Tranmere Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team competes in EFL League Two, the fourth level of the English football league system.
John Allen King was an English football player and manager. He is widely regarded as being the most successful manager in the history of Tranmere Rovers and had a stand at Prenton Park named in his honour in 2002. In November 2014, a statue of King was unveiled outside the ground.
Eric Walter Nixon is an English former professional footballer who played as goalkeeper. His career spanned 22 years, thirteen of which were spent at Tranmere Rovers. He played for thirteen different clubs and made over 500 league appearances before his retirement in 2004.
William James Steel is a Scottish former professional association footballer. A big, aggressive player, his position was centre forward.
Ian James Muir is an English former professional football striker who scored 146 goals from 330 appearances in the Football League playing for Queens Park Rangers, Burnley, Birmingham City, Brighton & Hove Albion, Swindon Town, Tranmere Rovers and Darlington. He also played in the Hong Kong First Division League for Sing Tao and Happy Valley, before returning to non-league football in England with Nuneaton Borough and Stratford Town. He is Tranmere's all-time record goalscorer, with 180 goals in all competitions.
Ashton John Taylor is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for Gibraltar Football League club FCB Magpies. He began his career with Tranmere Rovers, and during his time there had a loan spell at Colwyn Bay. He later played for Scottish club Aberdeen before moving to English club Northampton Town for two years, after which he re-signed for Aberdeen. Born in England, he has represented Wales at youth international level.
The 1921–22 season was the first season of league football played by Tranmere Rovers. They joined the Football League Third Division North, when it was established after the restructuring of the English league system. The club played their first fixture, against Crewe Alexandra, at Prenton Park on 27 August 1921, winning 4–1.
Dave Russell managed Tranmere Rovers F.C. to promotion in 1966–67. Tranmere had narrowly failed to win promotion in the previous two years and newcomers included Barry Ashworth and Graham Williams, while young players Jim Cumbes and Roy McFarland established regular first-team slots. Rovers were early pace-setters after losing just one of their first 15 games, including a 5–0 victory over Crewe Alexandra. George Yardley was signed from Luton Town, then George Hudson arrived from Northampton. Four successive wins maintained Tranmere's promotion challenge and they finished fourth after losing only two of their last 12 games.
In 1967–68, centre forward George Yardley starred as Tranmere Rovers F.C. reached the FA Cup fifth round. Newly promoted Tranmere lost their first three games and future England star Roy McFarland was sold to Derby County. Results improved with Yardley scoring four goals in a 4–1 win over Shrewsbury, then scoring hat-tricks against Colchester United and Swindon Town. George Hudson also scored a hat-trick in Tranmere's 5–1 win over Rochdale in the FA Cup first round; the team went on to beat Bradford Park Avenue 3–2, Huddersfield Town 2–1 and Coventry City 2–0, before losing 2–0 to Everton in a fifth round tie watched by 61,982 at Goodison Park.
Tranmere Rovers F.C. regained Third Division status at the first attempt in 1975–76. John King replaced Ron Yeats as manager and Ronnie Moore was switched to attack with great success, scoring as Tranmere started with a 1–1 draw at Swansea City. They rose to the top of the table after winning nine times in eleven games, including beating Torquay United 7–1 and Workington 6–0. John James was signed from Chester City, then Clive Griffiths arrived from Manchester United as Rovers remained in the promotion race. Moore scored four times against Brentford, Stockport County and Newport County in quick succession, scoring a total of 34 goals as Tranmere finished fourth.
John King guided Tranmere Rovers F.C to Leyland DAF Cup victory in 1989–90. Tranmere moved to the top of the Third Division after winning seven of their opening nine games, including a 6–0 victory over Bristol City. They also took Tottenham Hotspur to a Littlewoods Cup fourth round replay. Following a poor spell, they revived their promotion prospects with nine straight wins. Tranmere finished in fourth place, but lost 2–0 to Notts County in the play-off final. They defeated Rochdale 1–0, Scunthorpe United 2–1, Chester City 3–0, Bolton Wanderers 2–1 and Doncaster Rovers 3–1 in the Leyland DAF Cup before beating Bristol Rovers 2–1 in the final at Wembley Stadium.
Tranmere Rovers F.C. won the Third Division play-off final in 1990–91. John King's side lost only two of their first twelve games, with Eddie Bishop scoring a hat-trick over Mansfield Town. After a period of inconsistent form, the re-entered the promotion places with six successive wins. They qualified for the play-offs in fifth position after winning four of their last five matches. Tranmere defeated Brentford 3–2, then beat Bolton Wanderers 1–0 after extra time in the final. They defeated Rotherham United 3–0, Blackpool 2–0, Wigan Athletic 3–0 and Preston North End 4–1 in the Leyland DAF Cup before losing to Birmingham City in the final at Wembley Stadium.
The 1993–94 season was Tranmere Rovers Football Club's 109th year in existence and 2nd consecutive season the second division of English football.
Stephen Michael McNulty is an English professional footballer and coach who was most recently manager of Northern Premier League Division One West side Bootle. He has played in the English Football League for Fleetwood Town, Luton Town and Tranmere Rovers.
The 2014–15 season was the 114th season of competitive association football and the 88th season in the Football League played by Tranmere Rovers Football Club, a professional football club based in Birkenhead, Wirral. The results on the final day of the 2013–14 season meant Tranmere were relegated from League One and were to spend this season in League Two for the first time since promotion from it in 1988–89. On 11 August, former Football Association chief executive and ex-Tranmere Rovers player Mark Palios and his wife Nicola took a controlling interest in the club from outgoing chairman Peter Johnson.
The 1990 Football League Third Division play-off final was an association football match which was played on 27 May 1990 at Wembley Stadium, London, between Notts County and Tranmere Rovers. The match was to determine the third and final team to gain promotion from the Football League Third Division, the third tier of English football, to the Second Division. The top two teams of the 1989–90 Football League Third Division season gained automatic promotion to the Second Division, while the clubs placed from third to sixth place in the table took part in play-offs. The winners of the play-off semi-finals competed for the final place for the 1990–91 season in the Second Division. Bury and Bolton Wanderers were the losing semi-finalists, having been defeated by Tranmere and Notts County respectively. This was the first season that the play-off final was determined over a single match and the first to be held at Wembley.
The 1991 Football League Third Division play-off final was an association football match which was played on 1 June 1991 at Wembley Stadium, London, between Tranmere Rovers and Bolton Wanderers. It was to determine the fourth and final team to gain promotion from the Football League Third Division, the third tier of English football, to the Second Division. The top three teams of the 1990–91 Football League Third Division, Cambridge United, Southend United and Grimsby Town, gained automatic promotion, while the teams placed from fourth to seventh place took part in play-off semi-finals; the winners then competed for the final place in the Second Division for the 1991–92 season. Bolton and Tranmere beat Bury and Brentford, respectively, in the semi-finals.
