Duff disappointed by the manner of defeat

MICHAEL Duff was left dismayed by the defending that handed away side Tranmere all three goals in their victory at Cheltenham.

The Robins suffered a first home loss in League Two since the end of October as James Norwood, Ishmael Miller and Ollie Banks helped to turn around the visitors’ halftime deficit, after Luke Varney had given the Robins the advantage just before the interval.

Boss Duff felt that all three of Tranmere’s strikes were stoppable, and believed if his side had added to their first-half goal, they could have gone on to win the game.

“We probably needed to score another goal. If we had scored another goal we probably would have gone on to win the game. But we can’t give up goals like that,” he said after the game.

“There was no great play – they just whacked the ball down the middle of the pitch and got in – two or three times as well.

“It’s disappointing, and a bit of a reality check, really. Like I said before, I don’t think we’ve become a brilliant team overnight, so the players have to get back to working hard and doing the right things and we go again.”

It took a while for the game to kick into gear at the Jonny-Rocks Stadium, with Miller shooting wide in the opening half-hour before Scott Flinders saved low to his right to deny former Forest Green front man Norwood.

However, it was Cheltenham who took the lead three minutes before the break when Varney finished low past Scott Davies after a deft touch from Conor Thomas.

Tranmere levelled less than one minute after the break, however, when Norwood fired in at the second time of asking after his initial effort was blocked, with Jake Caprice supplying the ball in from the right.

Norwood was denied a second goal by Flinders’ fingertip save but, after he parried another Norwood attempt ten minutes later, Miller followed up to give the Merseyside outfit the lead.

Banks added the third in the 72nd minute, firing low into the bottom-left corner after a poor Cheltenham clearance.