John Warrington: The Submarine Captain

"Tranmere will never be able to compete with Liverpool and Everton. They're like big liners like the Queen Mary, but I see Tranmere as a Deadly Submarine" - Johnny King (Tranmere legend)

*Clicking pictures will show player screenshots

Goalkeepers



Joe Fryer - Nick Hayes

Defenders

Fullbacks



Joe Riley - Adam Buxton - Alexander McQueen - Connor Wood

Centre Backs



Connor O'Grady - Sam Brotherton - Will Packwood - Harry Lennon - TJ Eyoma

Midfielders

Centre Midfielders



Chris Dawson - Tom Burridge - Ollie Banks - Rob Vincent - George Marsh

Strikers



Andy Cook - James Norwood - Denny Johnstone - Jake Pickard - Kayne Diedrick-Roberts

Reserves



Ritchie Sutton - Tim Telford

"Tranmere will never be able to compete with Liverpool and Everton. They're like big liners like the Queen Mary, but I see Tranmere as a Deadly Submarine" - Johnny King (Tranmere legend)

August - December 2018

Things are going superbly at the moment. We sit top of the league and are doing well in the cup competitions. Our Carabao Cup journey was ended by Manchester United but not before we claimed a Premier League scalp in Stoke. In the FA Cup we've already beaten higher league opposition in Gillingham and face a 3rd round tie at home to Newcastle. We also beat League One Fleetwood in the Checkatrade Trophy. We've got Manchester United Under 23's next in that competition.

We've made a couple of signings to bolster the squad, one I'm really excited about, and we've also let two players go. Jimmy Dunne, Conor Grant, Conor Thomas and Alexander Eggert have joined us and Rob Vincent and TJ Eyoma are on their way out. Rob Vincent is joining Charlton for a fee of 58k and Eyoma is joining Sheffield United for a fee of 170k. A decent profit on both of those. All our signings have been free transfers, although Eggert doesn't actually join us until next November. Eggert really excites me as he's only 16 and has been tearing it up on our under 18's.

Despite all the positives, one negative is our recent form which has taken a dip. We've not won in three games, albeit all away from home, but it's still a little worrying. Hopefully, we can pick up from again in January and continue our march towards League One.







Matches Played - 25
Goals Scored - 71
Goals Conceded - 31
Yellow Cards - 40
Red Cards - 2
Average Attendance - 8,053

Top Goalscorer - Jake Pickard - 20
Highest Average Rating - Jake Pickard - 7.52
Most Assists - Andy Cook and Denny Johnstone - 12
Best Pass Completion - Ollie Banks - 78%
Most POM's - Denny Johnstone - 6
Most Yellow Cards - Chris Dawson - 8
Most Red Cards - Denny Johnstone and Connor Wood - 1









We haven't been too bad on the injury front really. No massively long-term injuries to speak of. The only injury of note that has definitely had an effect is losing Jake Pickard for 7 weeks with shin splints. We miss his goals and our recent poor form started when he got injured, which can't be a coincidence. Hopefully we can get him back sooner rather than later.



John Warrington Manager of the Month x2
Jake Pickard Player of the Month x1
Denny Johnstone Player of the Month x1
Jake Pickard Young Player of the Month x2

"Tranmere will never be able to compete with Liverpool and Everton. They're like big liners like the Queen Mary, but I see Tranmere as a Deadly Submarine" - Johnny King (Tranmere legend)

January 2019 - May 2019

We've done it! We're into League One at the first time of asking and as champions! A fantastic achievement after being tipped to finish mid-table at the start of the season. The board has also announced improvements to the youth facilities and a possible new stadium which is very exciting. I'll keep you informed of what happens with that.

We started January by signing Bradford's James Hanson on loan until the end of the season and it turned out to be a great signing with him chipping in with some crucial goals.

We lost out in the FA Cup 3rd round against Newcastle, they were simply too good for us, unfortunately. In the Checkatrade Trophy, we came up against two Under 23 teams who had some big players out which was very annoying. We managed to beat Man United but lost to Tottenham, who had Erik Lamela up top.







