Tranmere are ready to get nasty

WHEN artisan and aristocrat stand toe to toe at Prenton Park tonight, there will be little room for football’s niceties.

‘We might have to get nasty,’ confesses Tranmere midfielder Jay Harris.

‘Tottenham have got some world class players, but we can’t give them too much respect. We want it to be hostile and if we have to get horrible, so be it. We want to win.’

Tranmere are familiar protagonists in tales of giant-killing. When they beat Southampton 4-3 in an epic Fifth Round replay in 2001, the south coast club had become their seventh Premier League cup scalp in just 18 months. But it has been a while.

Harris adds: ‘It’s a sellout, it’s a Friday night under the floodlights and, if we can make Tottenham uncomfortable, we know the crowd will play their part.’

There’s a hint of mischief when the affable 31-yearold talks.

His height is a moot point. Harris stands at 5ft 7ins, though insists he’s really 6ft 1ins. ‘It depends on my haircut,’ he says. He’s a combative character but he can play and will be key to manager Micky Mellon’s gameplan.

‘If we try to go toe-to-toe with Tottenham, they will destroy us,’ says Harris bluntly. ‘They are elite players. I mean, look at who I could be up against — (Christian) Eriksen, what a player. (Dele) Alli, (Harry) Winks. I’d end up hacking a few out of frustration if we didn’t have some sort of plan.

‘We’ve got to be organised, disciplined.’