Rovers set a fine example to Latics

ONE win is all it takes to lift the gloom . . . just ask Tranmere manager Les Parry.

Stuck in a rut of seven matches without a win, Tranmere hosted Colchester at Prenton Park on Saturday and the visitors left with their collective tail between their legs after a 1-0 defeat, courtesy of Enoch Showunmi's 11th goal of the season.

The three points gave Rovers a major shot in the arm as they bid to sidestep the relegation trapdoor from npower League One. And it also put a few smiles on once-glum faces.

"Everything was about the result," said Tranmere boss Les Parry after the game. "We have the added bonus that our performance was half decent.

"The victory makes a big difference. The players are a lot happier, the staff are a lot happier and the fans are a lot happier."

The winning goal against the U's was set up by one-time Athletic target Andy Robinson.

The former Swansea midfielder was a team-mate of Paul Dickov's at Leeds and trained with the club before Christmas before electing to rejoin Tranmere.

Robinson is likely to be a major creative outlet for Rovers when they visit Boundary Park on Monday night.

And Dickov will also be briefing his side about the potential dangers of Dale Jennings.

This season's stand-out player for Rovers, the Prenton Park prodigy (18) has attracted a host of higher-division scouts as a result of his mazy dribbling and goals.

Jennings saw off stiff competition from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to claim the League One apprentice of the year prize at the recent Football League awards and even after being out for six weeks recently due to a groin strain, is a likely starter for the televised clash.

The two sides last did battle on the first day of the campaign, when two excellent Dale Stephens strikes sent visiting fans into raptures as Dickov's new dawn broke at Prenton Park.

Ian Thomas-Moore — now with Rotherham — halved the deficit with a minute to go, but Athletic were worthy of their three-point haul.