Matches Played - 46
Goals Scored - 123
Goals Conceded - 51
Yellow Cards - 65
Red Cards - 5
Average Attendance - 8,633

Top Goalscorer - Denny Johnstone - 32
Highest Average Rating - Jake Pickard - 7.55
Most Assists - Denny Johnstone - 19
Best Pass Completion - Ollie Banks - 79%
Most POM's - Denny Johnstone - 9
Most Yellow Cards - Chris Dawson and Alexander McQueen - 10
Most Red Cards - Connor Wood - 2









Losing Nick Hayes to a broken wrist was the only major injury really but Joe Fryer was easily able to cover him.



John Warrington Manager of the Month x4
Jake Pickard Player of the Month x1
Denny Johnstone Player of the Month x1
Jake Pickard Young Player of the Month x2

"Tranmere will never be able to compete with Liverpool and Everton. They're like big liners like the Queen Mary, but I see Tranmere as a Deadly Submarine" - Johnny King (Tranmere legend)

SkyBet League Two Awards

Manager of the Year



Really happy to win this after the disappointment of last season. Much deserved if I do say so myself after what was a really successful season for us.

Player of the Year



Jake totally deserves this, he's been superb this season. He was our best player by a mile in my opinion and I think he'll only get better in League One.

Golden Boot



No Tranmere players here, unfortunately, we share our goals around quite well. Jake Pickard would have been in with a shout had he not had his spell out with injury.

Team of the Year



Really proud to have six of our players in the Team of the Year! Can't really argue with any of the picks either to be honest.

Club Awards



Fans' Player of the Season

A very easy decision for the fans and one I totally agree with this one. Jake has been one of our standout performers and we really noticed his absence when he was injured.

Goal of the Season

Not a lot to choose from really.

Signing of the Season

A baffling decision this one. Joe hardly played, with Nick Hayes keeping him out of the side, and Joe Riley was superb! Joe Fryer didn't even make our tea of the season.

Young Player of the Season

Can't argue with this one. See above.

"Tranmere will never be able to compete with Liverpool and Everton. They're like big liners like the Queen Mary, but I see Tranmere as a Deadly Submarine" - Johnny King (Tranmere legend)

The Stats



*Must have played 10 or more to register on the leaderboard

Most Appearances
1. Connor O'Grady - 55 (1)
2. Denny Johnstone - 52 (4)
3. Chris Dawson - 52 (4)

Most Goals
1. Denny Johnstone - 32
2. Jake Pickard - 31
3. Andy Cook - 21

Most Assists
1. Denny Johnstone - 19
2. Jake Pickard - 16
3. James Norwood - 14

Highest Average Rating
1. Jake Pickard - 7.55
2. Joe Riley - 7.50
3. James Norwood - 7.34

Most Tackles Won
1. Alexander McQueen - 240
2. Chris Dawson - 203
3. Connor Wood - 177

Best Tackle Completion Ratio
1. Sam Brotherton - 85%
2. Connor O'Grady - 82%
3. Conor Thomas 81%

Most Interceptions
1. Will Packwood - 364
2. Harry Lennon - 232
3. Connor O'Grady - 167

Distance Covered per 90 mins
1. Alexander McQueen - 14.6km
2. Joe Riley - 14.2km
3. Connor Wood - 14.1km

Best Pass Completion Ratio
1. Ollie Banks - 79%
2. Nick Hayes - 78%
=. Conor Thomas - 78%

Most Chances created per 90 minutes
1. James Norwood - 1.52
2. Jake Pickard - 1.13
3. Andy Cook - 1.06

"Tranmere will never be able to compete with Liverpool and Everton. They're like big liners like the Queen Mary, but I see Tranmere as a Deadly Submarine" - Johnny King (Tranmere legend)

Around the Leagues

Premier League

Champions - Man United
Rest of top 4 - Arsenal, Liverpool, Man City
Relegated - Huddersfield, Southampton, Derby

Championship

Champions - West Brom
Promoted - Everton, Fulham
Relegated - Sheffield United, Portsmouth, Sunderland

League One

Champions - Shrewsbury
Promoted - Bradford, Coventry
Relegated - AFC Wimbledon, Bury Blackpool, Cambridge

League Two

Champions - Tranmere
Promoted - Colchester, Mansfield, Bristol Rovers
Relegated - Newport, Exeter

National League

Champions - Gateshead
Promoted - Morecambe
Relegated - Bromley, Bath, Woking, Wealdstone

National League North

Champions - Blyth
Promoted - FC United
Relegated - Tamworth, Bradford PA, Lowestoft

