Tranmere 2, Brighton 0

Aug 27 2007 by Nick Hilton, Liverpool Daily Post

AT THE end of an uncomfortable week in the media spotlight for English football referees, it is only fair to point out a small but significant success for a man in black.

Graham Salisbury did not win many admirers on either side of the divide for his handling of Tranmere’s League One encounter with Brighton.

The Lancashire official irritated both sets of supporters during the afternoon, looked to have mistaken the identity of at least one of the five players shown yellow cards and probably did not impress the referees’ assessor either.

However, while six days earlier referee Rob Styles made a decisive impact on the game between Liverpool and Chelsea by getting a big decision wrong, so here Mr Salisbury turned the game at Prenton Park by getting a small decision right.

He played the advantage rule, when many might not have ignored the Tranmere fans screaming for him to penalise Brighton defender Sam Rents’ crude attempt to hold back substitute Craig Curran in the 78th minute. A wave of a hand allowed Chris Shuker to scamper clear up the right touchline with the loose ball, leaving Brighton’s cover for once outflanked.

The winger then whipped in a cross of pinpoint accuracy, picking out Chris Greenacre’s run to the far post to power a header into the heart of the net.

So the stalemate was broken in the game that looked to be heading for a scoreless conclusion. Brighton’s desperate attempts to force an equaliser resulted in them conceding a second goal on the break, in injury time, to Shuker.

Tranmere manager Ronnie Moore acknowledged the significance of Mr Salisbury’s enlightened moment. Moore said: “I thought the referee had an absolute... I can’t say too much because I’ll get in trouble. But it was the best decision of the afternoon when he played the advantage rule for the first goal. It was pleasing he got that one right.”

Rovers had not run out of patience as they attempted to find a way through Brighton’s stifling game-plan. But they were running out of time – and scoring opportunities had been hard to come by.

The Seagulls repeated the tactics that almost brought them success in the corresponding fixture last season – only for the intervention of teenage substitute Curran to turn the game Tranmere’s way in the final quarter hour.

Once again Brighton’s diamond formation proved effective, as Tranmere struggled to open up avenues for wingers Shuker and Steve Davies.

Brighton manager Dean Wilkins admitted: “We came here with a plan to get a 0-0 draw. The diamond system was a success here last season.

“It was disappointing to lose the game in the last 15 minutes again. But we did not make enough good decisions in those last 15 minutes to give ourselves a chance of keeping a clean sheet. We gave the ball away in areas where we could not afford to.”

Wilkins explained he had been “satisfied” with Brighton’s progress at the interval. At that point the visitors could have claimed to be marginally ahead on half chances in an unexciting game.

Tranmere goalkeeper Danny Coyne had to make the first half’s two serious saves, tipping over a firm header from centre-back Guy Butters and touching a miss-hit back-pass from Ben Chorley away from Alex Revell.

Centre-back Ian Goodison distinguished himself in keeping out Brighton’s powerfully built attackers while further forward, Tranmere searched in vain for the confident passing that marked their 2-0 success at Gillingham the previous weekend.

However, they were able to take a tighter grip on the contest from midfield after half-time.

Davies, a teenager now having to cope with the pressures of being the subject of transfer speculation, began to show flashes of the form that is attracting the scouts to Prenton Park.

A surging run through the middle in the 53rd minute was finished with a 20-yard shot that goalkeeper Michel Kuipers could not hold.

Then, in the 67th minute, Goodison burst forward after making an interception, played Greenacre clear into the penalty area only for the striker to be thwarted by Kuipers’ sprawling save.

Moore made a slight adjustment in tactics on 74 minutes. Target-man Gareth Taylor, making his first start of the season in place of hamstring victim Calvin Zola, came off after taking a blow near of the top of the rib cage in a heavy fall.

His replacement, the lithe and the lightweight Curran, quickly began harrying and worrying the Brighton defenders.

The teenager, who scored with the first touch of his home debut against the Seagulls in April, took less than four minutes to make his contribution to Greenacre’s opener.

Brighton might still have rescued something from the afternoon if Coyne had not saved resourcefully in with his legs at close range from substitute Nathan Elder, who arrived unmarked at the far post onto a deep free-kick from Sam Rents.

Brighton’s afternoon then went seriously downhill in injury time.

Right-back Andy Whing was sent off for a second bookable offence after a double challenge also involving Adam El-Abd brought a crunching end to another strong run from Davies.

Wilkinson revealed later he asked Mr Salisbury to look again at a video of the incident, suggesting Whing had not been responsible for the tackle on Davies.

Whing’s flank was wide open when a Brighton attack broke down soon afterwards, allowing Shuker to charge clear from the halfway line onto Davies’ pass. As Kuipers galloped 20 yards outside his goal to close down the danger, Shuker chipped a first-time shot past him and watched in glee as it rolled gently inside the right-hand post and into the net.