a first half goal but did not win the match.

Les Parry's side started the fixture well, with Aaron Cresswell forcing Hamer into a save with a powerful free-kick in the first minute, before Exeter twice shot over at the other end.

Tranmere however netted the first goal, and it came from a highly unlikely source.  Powering down the wing with just 16 minutes gone in the match, left-sided man Zoumana Bakayogo took advantage of a slip by goalkeeper Hamer to net his first goal for the club.

Lateef Elford-Alliyu and Robinson then had shots saved by Hamer before the first half drew to a close, and after the break, after the home side had made a double change, Tranmere sat back and welcomed the Exeter pressure on to them.

Their resistance was never going to last, and after Sercombe had fired wide for the home side, and Robinson and Elford-Alliyu had seen chances go by for Tranmere, the home side equalised.

After Ian Goodison had blocked the initial shot, the ball fall to the dangerous Harley.  He found Sercombe in side the penalty area who fired home from close range.

After then, there were few chances, though Exeter saw the majority of the ball, and Tranmere managed to hold on for a valuable point in a 1-1 draw.

Vital Stats:

In fourteen previous home games against Exeter, Tranmere have notched up nine wins, losing on just two occasions and drawing three times

Rovers have scored 25 goals in those 14 games, conceding on sixteen occasions

Tranmere have won their last five home games against the Grecians, a run dating back to 1986

The Wirral side have won four and lost one of five April meetings between the two sides

Tranmere midfielder Joss Labadie misses his fourteenth game of the season today, with Rovers having lost eight and drawn three of the previous thirteen fixtures he's not played in, winning just twice

On This Day:

2009: A late goal from Antony Kay secures Tranmere a 1-1 draw against Yeovil Town, meaning if Ronnie Moore's side were to win their final game of the season away to Scunthorpe, they'd finish in a play-off place

1998: John Aldridge's Tranmere lost 2-0 away to Charlton in Division One

1992: Rovers, managed by John King, secure a point thanks to a 1-1 draw at Roots Hall against Southend United

Tranmere Rovers have played fifteen previous games on this day, picking up three wins, five draws and seven defeats.  In these fifteen games, the Prenton Park outfit have netted on 21 occasions, whilst at the other end they have conceded 27 times.

The Wirral side however are without a win on this day since 1966, a run which has lasted five games, although from their seven home games on this day, they have picked up three wins, two draws and two defeats, not losing at Prenton Park on this day since 1931.

The Form Book:

Exeter City last six away games:  WLWLDW
Tranmere Rovers last six home games: LWLWLL

Exeter City come into this game with five successive wins behind them and momentum building as they push for the play-offs, though without doubt this record has been helped by the fact that four of their last five games have been on home soil.

They are still, however, no slackers on the road, and come into this game with a healthy away record, though they have only netted 24 goals on the road this season.

Paul Tisdale's side started their six match sequence with an excellent win, beating Charlton Athletic 3-1 at the Valley thanks to strikes from Sercombe, Flynn and Harley, before a long trip to Carlisle proved not to be worthless, with Harley scoring twice in a 2-2 draw.

The Grecians then suffered a 3-0 defeat at London Road at the hands of promotion chasing Peterborough United before beating promotion chasing rivals Rochdale 1-0 thanks to a strike from Jamie Cureton.

They then suffered a heavy 5-1 defeat at the WH Community Stadium against Colchester United, before in their most recent game away from St. James' Park, Exeter defeated relegation threatened Bristol Rovers 2-0, thanks to two late strikes from Daniel Nardiello.

Other notable wins away from home for the club this season include successes over Notts County (2-0), Huddersfield Town (1-0) and Yeovil Town (3-1).

The Grecians have played 21 away games so far this season, picking up 26 of an available 63 points, this thanks to seven wins, five draws and nine  defeats.

Impressive results at home for the St. James' Park club include  victories over Leyton Orient (2-1), Bournemouth (2-0), Sheffield Wednesday (5-1) and Charlton Athletic (1-0).

Exeter City come into this game in 9th place in the League One table, three places and two points off Bournemouth in the final play-off spot, having picked up 64 of an available 129 points for 43 games so far, this thanks to eighteen wins, ten defeats and fifteen draws.