National League South

Champions - Billericay
Promoted - Boreham Wood
Relegated - Slough Hemel Hempstead, Concord

FA Cup

Winners - Man United
Runners-Up - Tottenham

Carabao Cup

Winners - Chelsea
Runners-Up - West Ham

Community Shield

Winners - Chelsea
Runners-Up - Man United

Checkatrade Trophy

Winners - Chelsea Under 23's
Runners-Up - Tottenham Under 23's

FA Trophy

Winners - Barrow
Runners-Up - Leyton Orient

Champions League

Winners - Arsenal
Runners-Up - Barcelona

Europa League

Winners - Man City
Runners-Up - Liverpool

Super Cup

Winners - Marseille
Runners-Up - Chelsea

Incredible season once again mate, 123 goals Brilliant.

2018-06-12 17:40#249717 ScottT : Incredible season once again mate, 123 goals Brilliant.

Couldn't quite believe it myself!

"Tranmere will never be able to compete with Liverpool and Everton. They're like big liners like the Queen Mary, but I see Tranmere as a Deadly Submarine" - Johnny King (Tranmere legend)

Transfers

Transfers Out

Released Players



I released four players who didn't really feature during the last season, three of which haven't featured at all during my reign here at Rovers. Burridge was a difficult one to take as he actively wouldn't sign a new deal but I'm not really bothered about the other three.

Transfers Out



Conor Thomas and Conor Grant both leaving left us short in central midfield but there was no way I could say no to 155k for Conor Thomas, especially when there are good replacements in the free transfer market. I was happy to sell Adam Buxton as he didn't really feature last season and I'm hoping DiedrickRoberts going out on loan will spark his development as he's disappointed so far.

Transfers In



We weren't as busy as last season in the transfer market but we still made some very important signings.

We brought in Ben Amos to replace the outgoing Nick Hayes in goal. Unfortunately, Ipswich wouldn't loan us Hayes for a third season as they wanted to play him in their own first team. Much deserved to be fair. Ben is a more than capable replacement though and I'd expect him to keep Joe Fryer out the side.

Connor Roberts has come in at right wing-back and should provide great competition with Joe Riley for that position.

In the center of defence, we renewed the loan of Connor O'Grady and bought Tom Aldred from Bury. Aldred played 32 games for Bury in League last season so has plenty of experience in this league. I'm hoping that will prove invaluable over the course of the season.

In central midfield, we brought in Hope Akpan following his release from Burton. Akpan is a solid holding player and is a great replacement for Conor Thomas. We're still looking a little thin in the midfield but I'm hoping George Marsh can make the step up this season.

Up front, we signed Kieffer Moore from Barnsley. It'll be interesting to see if he can fit in at the club and whether he can push for a first team place.

"Tranmere will never be able to compete with Liverpool and Everton. They're like big liners like the Queen Mary, but I see Tranmere as a Deadly Submarine" - Johnny King (Tranmere legend)

*Clicking pictures will show player screenshots

Goalkeepers



Ben Amos - Joe Fryer

Defenders

Fullbacks



Joe Riley - Connor Roberts - Alexander McQueen - Connor Wood

Centre Backs



Connor O'Grady - Tom Aldred - Will Packwood - Harry Lennon - Jimmy Dunne

Midfielders

Centre Midfielders



Chris Dawson - Hope Akpan - Ollie Banks - George Marsh

Strikers



Andy Cook - James Norwood - Denny Johnstone - Jake Pickard - Kieffer Moore

Reserves



Alexander Eggert - Tim Telford

"Tranmere will never be able to compete with Liverpool and Everton. They're like big liners like the Queen Mary, but I see Tranmere as a Deadly Submarine" - Johnny King (Tranmere legend)

*Sorry for the lack of midseason update - I forgot to make a midseason save file!

2019/20 Season

What an incredible season! We are on our way to the Championship! We tried our best to bottle it with some inconsistent form in the second half of the season but we ended up going up as champions as the other teams faltered. Sunderland and Wigan gave it a good go though. Considering I was only expecting us to maybe push for the playoffs, this was an incrdible season.

In the cups, we disappointed. We were knocked out of the FA Cup in the 3rd round by Scunthorpe and by Sheffield United in the 3rd round of the Carabao Cup. Both of those are in our league so to get knocked out by them was a big disappointment. It feels so much better when you get beaten by a higher league opposition. In the Checkatrade Trophy, we fared a little better. We reached the Northern Section Quarter Final, which was above my expectations, given that we weren't prioritising the trophy.

