Tranmere defeated at Gillingham

Tranmere visited Gillingham this afternoon in their latest fixture in the 2022/23 League Two season.

Ahead of the game, Micky Mellon said, “We want to win every game that we play, and we’ll try to keep the run going and attack every game, we’ll continue to do that and that’s the correct attitude, as long as we’re working hard, and we want to set up well and be difficult to beat. 

“Gillingham have tried to get themselves out of the predicament that they are in. They’ve got a good manager, I know Neil really well and they’ve started to get away from the bottom end of the table.

 “They’ve become stubborn and tough to beat and they are getting clean sheets, so we know it will be a tough time.

“If we create the chances, and the chances are there, it’s no use me saying that we create chances, it’s about showing that composure, getting good contact and scoring goals which have made Tranmere successful in the past because of it, so it’s important the players keep working hard, and we’ll find a way.”

Match Report: Gillingham v Tranmere Rovers

Gillingham 2 v 0 Tranmere Rovers
Williams (32′)
Masterson (83′)
Goals
MacDonald (32′)
Williams (83′)
Assists
HT 1-0

Tranmere came back from Gillingham empty-handed today after suffering a 2-0 defeat at the Priestfield Stadium.

Shaun Williams and Conor Masterson unexpectedly emerged as heroes in Gillingham’s home triumph over Tranmere, helping them climb nine points clear of the relegation zone.

Harvey Saunders had the first opportunity for Tranmere when he connected with a high cross from Chris Merrie on the left side, but his header lacked the necessary strength to challenge Morris in the Gillingham goal.

At the 30-minute mark, Regan Hendry advanced into the Gillingham half and then passed it wide to Dacres-Cogley, who was overlapping. Dacres-Cogley’s low cross was deflected narrowly past the far post.

Shortly after, the home team took the lead, as Alex MacDonald delivered a corner kick from the left, and Shaun Williams was unmarked and able to head the ball forcefully past Murphy and into the Tranmere goal.

As halftime approached, Regan Hendry once again took the ball into the Gillingham penalty area, passing it to Josh Hawkes who’s curling shot missed the target high and wide.

In the closing minutes of the match, Gillingham sealed their victory. Shaun Williams sent a cross from an unconventional position on the left, and Jack Masterson was unchallenged as he fired the ball into the net from a short distance, securing all three points for Neil Harris’ team.

Tranmere host Newport County for a 3pm kick off on Saturday 18 March in their next game of the 2022/23 League Two season.

Match Highlights

Gallery

Credit: Tony Coombes

Fans’ Twitter Reaction

https://twitter.com/TheSmartRover/status/1634607611378036737


Post Match Interview

Line-ups

Gillingham – Formation 4-4-2
1 Glenn Morris GK
2 Cheye Alexander DF
3 David Tutonda DF
5 Max Ehmer DF
23 Conor Masterson DF
6 Shaun Williams (C) MF
7 Alexander MacDonald MF
38 Timothee Dieng MF
49 George Lapslie MF
20 Tom Nichols FW
28 Oliver Hawkins FW
Substitutes
25 Jake Turner SUB
4 Will Wright SUB
18 Ethan Coleman SUB
16 Dom Jefferies SUB
35 Tristan Abrahams SUB
44 Aiden O’Brien SUB

Manager
Neil Harris

Match Officials
Referee:
Andy Woolmer
Assistants: Andrew Fox and Matthew McGrath
Fourth official: Tom Reeves

Tranmere Rovers – Formation 4-4-2
13 Joe Murphy GK
2 Josh Dacres-Cogley DF
3 Ethan Bristow DF
18 Kyle Jameson DF
14 Jordan Turnbull (C) DF
24 Regan Hendry MF
6 Chris Merrie MF
4 Lee O’Connor MF
11 Josh Hawkes MF
26 Harvey Saunders FW
27 Jake Burton FW
Substitutes
23 Mateusz Hewelt SUB
29 Max Fisher SUB
33 Jay Turner-Cook SUB
19 Logan Chalmers SUB
25 Joel Mumbongo SUB

Manager
Micky Mellon

Attendance: 5674

League Table

League 2 season attendance

DateOpponentHome
Attendance
Away
Attendance
20/07/2022Stevenage6111
06/08/2022Mansfield Town7128
13/08/2022Gillingham5414
16/08/2022Hartlepool Utd4072
20/08/2022Newport County4070
27/08/2022Colchester Utd5041
03/09/2022Leyton Orient6578
13/09/2022Bradford City5864
17/09/2022Salford City3175
24/09/2022Walsall5845
01/10/2022Barrow6123
08/10/2022Sutton Utd3007
14/10/2022Crewe Alexandra8001
22/10/2022Harrogate Town2316
25/10/2022Rochdale5742
29/10/2022Carlisle6576
01/11/2022Stockport County6800
12/11/2022Swindon Town9425
19/11/2022AFC Wimbledon6010
03/12/2022Northampton Town5,601
10/12/2022Grimsby Town5134
26/12/2022Doncaster7033
29/12/2022Barrow3383
01/01/2023Crewe Alexandra5349
07/01/2023Sutton United5368
14/01/2023Walsall6027
28/01/2023Leyton Orient5946
04/02/2023Stockport County10231
07/02/2023Doncaster Rovers5775
11/02/2023Salford City6516
14/02/2023Bradford City15482
18/02/2023Mansfield Town6282
25/02/2023Stevenage3675
28/02/2023Crawley Town5104
04/03/2023Hartlepool United6320
11/03/2023Gillingham5674
2022/23 Total home attendance110278
2022/23 Total away attendance105920
2022/23 Total attendance (Home & Away)216198
2022/23 Average home attendance6127
2022/23 Average away attendance5884
2022/23 Total average attendance6006

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