Tranmere Rovers 3 - 2 Notts County

Another game, another defeat, another nail in the League One coffin. Today's result, a 3-2 defeat away at Tranmere Rovers, means that Notts County remain rock bottom of the table, seven points from safety, and worse still, we have lost eight of the last ten games. Staving off relegation will truly be a miracle at this stage of the season.

Shaun Derry lined the Magpies up in a 4-4-2 formation, shuffling things around across the board. Ronan Murray lined up on the left wing, with Jimmy Spencer and Nathan Tyson the two frontmen.

Tranmere came out all guns blazing at the start of the game, winning four corner kicks in the space of two and a half minutes, but were unable to fashion anything from these set pieces.

In the 10^th minute, James Wallace headed wide a fourth corner from Jason Koumas, and just a minute later, Jake Cassidy fired a shot straight at Bartosz Bialkowski.

Notts soon took the lead through Murray, as the away side’s first corner wasn’t cleared properly, and the ball fell to the young Irishman who made no mistake with an emphatic strike.

The lead lasted for just over 10 minutes, because Notts soon encountered defensive problems of their own, failing to clear a ball that fell to Koumas. The former Cardiff City and West Bromwich Albion attacking midfielder duly struck a powerful shot straight into the corner to level proceedings.

Just a few minutes later, the game was turned upside down when the home side made the most of some more haphazard defending to take the lead. Ryan Lowe was allowed too much space following a straightforward cross, and the Birkenhead club’s top scorer this season didn’t need to be asked twice, smashing the ball home.

More drama ensued when Gary Liddle was fouled in the Tranmere box, the outcome of which was a penalty to Notts. Alan Sheehan, previously flawless from the spot, lined up to take the shot, but this time, there was to be no luck of the Irish as he saw his shot saved by the feet of Owain Fon Williams.

Midway through the first half, Murray came close, but once again Fon Williams made a great save, with Jimmy Spencer failing to convert the rebound, while just three minutes later, a desperate scramble in the Notts box saw Murray hack the ball off the line following an Ash Taylor header.

The first half ended with Tranmere in the lead. The second half kicked off with some sterling work from Jamal Campbell-Ryce, who played in two great crosses just after the restart, which sadly lacked a finishing touch.

Just after the hour, Notts won a free kick near the box, which Sheehan nominated to take. He more than made amends for his earlier penalty miss, because from nearly 30 yards out, he lashed in a simply sensational strike which smashed into the net to pull the score back to 2-2.

After the game’s fourth goal, the match opened up immensely, and both teams registered numerous chances in the ensuing stages of the half, a flurry of end-to-end action.

In the 32^nd minute of the second half, Max Power, who had come on for injured Tranmere skipper James Wallace, unleashed a dangerous shot that stung Bart’s palms, but the ensuing corner was headed wide.

Just a few minutes later, Fon Williams spilled a routine JCR cross, but Murray couldn’t make the most of the ensuing opportunity.

Disaster then struck in the 84^th minute as Steve Jennings tried an ambitious shot from distance. It was struck perfectly, flying into the back of the net and sending the home fans into raptures. 3-2 with just six minutes to go.

Notts tried desperately to get something back from the game, but it proved too little too late.