Tranmere hold onto play-off place but major improvements are needed

Tranmere finally clinched their play-off position in League Two but rather than gaining some momentum with a win, Rovers limped over the line with a scoreless draw at home to Colchester.

Having been in a position to go top of the league as recently as March 13th, Keith Hill’s men ended up finishing the campaign in seventh place knowing a Colchester goal would have seen them miss out on the play-offs completely.

They now face two critical games against a Morecambe side who, while disappointed to miss out on automatic promotion, come into the play-offs in much better form than Tranmere with five wins in six games. The confidence in both camps are surely at very different levels.

Saturday presented Tranmere with the chance to make a statement and improve the mindset of the players and fans alike. From a purely technical standpoint, a win would have given Rovers a home second leg and with some supporters allowed back through the turnstiles, this could have made a significant difference.

Instead what followed was a display seriously lacking in creativity. Shamal George had little to do in the Colchester goal with Rovers only mustering a solitary shot on target. Chances were at a premium with Rovers struggling to control possession and stamp their authority on the game.

The 3-5-2 system, which worked to great effect in the second half against Barrow, didn’t provide the boost here that Hill was looking for. David Nugent cut an isolated figure up front, deprived of any meaningful service. In fact, the only time he was overly involved was when making some decent defensive contributions. While welcomed, it’s not the first requirement of a striker.

The difficulties in possession were clear to see. Tranmere started with a back three of George Ray, Peter Clarke and Lee O’Connor. While O’Connor is solid on the ball and Clarke is reasonably comfortable, Ray would prefer to pass the ball back to his colleagues rather than trying to progress the play further up the field.

Goalkeeper Joe Murphy was trying to cajole the defender into backing himself to be a bit more confident in possession but time and time again the ball was played square to Clarke or O’Connor and it was time to start again.

Assistant manager Ian Dawes perfectly summed up the problems when roaring to the aforementioned trio and holding midfielder Jay Spearing.

‘You four. Back three and Jayo. Pass the f***ing ball.’

With nothing being built from defence or the centre of midfield, the most likely outlet to create a chance was Otis Khan from right-wing back who did his best to get forward to support the front two of Nugent and Corey Blackett-Taylor.

Set-piece deliveries were another area where Rovers struggled on Saturday. Liam Feeney has been excellent from the dead ball this season but just couldn’t find his range against the Essex visitors. Hill will be hoping this is just a temporary issue and on-loan midfielder will be firing on all cylinders once again in the play-offs.

To put all of this in more simple terms, Tranmere just aren’t scoring anywhere near enough goals. It’s now four goals in their last eight league games. The return of James Vaughan will have given everybody a lift but the service will need to have a marked improvement if the striker is to thrive.

Having said all of this, there are some small positives to be found, if you look hard enough. The defence is performing quite well. The earlier stat of four goals scored in eight games is counteracted by only four conceding in that same time frame, including five clean sheets.

Being solid defensively will keep you in games even if your attack isn’t functioning. It’s not a bad trait for a team to have by any means, especially going into what is now a knockout tournament.

Callum McDonald has performed well this season from left back and was able to have 90 minutes off on Saturday. Liam Ridehalgh came in and deputised well, showing that there is strength in-depth at Hill’s disposal. A refreshed McDonald is a good tool to have, especially with another 12 days until the next match.

Corey Blackett-Taylor getting a rare start is something that many Tranmere fans have been calling for these past few weeks and the 23-year-old caused Colchester problems from the inside left position. The former England under-19 international got the better of the likes of Tom Eastman on a couple of occasions only for his crosses and pull backs to fail to find a team-mate.

Getting Blackett-Taylor on the ball more may have seen Rovers get the breakthrough they were looking for but as it turned out, the forward had little opportunities in the second half and made way for Kaiyne Woolery.

The return of fans to Prenton Park on May 20th will be a special occasion and now Rovers must grasp the opportunity that the playoffs provide. It will take a huge improvement on recent performances but this squad have it in them to write their names in the club’s history books in the coming weeks.

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