Tranmere Rovers claim impressive victory over Stevenage with late penalty

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

Ahead of the game, Micky Mellon said, “We understand what Stevenage’s strengths are and quite simply we’ve got to stamp our individual or collective personality to go and be the best version of us. We’ll have to be relentless and keep believing that we can go out there and go and score goals and keep clean sheets, and that’s something we will look to do again. 

“We have executed some fantastic performances before but we have to make sure the consistency levels are where you aren’t losing too many games. The teams that will be at the top are the ones who will be less inconsistent, and that’s what we’ve tried to get to, we’ve got to find the levels of consistency to be successful.

“We’re trying to get the best out of this young group, and I’m very level-headed on that, and keep that drive and focus as the manager.

Match Report: Stevenage v Tranmere Rovers

Stevenage 0	v	1 Tranmere Rovers
	Goals	Hawkes (73′ pen)
	Assists
	HT 0-0

Tranmere Rovers secured an impressive 1-0 victory against promotion contenders Stevenage, thanks to a penalty from Josh Hawkes in the 74th minute.

This result means that Stevenage have now gone five games without a win, causing them to slip down to third place in the league standings.

Securing a hard-fought victory in Hertfordshire, Tranmere Rovers delivered a much-needed three points at The Lamex Stadium, with Josh Hawkes’ goal proving to be the decisive factor.

Midway through the first period, Tranmere Rovers launched their first attack with Josh Dacres-Cogley charging down the right wing. However, his cross was cleared at the back post by Smith, despite the presence of Lewis and Jay Turner-Cooke who were ready to strike.

Following some encouraging build-up play by Jay Turner-Cooke and Regan Hendry, Lewis threaded a through ball to Harvey Saunders. However, the Tranmere Rovers forward missed the mark with his left-footed shot, hitting the side-netting by Savin’s goal.

Tranmere Rovers began the second half on a positive note, creating two chances within the first five minutes.

The first opportunity came when Regan Hendry carried the ball forward and unleashed a well-struck shot from 25 yards out. Despite a bobble off the turf, Savin was able to gather the ball at the second attempt and keep it out.

Harvey Saunders then attempted a header from Josh Dacres-Cogley’s cross, but it unfortunately deflected off Sweeney before landing in the gloves of Savin.

When Tranmere Rovers were awarded a penalty on 74 minutes, Merrie played a crucial role in the build-up. He set up Liam O’Connor, who was subsequently fouled in the box by Daryl Hogan, prompting referee Martin Woods to award the penalty.

Josh Hawkes confidently stepped up to take the spot-kick from 12 yards out and calmly slotted the ball into the bottom right corner of the net, despite Savin guessing the right direction.

Tranmere saw out the remaining play and bring the three points home with them on the team bus.

Tranmere host Crawley Town for a 7:45pm kick off on Tuesday 28 February in their next 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

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