Tranmere draw at Wimbledon

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

Ahead of the game, Ian Dawes said, “Momentum is important, I think that you find when teams are winning games at the end of the season, you can take that through into the start of next season, the majority of the players in the group are signed up for next season so we’ve got to finish as strong as possible, we’ve got six points to play for and we want to take all six.

“We’ve got to make sure that we start to get consistency moving forward and I think you find the teams who are successful in this league can string wins together, so we need to make sure that we start building that on Saturday and if we can get back-to-back wins then it’s a start.”

Match Report: Wimbledon AFC v Tranmere Rovers

Wimbledon AFC 1	v	1 Tranmere Rovers
Al Hamadi (68′)	Goals	Taylor (79′)
Chislett (68′)	Assists	Hawkes (79′)
	HT 0-0

Tranmere Rovers secured a crucial point in their last away game of the season, thanks to a late equalizer from Sam Taylor.

Tranmere maintained the same starting lineup that had previously won against Grimsby, with only Joe Murphy returning to the bench as the sole change to the squad.

The game started with an early chance for Wimbledon as Ali Al-Hamadi attempted to advance into the Tranmere box, but Jordan Turnbull tackled well to prevent a potential goal.

Rovers responded with some pressure of their own, but the hosts continued to threaten with a few balls sent into the Tranmere box, which required Harvey Saunders and Josh Dacres-Cogley to clear.

The pair combined at the other end of the pitch when Dacres-Cogley delivered a cross into Saunders, but the forward’s header missed. Wimbledon had a penalty appeal dismissed after a challenge just inside the Rovers box, with the linesman flagging for an offside in the build-up.

Saunders had to be replaced shortly before the break with Sam Taylor coming on in his place. Taylor combined with Dacres-Cogley in a smart one-two on the brink of half-time, but the score remained 0-0 at the break.

Tranmer began the second half searching for the opening goal, with Kane Hemmings forcing Nathan Broome into a save from long range. Josh Hawkes then evaded several defenders before laying the ball off to Taylor, whose shot missed the target.

However, it was Wimbledon who broke the deadlock, with former Tranmere youth player Al-Hamadi scoring from inside the box on the 68th minute. It was a tough blow for Rovers, who had been pushing for the opening goal themselves.

Despite this setback, Rovers didn’t give up, and Taylor equalized 11 minutes later with a magnificent finish into the far corner, recording his first professional goal. Rovers had another chance to score when Florent Hoti strode forward into the home box, but Lee Brown got in well to turn it behind for a corner.

The game ended in a 1-1 draw, with Rovers earning a crucial point on the road. It was an impressive performance by the Rovers, who had to deal with injuries and an early onslaught from the hosts. The point ensured Rovers finished the season in a respectable position and could now look forward to the new season with optimism.

Tranmere host Northampton Town for a 12:30pm kick off on Monday 8 May in their final game of the 2022/23 League Two season.

Match Highlights

Gallery

Credit: Tony Coombes

Fans’ Twitter Reaction

Post Match Interview

Line-ups

League Table

League 2 season attendance

Tranmere Rovers

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