Tranmere away preview

[Sweden Stag]

After the gut-wrenching equalizer against Colchester conceded with the last kick of the game last Saturday, the Stags now take on the first on the League come-back boys double-header trip this week. And this is a trip to Tranmere Rovers, who must feel even more disappointed about their last Saturday showing. Being 2-0 up at Swindon after just thirteen minutes, they got a player red-carded and suspended for three matches just five minutes later, which enabled Swindon to turn the game around and inflict Tranmere’s first FL defeat following their League Two comeback, which came into fruition following a playoff final victory against Boreham Wood, despite having a player red-carded inside the first minute.

When the Stags last played Tranmere in League Two, both sides were on extremely poor runs. Both sides had then lost five in a row at one stage during the run. The Stags had lost five prior to the Tranmere game, while Tranmere one month earlier had lost five in a row. A Reggie Lambe strike just before half-time was enough to all but secure the Stags’ stay in League Two, while for Tranmere, it was to be third of six straight reverses during the run-in. That poor run-in with one win and twelve defeats, many odd-goal ones, was enough to catapult Tranmere out of the FL following their relegation from League One the previous campaign.

Tranmere were to stay outside the FL for three seasons. Following their playoff final defeat against Forest Green in 2017, they came back last term by overcoming Boreham Wood.

One Stags player in the latest meeting between the sides, was to play for Tranmere in all their seasons outside the FL. The name: Richie Sutton.

And incredibly enough, the side who followed Tranmere out of the FL in 2015, Cheltenham, returned to League Two immediately after relegation. This is the fastest FL return of two sides relegated since two up, two down from the FL came into being before the start of the 2002-03 season, a campaign in which the Stags routed Tranmere 6-1 at home at current League One level on October 5, 2002.

The 2014-15 season was the first basement one for Tranmere for twenty-five years following promotion in 1989, then ending a ten-season stint in the fourth division. Since then, Tranmere spent a decade in the FL second tier from the 1991-92 season onwards and during that spell, they finished fourth in 1992-93, then fifth in each of the two following campaigns. During the same time, they finished League Cup runners-up in 2000 and reached the semi-final in 1994.

That season, Tranmere endured problems both off and on the field. The five-game losing streak earlier this year was not the only one. Just before the game between Tranmere and the Stags last October, Tranmere had lost five games in a row. The consequence was the axeing of Rob Edwards as Tranmere boss, succeeded by Micky Adams, who himself a few weeks earlier had resigned at League One side Port Vale.

The dour goal-less draw at Prenton Park on October 21, 2014, was the first game for Ricky Adams as Tranmere boss. One month later, Paul Cox resigned at the Stags.

Tranmere’s visit to Mansfield in 2002 was not the only one in which the Prenton Park outfit had been hit for six. This had happened on three earlier occasions.

Here are the facts:

On March 10, 1956, the Stags routed Tranmere 6-0, on October 1, 1962, the Stags won 6-1 in the fourth division, three goals from Roy Chapman, and finally on February 27, 1971, the Stags won a third divison fixture 6-2 as one of the scorers in the legendary FA Cup tie against West Ham two years earlier, Dudley Roberts, ran riot and netted on four occasions. And since November 1, 1969, Tranmere have only won once at Mansfield, albeit with seven games being drawn. Twice, Tranmere have won three in a row at Mansfield, but from the 1950-51 season onwards, the Stags won eight home games in a row to a scoreline of 24 for, just 3 against. And the first-ever league game between the sides was played on April 22, 1933. Then, two goals from Fred Fisher were enough to secure a 2-0 victory. And the biggest home defeat is a 3-0 reverse on October 7, 1967 during a spell of six straight Stags third division defeats.

But at Prenton Park, the Stags have won on just six occasions over the years. The first one was on October 3, 1936 to a 2-0 scoreline Needless to say that Harston scored both goals then, one from the spot. Maybe the most crucial victory was the one on April 30, 1979, to a 2-1 scoreline when goals by Carter and Gary Saxby were enough. After that game, the Stags finished the campaign with six consecutive home fixtures! The Stags’ latest victory at Prenton Park was on October 22, 1985 also to a 2-1 scoreline with Chamberlain and Kearney as Stags scorers. Incredibly enough, two of the heaviest-ever Stags defeats at Prenton Park came about in Stags promotion campaigns, 1-5 on April 22, 1963 and 0-4 on March 21, 1977. On October 22, 1990, the Stags were hit for six, while late on in the 2002-03 campaign, the game was abandoned and replayed a few days later.

