Game 6 - Super White Army (A)
Team - Tranmere Rovers
Date - 30/08/2025 14:00
Where - Prenton Park

What would your starting line-up be? What will be the key areas for the Magpies to get a victory? What do you think the final score will be?

Have your say below, join in with the Pride of Nottingham match discussion.

Beware of Charlie Whittaker...if ever a player is out to prove a point it will be him!!!!!

6 minutes ago, gtownjohnno said:

Beware of Charlie Whittaker...if ever a player is out to prove a point it will be him!!!!!

Hmm that could be dangerous. If he gets his confidence up he could hurt us. But if he has one of his bad games where he gets muscled off it all the time it will be OK. There's no point having Palmer and Norburn around him. I'd prefer to see Iorpenda deeper anyway, but he could neutralise a No.10 like Whitaker.

After recent performances, at Best I can only see Notts Grabbing a Draw. My Prediction 2-0 Tranmere. Or 2-1 if Dennis can carry on his Excellent Form.

Tranmere have made a good start to the season & are unbeaten with 2 wins & 2 draws from their 4 matches so far. Tranmere are unbeaten in their last three home games against Notts.

Tranmere will be a tough nut to crack on their home soil. They are known for their physicality & Notts have tended to struggle against physical opponents.

We don't know whether Jatta will be fit & there is doubt over the fitness of Jodi Jones too. But Notts do have Matt Dennis who is in tremendous form at the moment, so hopefully Notts will be a threat to the Tranmere rearguard.

Notts need to start putting some good results together & coming away from Tranmere with a win would build lots of confidence for the team going forward.

I would be happy for Notts to avoid defeat & get a creditable draw. A clean sheet would be even better, but I'm sure there will be some goals in this match.

Pre Tranmere interview by BBC Radio Nottingham, Martin Paterson reported that Jatta is available for selection for the Tranmere Match, & other injured players are close to being available for selection bar Platt.

Listening to Martin I get the impression that there won't be any further incomings or outgoings before the transfer deadline on Monday.

45 minutes ago, Robbie said:

Pre Tranmere interview by BBC Radio Nottingham, Martin Paterson reported that Jatta is available for selection for the Tranmere Match, & other injured players are close to being available for selection bar Platt.

I liked that interview better than the Bromley post-match. It's alright being disappointed and emotional sometimes (shows you care) and the points about our strikers were valid but the overall content was a bit alarming (since when do we have to panic or change our club because some Bromley players are tall, so what?). After that, the buzz word of the week i.e on Magpie Circle and in this interview today (about 10 times!) is alignment.

MP's mission is to inject some tempo, aggression and purpose but apart from that to keep to our ball-playing, possession-based identity. We had success with Palmer, Langstaff, Nemane, Jones, Crowley all in the same side. We may not have all that quality at the moment but that proves you don't have to have a team of brick shithouses to have success at the lower levels. Good luck to them, but I wouldn't pay to watch Bromley and their likes

Really good interview with Norburn as well btw

https://www.nottscountyfc.co.uk/videos/be8ffcaa-4af3-4f50-80f1-328350520950

Should be cutting him a bit of slack as he's still finding that match sharpness

It’s another tough test for Notts, I do hope we still have Jatta at the club and he is available to play that’ll be a real boost, I’m more confident we might keep him after listening to MP’s interview, by the sound of it it’s likely there’ll be no outgoings or incomings.

A draw would in my opinion be a good result.

Prenton Park is always a challenging venue, irrespective of current form, and we had a strong performance against them last season in our opening match.

I think it will be harder considering our form, and I wouldn't really say we have looked better away from home this season. Notts have been underwhelming in their away performances. I would hate to see a repeat of Barrow.

We need to try to inject some noise in the away end. I know everyone says if the players put the effort in that it will come naturally, but I think the sign of support could take some of the edge off the game. It could also give the players some confidence and see them try that extra bit harder, knowing they have our support. So that will be something I aim to try myself, at the very least.

Should Martin Paterson include Alassana Jatta in the XI? Do I think he will be on the bench?

This is going to be a big talking point and interesting thing to watch out for. If this conversation the club has had with him is in any relation to him pretending to have a back spasm, stick with Matthew Dennis. If it was genuine, then that is the only reason I think he should start.

