Attendance: 4,845

by Steve Hunter

IF you don't take your chances, you don't win games. That, simply, is what happened to Tranmere on Saturday as they slumped to their sixth Nationwide League Division One defeat of the season.

Yet again, Rovers created some glorious opportunities, but all went begging and they were grateful to goalkeeper Danny Coyne for some magnificent first-half saves.

Rovers turned in a real Jekyll and Hyde performance, looking impressive going forward but looked likely to concede every time Crewe attacked. Steve Anthrobus gave Crewe the lead on the half-hour, after Tranmere appealed in vain for offside.

Coyne made five saves out of the top drawer in the first-half, but Tranmere also had their chances. Graham Branch, in for hamstring victim Lee Jones, missed two great openings, and David Kelly and Gary Jones both missed from close range.

Rovers dominated the second-half and Branch could have had a hat-trick, but three times he failed to convert when clean through. David Kelly equalised for Tranmere on the hour with his seventh goal of the season, heading in Gary Stevens cross shot. Everyone in the Crewe press box thought it was Stevens' goal, but television replay showed Kelly headed the ball, which was going wide.

Crewe super sub Kevin Street fired home a last minute winner to break Tranmere's hearts, after good work from the outstanding Dele Adebola.

Tranmere: Coyne, Stevens (sub: Mahon, 83 mins), Thompson, McGreal, Challinor, O'Brien (sub: Irons, 29 mins), Morrissey, Cook, Kelly, G. Jones, Branch. (sub not used: Aldridge).

Converted for the new archive on 13 March 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.