Stern test awaits Keith Hill’s resurgent Tranmere Rovers

Tuesday night will see the resumption of the Papa John’s EFL Trophy and we are now at the quarter final stage with Tranmere set to play host to League One Peterborough at Prenton Park.

Rovers are the lowest ranked team left in the competition and join seven League One sides in the last eight as all of the Premier League underage teams have been eliminated. Keith Hill’s men took care of two of them themselves, beating Manchester City and Leicester’s outfits to progress in the knockout stages.

Darren Ferguson’s Peterborough come into this having thumped promotion rivals Portsmouth 5-1 in the previous round. They have previously seen off West Ham’s under 21 team and came through a group ahead of Burton Albion and Fulham’s under 21s.

Posh actually fielded a very strong side in the previous round but there are mixed feelings among fans with some stating that changes need to be made in order to boost an ailing promotion push that has seen only one point taken from the previous two games.

Other fans feel that no club can turn their nose up at a trophy and Tranmere supporters must have similar feelings going into this clash. Rovers are fresh off a fourth consecutive win after beating fellow promotion hopefuls Morecambe at the weekend and automatic promotion is now a genuine possibility.

Whether this trophy is of any great significance to fans of either club remains to be seen. The current pandemic has played a curious role in supporter’s mind-set. In a normal campaign, a match that could leave you one win from a Wembley appearance would be viewed as must-win. However, with no sign of fans getting back into grounds any time soon, many followers would be more likely to view this as an unwelcome distraction.

As for Hill, it’s expected that he will give some playing time to players who have been on the periphery lately. Games have been coming thick and fast and will continue to do so. Therefore it’s imperative to freshen things up and make sure the fringe players have minutes under their belts should injuries occur.

A cup quarter final against a team from a higher division under the lights midweek would normally make for a great night at Prenton Park but it will be a little different this time around. Still, it’s a second avenue towards Wembley and even if some fan’s might not be bothered, the players will be desperate to play on that stage.

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