But then, wouldn't it make sense to have him on the bench, since he's missed a lot of matches?

Keep the squad as settled as possible, I would say.

Given Tranmere's current form, our Magpies will need every ounce of tactical acumen to navigate this match. Their unbeaten home streak and physical playstyle often create hurdles for teams like us who prefer a more possession-based game. Martin Paterson's focus on maintaining a cohesive identity while injecting tempo will be crucial elements of our play. There's no doubt that Dennis could shine if provided the right service, and our defence needs to be alert, especially during set pieces.

It's good news hearing about Jatta's availability. Having options off the bench could prove decisive if the game starts tilting. Also, with the transfer deadline looming, stability in the squad might just help in maintaining morale and focus. While a win would be spectacular, coming away with a draw from Prenton Park would be a commendable result, strengthening our standing and confidence as the season unfolds.

Tranmere are one of those sides you can never quite predict. They look decent on paper but often play poorly. You think we’ll walk all over them, and then they make us fight just to scrape a point. There’s no guarantee we’ll start well or even look convincing enough to deserve anything, especially with all the changes going on. I’d love to think we could win, or at least nick a draw, but I believe Rovers will give us more trouble than we’ll give them. Still, I’m hoping Conor Grant, Jodi Jones, Matt Palmer and the rest step up, because we’ve got a squad that can give the travelling fans something to cheer about.

If we can control the midfield early on, we might just pull off a win. Hoping for a strong showing from Notts!

I have a feeling that Tranmere will bully us. You can bet that they will bombard us with crosses. Hopefully we defend them better than last week. I think Jatta is resigned to staying with us until at least January. The best way to secure a move is to score a hat full of goals.

Tranmere away is one of those fixtures where you feel hopeful at first, but the closer you get to kick-off, the nerves start creeping in. Prenton Park is a proper old-school ground, and in some ways it reminds me of Meadow Lane.

It’s a good place to take in the atmosphere, and I hope it’s not too tense. Watching 90 minutes of flat football can make things edgy on the pitch. If Notts can start well and get the fans behind them early, it could be a cracking game. I’ll leave the team selection to Paterson, but I do think keeping the line-up settled would help us build some consistency and improve performances. As for the score, I dread to guess. If Tranmere get the better of us, it’ll be a tough one to take.

I wouldn’t set up for a draw, but I’d gladly take a point if we put in a proper shift.

This fixture against Tranmere is bound to be tough.

They're noted for their strong, physical play. Still, it's about time we overturned our recent results. I believe Dennis could be the key player, given his current form. If he manages to penetrate and pressure their backline, we might witness a change in match dynamics.

We shouldn't underestimate the power of our midfield either. If they hold strong, they can safely link our defence and attacking play together. Though securing all three points seems ambitious, a well-earned draw would also be a respectable outcome. Let's keep the optimism flowing and support our lads as best as we can.

I'm feeling super optimistic for no good reason I can think of. Dennis, Jatta and Traore are going to do the business for us tomorrow and, just possibly, all the way to a Wembley play-off win as we get better as the season goes on.

Only worry is we concede a couple again. Roos has made the fewest saves (7) of any L2 keeper who has played all five games. The median is 11 (Belshaw as it happens). Which means we've let in four more goals than we would have with just an average L2 standard keeper ... possibly, as there are all sorts of reasons why a keeper makes more or fewer saves of course.

im glad someone is confident @Sheffield Pie, because i am nervous and i think its going to be quite scrappy. they have in the past been exactly the type of team to bully us, and up make it difficult. dont get me wrong, i am excited about the game but i dont feel like we are suddenly going to improve our away performance and i dont expect it either.

if notts started with confidence and scored in the first half, this would make it easier but defensively i am we are just far more alert than we have been.

It's MATCHDAY CMON U PIES!!

I watched the highlights of the Tranmere V Gillingham game and to be honest I wasn’t particularly impressed with either, especially Gillingham. If we can re-produce the first half performance against Bromley for 90 minutes, we will be a match for anyone in this league. Start Jatta on the bench today and let him loose for the final 20 minutes. No defence would be looking forward to that!

The Notts team to face Tranmere.

He's certainly trying for as much continuity as possible and trusting this group of players to turn it around. COYP

We are underway.

Update.

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