We only made one signing during the course of the season with Wayne Rooney coming in on a free transfer in November. I felt like the team could benefit from his experience and his versatility over the course of the season. Jimmy Dunne and Joe Fryer moved on during January. Dunne joined Lincoln for 18.25k and Joe Fryer joined Exeter for 3.4k. Both of them didn't really play so I wanted to cash in before their contracts ran out.

Speaking of contracts, I tried my best to get Denny Johnstone to sign a new deal as he was our top scorer up until January, but he flat out refused. Then I got this in my inbox.



What a bloody kick in the teeth that is. Of course me being me I relegated him straight to the youth team and he was never seen in the Tranmere shirt again. I'm not bitter......much. The blow of losing Denny was softened a little bit when my youth intake came in and this little gem popped up.



This guy looks like he's going to be a quality player and along with Alexander Eggert, we now have two potential first team strikers.







Matches Played - 46
Goals Scored - 108
Goals Conceded - 62
Yellow Cards - 61
Red Cards - 5
Average Attendance - 12,044

Top Goalscorer - Kieffer Moore - 30
Highest Average Rating - Denny Johnstone - 7.41
Most Assists - Kieffer Moore - 15
Best Pass Completion - Chris Dawson - 80%
Most POM's - Denny Johnstone - 7
Most Yellow Cards - Will Packwood and Connor Wood - 11
Most Red Cards - Connor Roberts - 2









We had a pretty good season in terms of injuries so a lot of credit has to go to the medical staff. The most concerning injury was losing Connor Roberts for a month as he's been one of the first names on the teamsheet this season. Losing Wayne Rooney was also a bit annoying but I've been deploying him as a backup player so it didn't really have much of an effect.



John Warrington Manager of the Month x2
Denny Johnstone Player of the Month x1

"Tranmere will never be able to compete with Liverpool and Everton. They're like big liners like the Queen Mary, but I see Tranmere as a Deadly Submarine" - Johnny King (Tranmere legend)

SkyBet League One Awards

Manager of the Year



Delighted to win this but realistically I don't think anyone could win it. That's without wanting to sound arrogant of course. We were predicted to go down and ended up winning the title.

Player of the Year



Not a Tranmere player but Joe has had a superb season for Sunderland, helping them to 2nd in the table and promotion along with us.

Golden Boot



I'm delighted to see Kieffer Moore win this. He took over from Denny Johnstone brilliantly in the second half of the season and I'm excited to see how he does in the Championship.

Team of the Year



Domination! Very shocked to see the entire back four being Tranmere players considering we only had the 6th best defence in the league. I'm not going to complain though! I'm disappointed to not see Chris Dawson in it but as I said earlier, Rankin-Costello has done very well this season.

Club Awards



Fans' Player of the Season

Whilst I agree with the decision of Connor Roberts winning, Jake Pickard being third ahead of Kieffer Moore is a very bizarre decision. I'm guessing it's because of his stature at the club.

Goal of the Season

A very good goal to be fair. From next season I'll be posting a video of the winning goal!

Signing of the Season

Kieffer Moore could have won this but Connor has been our best player this season. Big mention to Hope Akpan, who has also done very well.

Young Player of the Season

Can't argue with this one. See above.

"Tranmere will never be able to compete with Liverpool and Everton. They're like big liners like the Queen Mary, but I see Tranmere as a Deadly Submarine" - Johnny King (Tranmere legend)

The Stats



*Must have played 10 or more to register on the leaderboard

Most Appearances
1. Ben Amos - 56
2. Kieffer Moore - 55
3. Connor Wood - 54

Most Goals
1. Kieffer Moore - 30
2. Denny Johnstone - 25
3. Jake Pickard - 19

Most Assists
1. Kieffer Moore - 15
2. Connor Wood - 13
3. Jake Pickard - 11
= Connor Roberts - 11

Highest Average Rating
1. Denny Johnstone - 7.41
2. Connor Roberts - 7.39
3. Hope Akpan - 7.22

Most Tackles Won
1. Connor Wood - 244
2. Hope Akpan - 227
3. Connor Roberts - 219

Best Tackle Completion Ratio
1. Tom Aldred - 85%
2. Harry Lennon - 82%
3. Will Packwood - 80%

