Injury-hit Tranmere Rovers face Walsall tonight (From Wirral Globe)

Injury-hit Tranmere Rovers face Walsall tonight

4:40pm Tuesday 12th March 2013 in News By Craig Manning

AN injury-hit Tranmere Rovers face Walsall in League One action at Bank's Stadium tonight.

The fixture, starting at 7.45pm, will be the 69th time the two clubs have met in total and the 68th time in the league.

It comes three days after Max Power took Rovers to a 1-0 victory over Oldham Athletic at Prenton Park and back into the league's top four.

The midfielder's second-half strike earned Ronnie Moore's squad their first home win in almost two months.

Moore will be without Michael O'Halloran tonight after he picked up an injury on Saturday. The Bolton Wanderers loanee joined an injury list that includes James Wallace, Andy Robinson, Adam McGurk and Mamady Sidibe.

However, Moore is expecting Ian Goodison to at least start the match at the Banks’s Stadium despite also picking up a knock.

He said: "Michael O’Halloran and Ian Goodison were injured in the warm up on Saturday and both weren’t going to start which sums up how ridiculous the season has been.

"I said to them to go out and try and if you have to come off you have to come off.

"To be fair to Goody, at 40 years of age he’s come through it alright. But Michael came off with his knee injury and he definitely won’t be involved tomorrow.

"Goody will want to play [at Walsall]. It's difficult to play Saturday, Tuesday at 21 years old but for him at 40 it’s a lot harder.

"If he can give us 60-70 minutes we’ll do things then. He's a one off. He's never been the best trainer but he always seems to be the best player.

"We’ve got to wait on Mamady. We're hopeful he’ll train this morning. It was just a bit tight on Friday so Saturday was a bit early for him.

"We're hopeful he’ll get through the training session today and possibly play but I’d say it’s 60-40 he won’t play."

The Saddlers currently hold a 29 wins to 25 advantage, though Rovers are unbeaten in the last six games between the two clubs.

Earlier this season the sides drew 0-0 at Prenton Park, while Andy Robinson's strike direct from a free kick gave Rovers a 1-0 win at the Banks's Stadium last April.

The biggest ever win for Rovers against Walsall was a 6-0 victory in April 1927. That game saw Tommy Jones become the youngest ever player to score a hat-trick at the age of 17 years and 146 days, while Jack Flanagan and Fred Marquis (2) were also on the scoresheet.
 

Tonight's game is the first of Rovers' final nine League One games of the current campaign. It continues on Saturday, taking on MK Dons at Stadium MK, 3pm. 

Moore said: "You look at the games we've got in the run-in thp the end of the season ... MK Dons, Bournemouth, Sheffield United, Walsall and Doncaster, they're mouthwatering.

"But we know we’ve got work to do."