Tranmere manager Moore pens new deal

May 28 2008 by Nick Hilton, Liverpool Daily Post

TRANMERE put an end to the uncertainty over the future of Ronnie Moore by extending their manager’s contract by a further two years yesterday.

Moore signed a new deal that keeps him at Prenton Park until 2010 and said: “I’m delighted to have the chance to take the club forward.

“Tranmere has been a big part of my life as a player, coach and now manager. It means a lot to me that I have the chance to be the one who guides the club back to the Championship.”

Moore had spent most of this month working on plans for Rovers’ 2008-09 campaign in League One without knowing whether he will be the man in charge of team affairs when the action starts again on August 9.

Moore’s original two-year contract was due to expire next month and the delay in resolving his future inevitably provoked speculation that the club was looking at alternative options.

Revelations in the Daily Post last month that Tranmere have been in discussions with potential new investors or owners in the form of Portuguese group Best Holdings added another layer to the doubt about the club’s future direction.

The fact that Rovers have made a new commitment to Moore suggests the prospects of a boardroom takeover are receding significantly.

The Tranmere hierarchy – controlling shareholder Peter Johnson and chairman Lorraine Rogers – are sticking with a man who has links to Prenton Park that go back 35 years.

Moore served Rovers as a centre-back and a centre-forward during the 1970s, returned as player in the 1980s then spent nine years as assistant to John King, the most successful manager in the club’s history, between 1987 and 1996.

Moore went on to win back-to-back promotions and as a manager in his own right with Rotherham, then spent just over a year at Oldham Athletic before rejoining Rovers in the summer of 2006.

Tranmere’s two League One campaigns under Moore followed similar patterns, with the team mounting a promotion challenge that ran out of steam in the final month.

However, Moore believes Rovers were closer to finding a successful formula last season than in the previous year and is given credit for signing players of quality including Chris Shuker, Danny Coyne, Antony Kay, Andrew Taylor and Ian Moore.

Chairman Lorraine Rogers said: “Ronnie has made some very good signings in his two seasons here and was unfortunate with injuries to key players in 2007-08.

“He is making preparations for next season and hopefully we will push for promotion to the Championship.”

Moore added: “We are not a million miles away from being a very good side at this level. With the right three or four new faces coming in during the summer, we will hopefully be a real force in the division.”

Fans will be hoping Rovers can retain the services of several out-of-contract players who were influential figures last season, such as midfielders Paul McLaren and Steve Jennings together with winger Steve Davies, whose blossoming progress in August and September was halted by a cruciate ligament injury.

Tranmere are not confident of holding on to Davies, 20, who was the subject of two transfer offers from Leeds United in September.

Rovers’ failure to generate significant income from player sales or cup runs over the last two years mean that Moore is likely to be working with a limited budget to fight off competition from other clubs in the just summer transfer market.

But now at least, he can be sure of his own future.