Nigel Adkins has asked for his players to be “ruthless” when his Tranmere Rovers squad play Harrogate Town this weekend.
The Wirral side are winless in their last five games and with the uptick of form for both Morecambe and Carlisle United, are slowly being dragged back into the relegation conversation when they welcome the Sulphurites to Prenton Park.
“We’re All Hurting”
The last result in league play was against Chesterfield, with Paul Cook’s team dominating the proceedings throughout and inflicting a 3-0 loss on their visitors to Derbyshire. The downturn in performances has led to frustration from the fanbase, which the former Hull City manager can sympathise with. He said to the Wirral Globe:
“I share their frustration because I want us to do well. We came in a challenging situation and we addressed that and thought we’d had a good pre-season and start to the season but obviously things have become a bit of a challenge.
“Maybe I set the bar too high when I said the ambition was promotion but that’s what we’ve got to keep striving towards. The pressure is on me to get us winning games of football but I thrive on that and if you want to be in football there’s going to be pressure.”
They face a Harrogate side that are in a similar predicament to their opponents and a win for Rovers would see them leapfrog Simon Weaver’s team. In his pre-match press conference, Adkins challenged his players to respond to the recent results. (Quotes via Birkenhead News)
“Things haven’t quite gone our way but they will do if we keep working hard.
“We’ve got good processes in place, we’ve got good staff, we’ve got good players, and we’ve got to keep working very hard, sticking together.
“Run hard, play hard, get your head up and play forward, where’s the space, be ruthless when you get the chance to score, be disciplined to keep eleven players on the pitch.”
Writer’s View
It could be a pivotal game for Tranmere Rovers’ future in League Two. A win over Harrogate Town would alleviate a lot of pressure and with Morecambe and Carlisle beginning to press onwards, they are in a very tricky spot if their barren spell continues. A response is needed in this game or there could be heartbreak further down the line.