Tranmere's inconsistent and hugely disappointing home record has been their downfall this season, with Rovers not able to even match last seasons tally of 36 points as they have lost far too many matches at Prenton Park.

Indeed, their tally of nine home defeats so far in the league is their most losses on home soil since then 1985/86 campaign, when Rovers lost at home 13 times, but this is in contrast to their away form, which has seen them pick up seven more points on the road than last season, with one away game still to play.

Rovers started their six match sequence with successive defeats, losing firstly to Yeovil Town in front of over 8,000 fans at Prenton Park, before they suffered another defeat by the same scoreline to Bristol Rovers, two key games against sides around them in the League One table.

Talisman Enoch Showunmi then scored the only goal in a 1-0 win over Colchester United, Tranmere's first victory in eight games, but they lost their next home game, defeated 2-0 by high flying Huddersfield Town.

Les Parry's side beat Dagenham and Redbridge at home thanks to two well converted goals from Enoch Showunmi and Ian Goodison before, in their most recent home match, a dubious penalty that was converted by Craig Westcarr was all that Notts County required to beat Rovers 1-0, as poor finishing cost Tranmere dearly.

Other notable results on home soil for Tranmere this season include victories over Sheffield Wednesday (3-0), Southampton (2-0), MK Dons (4-1) and Peterborough United (1-0).

The Wirral side have played 21 home league games this season and picked up 28 of an available  63 points, this thanks to eight wins, four draws and nine defeats. 

Impressive results away from home for Rovers this season include successes over Walsall (4-1), Bournemouth (2-1), Notts County (1-0) and Plymouth Argyle (3-1).

Les Parry's side currently lie in 18th place in League One, having picked up 50 of an available 129 points from 43 games, thanks to thirteen wins, eleven draws and nineteen defeats.

Double Hit: 

One link between the two clubs is former Spurs and Manchester City midfielder Neil McNab, who played for Tranmere between 1990 and 1992, and managed Exeter in 2002.

Scotsman McNab started his career with Greenock Morton in 1972, moving to England two years later with Spurs.  He would remain with Spurs for four years, playing 72 league games for the club before moving to Bolton in 1978.

Two years at Bolton were followed by a spell at Brighton, when he also spent time out on loan at Leeds and Portsmouth, before he started a seven year spell at Manchester City in 1983.

These seven years saw McNab make well over 200 appearances for the club and he helped them win promotion from the second division in 1989.  Believed by many to be City's best player of the 1980s, he won the player of the season award for the club twice and was a well liked player at Maine Road.

In 1990, McNab left City for Tranmere Rovers, who spent £125,000 on the player.  He played over 100 games in two years for John King's side, winning the Leyland DAF trophy and helping the side up into Division Two.

He spent time on loan at Huddersfield before leaving Tranmere, and had further spells with Ayr, Darlingon, Derry City and Witton Albion before he retired from football in the mid 1990s.

In 1994, McNab rejoined Manchester City as a coach before having a spell as youth development coach with Portsmouth.

In October 2002, McNab joined Exeter City as manager, though he only last four months with the Grecians, as they won just six of this 26 matches in charge, losing twelve, which resulted in his sacking in February 2003.

One To Watch:

Around League One:

With the end of the campaign just twelve days away, there is a full round of League One fixtures this Monday, with eleven matches kicking off at 3pm, following the 12.15 game between Colchester and Brighton:

Bournemouth vs. Bristol Rovers
Carlisle vs. Leyton Orient
Charlton vs. Rochdale
Huddersfield vs. Dagenham and Redbridge
Notts County vs. Brentford
Oldham vs. Walsall
Peterborough vs. Yeovil
Plymouth vs. MK Dons
Sheffield Wednesday vs. Swindon
Southampton vs. Hartlepool
Tranmere vs. Exeter

• Swindon, regardless of their result, will be relegated this weekend if Dagenham and Redbridge pick up at least a point against Huddersfield
• Plymouth will also be relegated, even if they win, if Dagenham pick up a victory at the Galpharm
• Tranmere Rovers will mathmatically ensure their safety with at least a point against Exeter City
  
• Notts County can also secure their League One place for next season if they beat Brentford

 Team News: