United leave Plainmoor today to take on Tranmere Rovers in another effort to close the gap on the teams outside of the National League relegation zone.
Tranmere are a team in form having won three of their last five fixtures. They come into Saturday’s match on the back of a 4-0 win over Maidstone United with striker James Norwood grabbing a brace. They’ve have had a two-week break from fixtures because of Woking’s involvement in the FA Cup. Manager Micky Mellon has said that the break has been a positive and a negative as he would have liked to have capitalized on their good form.
Tranmere’s Jay Harris and Stephen McNulty are available for selection after returning from suspensions. Midfielder Jeff Hughes has returned to full training for Rovers and may play a part.
Torquay United head coach Gary Owers is well aware of what his team are walking into on Saturday.
“You go to Tranmere and you know you’re in for a difficult afternoon,” said Owers at his weekly press call.
“They were unfortunate last season. Most people thought they would get out of the [National] League. They’ve found it tough going so far this season but expect a very, very tough game. Very passionate supporters – massive club at this level. We have to go there prepared but we’re going there with confidence; we believe we can get a result up there.”
“It’s dealing with the environment and the atmosphere and trying to turn that into your favour. They’ve started the games really well and scored a lot of goals in the first thirty minutes.”
“They’ve got a long throw, they’ve got two very strong, physical strikers. They’ve got a player in the team who is a match winner.”
The availability of Gary Owers’ squad remains unchanged from the previous weeks. Josh Gowling is still out of contention due to a knee injury and will be assessed over the coming weeks. George Dowling is still with his parent club Bristol City recovering from a hamstring injury. Jake Gosling continues to train, but is nearing a loan move in order to gain full match fitness. New loan signing Axel Andrésson is available after joining from Reading this week.
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Tranmere Rovers Vs Torquay United | 09/12/17 | 3pm Kick-Off
Tranmere Rovers FC
Prenton Park
17 Prenton Rd West
Birkenhead CH42 9PY
Next match at Plainmoor: Vs Gateshead | 12/12/17 | Kick-Off 7:45pm | Click here for ticket information