Most Interceptions
1. Will Packwood - 273
2. Tom Aldred - 264
3. Harry Lennon - 215

Distance Covered per 90 mins
1. Joe Riley - 15.6km
2. Alexander McQueen - 15.2km
3. Connor Roberts - 14.6km

Best Pass Completion Ratio
1. Chris Dawson - 80%
=. Ollie Banks - 80%
3. Ben Amos - 79%

Most Chances created per 90 minutes
1. Ben Hudson - 1.22
2. Jake Pickard - 1.16
3. Joe Riley - 1.09

"Tranmere will never be able to compete with Liverpool and Everton. They're like big liners like the Queen Mary, but I see Tranmere as a Deadly Submarine" - Johnny King (Tranmere legend)

Around the Leagues

Premier League

Champions - Man United
Rest of top 4 - Arsenal, Man City, Chelsea
Relegated - Leeds, Wolves, Fulham

Championship

Champions - Huddersfield
Promoted - Brighton, Millwall
Relegated - Preston, Shrewsbury, Coventry

League One

Champions - Tranmere
Promoted - Sunderland, Luton
Relegated - Yeovil, Gillingham, Oldham, Southend

League Two

Champions - Doncaster
Promoted - Swindon, AFC Wimbledon, Notts County
Relegated - Gateshead, Bury

National League

Champions - Exeter
Promoted - Salford
Relegated - Aldershot, Torquay, Macclesfield, Dag & Red

National League North

Champions - Harrogate
Promoted - Southport
Relegated - Hereford, Alfreton, Buxton

National League South

Champions - Wealdstone
Promoted - Bromley
Relegated - Bognor Regis East Thurrock, Kingstonian

FA Cup

Winners - Man City
Runners-Up - Burnley

Carabao Cup

Winners - Man United
Runners-Up - Liverpool

Community Shield

Winners - Man United
Runners-Up - Arsenal

Checkatrade Trophy

Winners - MK Dons
Runners-Up - Wolves Under 23's

FA Trophy

Winners - Salford
Runners-Up - Stockport

Champions League

Winners - Man City
Runners-Up - Man United

Europa League

Winners - Inter
Runners-Up - Chelsea

Super Cup

Winners - Man City
Runners-Up - Arsenal

"Tranmere will never be able to compete with Liverpool and Everton. They're like big liners like the Queen Mary, but I see Tranmere as a Deadly Submarine" - Johnny King (Tranmere legend)

Transfers

Transfers Out

Released Players



We say goodbye to seven players as they end their contracts at Tranmere. I wanted to retain George Marsh and Joe Riley but neither would sign a deal which is disappointing. Kayne Diedrick-Roberts has been really disappointing since joining so I'm glad to see him go. It's a shame as I had high hopes for the lad. James Norwood leaves after scoring 67 goals in 139 games for Tranmere but unfortunately, we needed to lose one of him or Andy Cook and I feel that Andy Cook offers more than James.

Transfers Out



Obviously, there was the departure of Denny Johnstone that we already knew about but we also sold on Jake Pickard. Jake has been a fine servant during his three years at Tranmere but I felt it was time to replace him with a higher quality player.

Transfers In



We were quite busy during this window. I felt like we needed to bring in a few players to strengthen the squad in order to push for a top half spot in the Championship.

Luke McGee joins us from Aston Villa, having made 41 appearances at this level over the past two seasons. I'm not sure if he'll keep Ben Amos out of the team but it's great to have two quality goalkeepers at the club.

In defence, we made three signings. Ola Aina, Curtis Good and Tommy Spurr arrived after being released from Chelsea, Newcastle and Preston respectively. I'm expecting Ola Aini and Curtis Good to make quite a few appearances over the course of the season, whilst Spurr is definitely a backup option. We've failed to produce any promising defenders via our youth system so I felt it was important to bring in some experienced backup.

Sean Goss comes in to strengthen our midfield options, meaning we now have four high-quality central midfield players. Sean played 12 times for QPR at this level last season.

Up-front we brought in two to replace the departing Johnstone and Pickard. Sam Winnall joins on a free from Sheffield Wednesday whilst we paid 325k to buy Danny Rose from Gillingham. Sam Winnall was out of favour at Sheffield Wednesday but I think he could thrive under the right manager. Danny Rose has been sensational over the last two years for Gillingham, scoring 41 goals in 80 games.