|
It's the first time Rovers will have been on TV since their penalty shoot-out heart ache against Hartlepool United in the play-off semi finals of 2004/05 when under Brian Little and they will be hoping to turn around their terrible record on television which has seen them defeated by the likes of Liverpool, Luton, Newcastle, Cardiff, Leicester and Bristol City.
Gillingham team profile:
Formed: 1893
Ground: Priestfield Stadium
Manager: Ronnie Jepson
Nickname: The Gills
Season Finish 2005/06: 14th (Coca-Cola League One)
Previous Meetings:
It's fair to say Tranmere didn't really enjoy their game against Gillingham at Prenton Park on December 23rd this season.
In their last home game of 2006, Rovers took a fantastic 2-0 lead in the opening five minutes thanks to goals from Chris Greenacre on his birthday and then Chris Shuker, following up a fantastic free-kick against Brentford in his previous match netted straight from a corner.
However, despite Rovers steam rollering what looked like a very poor Gillingham side, they took their foot off the gas and let Ronnie Jepson's side back in the game as goals from Mullingan in the 11th and 19th minutes got Gillingham level and then Chorley struck the winner to complete the come back just before half time.
Vital Stats:
Rovers have picked up just two points from their last four games against The Gills
In 13 games between the two sides at Priestfield Stadium, there have been eight draws
Tranmere's last win away to Gillingham came on January 25th 1975
All meetings between the two sides (27) have been in either Division 3 or 4
On January 26th 2000, Tranmere defeated Bolton Wanderers 3-0 in the Worthington Cup Semi-Final to clinch their place in the final
The Form Book:
Gillingham last 6 home games: LLWDWW
Tranmere last 6 away games: LDDDDW
Gillingham haven't really had the best of starts to 2007 under Ronnie Jepson, although it is fair to say that three of their four games this year have been away from home.
At home this season it has been a mixed bag for The Gills, with eight wins, one draw and five defeats in their 14 home league games as well as one defeat and one win at home in the cup competitions.
In their last six home games, Gillingham have picked up an dissapointing 7 points out of 15 in the league along with one win in the cup, 4-1 against non league Bromley.
Their two home league wins in that sequence of six came against Rotherham United (1-0) and Leyton Orient (2-1) along with defeat to Oldham Athletic (3-0) and Doncaster Rovers (2-0) in their most recent home games and their only home draw of the season, 1-1 with Bournemouth.
Other notable home wins have come over Swansea City (3-1) and Huddersfield (2-1), whilst promotion chasing Nottingham Forest (1-0) and Scunthorpe United (2-0) have picked up three points in Kent.
It has been along time since Rovers last away win against Brighton and Hove Albion on November 18th 2006, with five games coming since the game which Rovers won 1-0 thanks to a Chris Greenacre goal.
Four of those games have ended in draws whilst the other was a defeat, dissapointingly to Bristol City (3-2) after Rovers had led 2-0 at half time.
The four draws came against Scunthorpe (1-1), Brentford (1-1), Huddersfield Town (2-2) and Nottingham Forest (1-1), with Rovers having to come from behind in three of those four games.
Other notable away results for Rovers have seen them win 2-0 at Chesterfield, 3-1 at Northampton and gain a credible 0-0 draw with Swansea City at The Liberty Stadium.
From a total of 14 away games this season, Tranmere have won three, drawn six and lost five matches.
Double Hit:
In December for our match preview of the reverse fixture we featured former Gillingham and Tranmere striker Iffy Onuora, who played three games for Rovers under Brian Little without scoring.
After 40 minutes of searching, I finally found one other player who was represented both clubs in midfielder Simon Osborn.
Osborn, now 35, started off his career at Crystal Palace in 1990 where he made over 50 appearances, scoring six goals, before moving onto Reading for £90,000 in 1994 then Queens Park Rangers in 1995 for a combined total of £1,090,000.
In his one season with Reading, Osborn played 39 games for the Royals, scoring five goals and then in six months at Loftus Road, Osborn made 11 appearances, scoring one goal, before moving on to Wolverhampton Wanderers for £1,000,000 in 1996.
The midfielder stayed with Wolves until 2001, making over 180 appearances for the Midlands club and scoring 14 goals with Wolves, becoming one of the fans favourites in his 6 years at Molineux.
It was whilst he was at Wolves that Osborn joined Tranmere on loan for two months, then under Ray Mathias, between March and May of 2003 as Tranmere looked to edge into the play-offs.
Whilst with Rovers, Osborn made nine appearances, scoring once, before leaving Wolves in the summer for Port Vale on a free transfer.
One month and eight appearances later, Osborn was on the move again, joining Gillingham on a free transfer as he left Vale Park.
An instant hit with The Gills, Osborn made nearly 50 appearances for the Kent based side, scoring five times, before leaving in July 2003 to join Walsall.
In three years at The Bescott, Osborn made over 100 appearances before joining Hereford last summer where he has made only one appearance this season.
One To Watch:
In December we told you to watch tricky winger Matty Jarvis and one other player you should watch out for, should he play, is Gills central defender Brent Sancho.
Sancho is a big, strong defender, standing at 6'1 feet tall wears the number 5 shirt for Gillingham and has been at Priestfield since August 2005,w hen he signed from Dundee United on a free transfer where he started his career in Britain.
Since signing for the Gills, Sancho has made forty league and cup appearances for the Kent based side, including 29 league starts, scoring two goals in the process aswell as picking up a red card against Yeovil in April of last year.
Sancho is a very good tackler who has plenty of pace and ability on the ball and this has been noted by his country as he represented Trinadad and Tobago in their first world cup in Germany last summer.
This season, Sancho has made fifteen league appearances, four as a substitute, picking up two yellow cards in the process.
Team News:
Rovers should be pretty much full strength again with the only injury doubt hanging over the squad being Ian Goodison who injured the back of his leg during the 1-1 draw with Bradford. Chris Greenacre is now fully fit and expected to feature again after the flu.
Meanwhile for Rovers, Joe Hart plays the final game of his loan spell before returning to Premiership side Manchester City.
Jones' Prediction: Gillingham 3-1 Tranmere