Played for both sides: James Alabi, Russell Allen, Reg Cropper, Alec Gaskell, Verdi Godwin, Alec Gray, Kevin Gray, Chris Greenacre, Robert Hutchinson, David Kelly, Jim Lumby, Luke O'Neill, Iffy Onoura, Steve Peplow, Frank Perfect, Martin Riley, John Rowland, Jack Roy, Richie Sutton, Rob Taylor, John Thompson, Jock Weir, Keith Welch, Ryan Williams, Billy Yates. Jamie McGuire was on Tranmere's books in 2002-03 as a trainee without playing.

Home stats: P 37, W 17, D 11, L 9, GF 67, GA 37
Away stats: P 37, W 6, D 9, L 22, GF 40, GA 75

Season Home Date Away Date

1932-33 2-0 1933-04-22 0-3 1933-04-10 Div 3 (N)
1933-34 0-0 1933-08-28 2-3 1933-09-04 Div 3 (N)
1934-35 4-2 1935-04-19 0-3 1935-04-22 Div 3 (N)
1935-36 2-3 1935-09-28 2-4 1936-02-01 Div 3 (N)
1936-37 2-3 1937-02-06 2-0 1936-10-03 Div 3 (N)
1947-48 1-3 1947-09-06 1-0 1948-01-17 Div 3 (N)
1948-49 0-0 1949-02-19 0-1 1948-09-25 Div 3 (N)
1949-50 1-1 1950-02-18 1-2 1949-10-01 Div 3 (N)
1950-51 2-1 1951-01-10 1-2 1951-03-07 Div 3 (N)
1951-52 3-0 1952-03-29 1-1 1951-10-11 Div 3 (N)
1952-53 1-0 1952-08-30 0-1 1953-01-03 Div 3 (N)
1953-54 2-0 1953-12-19 5-2 1953-08-22 Div 3 (N)
1954-55 3-1 1954-11-13 1-2 1955-04-02 Div 3 (N)
1955-56 6-0 1956-03-10 0-1 1955-10-29 Div 3 (N)
1956-57 3-0 1956-09-08 1-3 1957-01-12 Div 3 (N)
1957-58 4-1 1958-03-22 2-1 1957-10-12 Div 3 (N)
1958-59 0-2 1959-03-14 2-2 1958-10-25 Div 3 (old)
1959-60 0-2 1960-04-30 2-4 1959-12-12 Div 3 (old)
1961-62 1-2 1961-11-18 0-2 1962-04-07 Div 4 (old)
1962-63 6-1 1962-10-01 1-5 1963-04-22 Div 4 (old)
1967-68 0-3 1967-10-07 1-1 1968-02-23 Div 3 (old)
1968-69 1-1 1968-08-31 1-2 1969-03-21 Div 3 (old)
1969-70 1-2 1969-11-01 1-1 1970-02-28 Div 3 (old)
1970-71 6-2 1971-02-27 1-4 1970-10-30 Div 3 (old)
1971-72 1-1 1972-01-22 2-2 1971-09-27 Div 3 (old)
1976-77 1-1 1976-09-18 0-4 1977-03-21 Div 3 (old)
1978-79 0-0 1978-11-13 2-1 1979-04-30 Div 3 (old)
1980-81 1-1 1980-10-06 0-1 1980-11-03 Div 4 (old)
1981-82 3-0 1982-04-17 2-2 1981-12-05 Div 4 (old)
1982-83 1-1 1983-04-16 0-3 1982-09-06 Div 4 (old)
1983-84 1-0 1983-09-17 0-1 1984-01-30 Div 4 (old)
1984-85 0-0 1984-11-03 0-0 1985-02-22 Div 4 (old)
1985-86 0-0 1986-04-29 2-1 1985-10-22 Div 4 (old)
1989-90 1-0 1990-03-24 1-1 1989-10-16 Div 3 (old)
1990-91 0-2 1991-04-27 2-6 1990-10-22 Div 3 (old)
2002-03 6-1 2002-10-05 1-3 2003-04-29 Div 2
2014-15 1-0 2015-04-14 0-0 2014-10-21 League Two

FA Cup:

1934-35 4-2 1934-12-08 2nd round at Field Mill
1971-72 2-2 1971-12-11 2nd round at Field Mill
1971-72 2-4 1971-12-15 2nd round replay at Prenton Park

League Cup

2013-14 0-2 2013-08-06 1st round at Prenton Park

Time to bounce back now. Come on Mansfield!

[1970Stag]

I think it will be high scoring...

[The One]

I think it will be high scoring...