With a heavy downpour having already forced both teams off during the warm up, the bleak weather continued through most of the match, with rain pouring down for all of the second half and making playing conditions difficult, as the ball skidded up off the wet turf.
Again, Tranmere fielded a side with no first team experience, with young right-back Luke Denson captaining the side, and new signing Luke Waterfall watching on from the substitutes bench. With Josh MacAughley and Ashton Taylor both out injured, Ashcroft and Richardson both got chances to start, whilst Max Power also started in midfield in a 4-4-2 formation. The Rovers line-up was:
Kennedy
Denson (c) G. Jones Richardson Corrigan
MacKreth Fraughan Power Wilson
Rule Ashcroft
Tranmere started the brighter of the two sides, form they would continue for most of the match, with Rovers having two chances early on, as firstly Ryan Fraughan saw his 20-yard effort pushed over the cross-bar and then Power had a shot from the edge of the area smartly pushed round the post.
Down the other end, Peter Kennedy made a couple of simple saves from shows hit straight at him, before Dave Wilson should have opened the scoring for Tranmere from a brilliant, flowing move.
Ryan Fraughan counter attacked for Tranmere and found Ashcroft on the right. The Tranmere number ten appeared to have taken the ball too far, but hit a perfect cross a cross goal, only for Wilson to force the goalkeeper in to a fantastic save, although perhaps the Tranmere winger should have scored.
All the pressure wouldn't pay off for Tranmere though, as they went 1-0 down not long after. A long kick from the goalkeeper was crucially missed in the air by Gerwyn Jones, and the Flint striker ran on to the free ball and powerfully slotted home past Kennedy.
Rovers should have equalised soon after though, as Dave Wilson missed another golden chance, with his first touch letting him down resulting in him having less time to hit his eventual shot, which was blocked, before Rule's follow-up was well saved by the goalkeeper.
It was Tranmere having most of the chances then, and Luke Denson perhaps should have done better as the half came to a close as he found himself near the penalty spot to head Corrigan's cross well wide, before Ryan Fraughan saw a shot blocked from 20-yards after a very long run as he recieved the ball from a Flint corner.
Flint though were having chances down the other end, and Joel Richardson could be thanked for keeping the ball away from goal as he made several crucial and impressive blocks, throwing himself in the way of shots, whilst a couple of other efforts were hit wide.
Come half time though, Rovers were still 1-0 down, although they did not deserve to be so, based on the quality of the chances they had had in front of goal.
The second half would prove to be a lot quieter chances wise, as with the rain now pouring down, each team struggled to handle the conditions.
Rovers had a couple of early corners, which came to nothing, whilst at the other end Flint hit two shots badly wide.
Around the hour mark, Tranmere made three substitutions, with MacKreth, Rule and Ashcroft replaced by Pursehouse, Williams and a trialist, but they seemed to lose pace and presence going forward after these switches.
Ashcroft had been winning a lot of very important flick-ons upfront, which had often led to chances with Rule running on to the ball, but this stopped after the substitutions, whilst Rovers also missed the pace of the lightning-quick MacKreth on the right.
Rovers still had a couple more chances though, with the trialist forcing the Flint goalkeeper into a save as he ran on to ball in the penalty area, with the re-bound being forced out for a corner, whilst several free-kicks for Tranmere came to nothing, as Fraughan either failed to beat the first man or saw his good crosses headed clear unchallanged.
MacKreth returned to the action, strangely, just ten or so minutes after coming off, replacing Max Power in central midfield, shortly before Luke Denson was unlucky not to score as the ball broke to the Rovers captain 25-yards from goal from a Tranmere corner. The right-back wound up and smashed a brilliant, powerful effort only just over the cross-bar and out for a goal-kick.
The final chance of the match was perhaps Tranmere's best, and it fell to Gerwyn Jones just six yards from goal, as he looked to level the game. With just a few minutes left, the ball again fell to a Tranmere player in the box from a corner, and Jones smashed the ball powerfully towards goal, only for the brilliant Flint 'keeper to somehow keep the ball out, diving to his right to pull off a spectacular save.
Flint Town United then won the game 1-0, although Tranmere most definately deserved more from the game, as they had the majority of the chances and would have won the match if they'd taken their chances.
Again though, they were up against a strong, physical, more mature side, and coped well, with a 1-0 result flattering the Welsh side.
Rovers were at there best with Ashcroft and Rule upfront in the 4-4-2, as these two players were making things happen, although unfortunatly the best chances just weren't falling to Tranmere's two strikers.
The Tranmere midfield was much better than it had been on Monday at Cammell Laird, with the ever impressive Dave Wilson once again proving to be a handful on the left, whilst on the opposite flank, first-year scholar Jack MacKreth was also very good.
For Man of the Match, it is difficult to pick between Richardson and Fraughan, as both were very good. Fraughan probably just sneaks it though, as although Richardson made some crucial tackles and blocks in midfield, Fraughan was Tranmere's driving influence in midfield, starting plenty of attacks, taking some good set-pieces and having some good efforts himself.