Pre-season Friendly: Tranmere 0 vs Liverpool 1

Early test is unkind to spirited Tranmere

Jul 14 2008 by Nick Hilton, Liverpool Daily Post

CONVENTIONAL wisdom has it that the first date on the schedule of summer friendlies is not the ideal time for Tranmere to be playing sophisticated opposition like Liverpool.

It is too early in the pre-season programme for journeyman League One footballers to be sharp enough to live with a superior technical abilities of the Premiership stars.

Better to play Liverpool a few weeks down the line, to give them a more competitive game.

But picking and choosing dates isn’t an option for Tranmere when they have waited more than a decade to fix up a friendly with neighbours who happen to be one of the most illustrious clubs in the world.

Rovers had 15,000 reasons to be grateful for the visit of Rafael Benitez’s team in the form of the largest attendance at Prenton Park in more than four years.

The 90 minutes of football also had its specific advantages for Tranmere’s preparations for the new campaign.

Building fitness levels and stamina is a priority at this stage of the summer – and an afternoon of chasing while Liverpool pinged the ball around Prenton Park like pinball made for a demanding and valuable work out.

Tranmere had to run their socks off, to the extent that manager Ronnie Moore reckoned they would have “slept like babies” on Saturday night.

There were times, particularly in the first half, when the difference in class between the two teams was obvious.

No matter that Benitez fielded a mixture of first-team, fringe, reserve team players and new signings. Every man in a red shirt enjoyed a command over the ball that did not come so easily to the home players.

Rovers won’t have to cope with opposition with this level of technical finesse whoever they play over the course of the League One campaign that begins next month.

Tranmere were able to make a game of it thanks to hard running, doughty defending and finishing from the visitors that did that match up to their slick approach play.

Goalkeeper Danny Coyne made several sharp saves and was beaten by an exceptional strike from Yossi Benayoun for the 43rd minute goal.

Tranmere, testing out a 4-3-3 formation, left the midfield players with plenty of work to do and created only a thin ration of chances themselves.

Even so they had a near miss when Andrew Taylor’s 45th minute free-kick clipped the left-hand post and they created a clear opportunity on 77 minutes when Taylor’s cross from the left was headed over from close range by substitute Craig Curran.

An equaliser would have flattered Rovers but no-one was taking the scoreline too seriously.

Prenton Park has never boasted a larger attendance for a pre-season friendly, nor had a crowd that behaved quite like this one.

The signature of the afternoon was the excited babble of thousands of youngsters in Liverpool replica shirts making the most of a rare chance to see their heroes in the flesh at a fraction of Premiership prices. They did not know about match rules or etiquette, and probably did not care.

So when Steven Gerard made his first appearance of the afternoon, warming up on the touchline early in the second half as he prepared to join the action as a substitute, scores of young boys and girls in the paddock left their seats and scampered to the front in pursuit of an autograph.

A few minutes from the end the England midfielder provided a treat for spectators young and old – a pass played instinctively with the back of the heel through a crowded area that found its target 15 yards away with perfect weight and accuracy.

The performances of the summer’s new faces were of greatest interest to the Tranmere fans.

Early impressions are not always reliable but a lot of good solid work was done at right-back by trialist John Curtis.

The former Manchester United, Nottingham Forest and QPR player’s experience was evident and his fitness levels had benefited from training with Rovers on a trial basis for the past fortnight.

The three players signed last week look have some ground to make up fitness wise.

Irish midfielder George O’Callaghan, signed from Cork City, worked busily during the first hour before a little fatigue set in.

Edrissa Sonko found few opportunities to attack the Liverpool penalty area after joining the action as a 55th minute substitute for Chris Shuker.

Gareth Edds kept largely to a defensive midfield station before giving way to Adnan Ahmed on 67 minutes.

And Bas Savage, a 55th minute substitute for Ian Moore, showed he has a neat touch on the ball for a tall target man but did not have the opportunity to use his height to advantage inside the Liverpool box.

No-one one did more to counter the red tide of possession than midfielder Steve Jennings and Taylor’s contribution at left back took the eye.

But Rovers fans are already familiar with the quality of two of last season’s best performers.

Video Highlights: Benayoun's Stunner!