Another cakewalk for Fulham, another painful defeat for managerless Tranmere Rovers and another illustration of why these teams are likely to be two divisions apart next season.
It is only a matter of time before Jean Tigana’s team are crowned champions, having moved 17 points clear of second place last night, but for Tranmere a rather less pleasant fate is beginning to look inevitable.
Without a manager since the resignation of John Aldridge two weeks ago, Tranmere, so full of inspiration and vigour in their numerous victories over FA Carling Premiership opposition in the cups this season, have assumed the look of dead men walking. This result, and rejection last night by Steve Bruce after he was interviewed for the managership, has left them looking certainties for relegation.
Fulham, by contrast, march on irresistibly towards promotion. Their speed of thought and movement would embarrass many Premiership teams, so it was no surprise that it reaped goals last night for Louis Saha, his 26th and 27th of the season, Barry Hayles and Lee Clark before Simon Osborn pulled one back for Tranmere in the final minute.
“There are still eight games to go and, as long as it’s mathematically possible, we’ll keep fighting,” Kevin Sheedy, the Tranmere caretaker-manager, said. “To be honest, Fulham are the last team we’d have wanted to face. They were excellent and showed why they will be worthy champions at the end of the season. They have been playing that way since the first day of the season. You have to admire them.”
At times, that seemed to be all that the home team were doing. Despite Tranmere’s efforts to turn the match into the type of physical encounter that they have relished so often, Fulham seemingly rose above it.
It took less than three minutes for Saha to score, after the first of many devastating counter-attacks was started by Maik Taylor. Hayles, from Clark’s pass, scored the second in the 28th minute before the partnership was reversed midway through the second half.
Tranmere, aside from the occasional flash of individual skill from Jason Koumas against the team that he is expected to join during the summer and the odd flurry from set-pieces, could not live with the opposition.
Saha, largely anonymous apart from his two goals, scored his second with seven minutes left to render Osborn’s late goal irrelevant. “It’s not an easy place to come to, but I thought we played very well,” John Collins, the Fulham midfield player, said. “The early goal helped but we have very high standards at this club and we know that we have to meet them every time we play.”
TRANMERE ROVERS (4-2-3-1): J Murphy — J Kenna, R Jobson, G Allen, G Roberts — M Mellon, S Flynn — J Koumas, S Osborn, P Rideout (sub: S N’Diaye, 46min) — W Allison (sub: S Barlow, 46). Substitutes not used: S Yates, I Hume, J Achterberg.
FULHAM (4-4-2): M Taylor — S Finnan, A Melville, K Symons, R Brevett — A Stolcars, S Davis, L Clark, J Collins — B Hayles, L Saha. Substitutes not used: A Neilson, K Betsy, K Riedle, P Moller, G Thompson.
Referee: R Furnandiz.