Andy Crosby takes responsibility as Tranmere’s losing run continues

Tranmere manager Andy Crosby admitted his position will come under even greater scrutiny after a 3-1 defeat at relegation-threatened Newport.

Rovers, who were reduced to 10 men in first-half stoppage time when captain Sam Finley was shown a straight red card, have lost 10 of their last 11 games to slip to 19th in the League Two table and are now just eight points above the relegation zone.

“As the manager of the football club the run we’re on is my responsibility,” said Crosby. “But I’m a big boy and I’ll keep doing everything I possibly can to change this run around. I’m giving absolutely everything.”

Finley had opened the scoring in the second minute but Michael Spellman levelled 10 minutes before the break before the Tranmere skipper saw red for a crunching challenge on Sven Sprangler.

Crosby’s men frustrated the hosts until the 88th minute when right-back Cameron Evans poked in their second, before Spellman added his second and County’s third in the sixth minute of time added on.

“I’m really proud of that second-half effort,” said Crosby. “The run we’re obviously on is a really difficult run, and to go down to 10 men at the end of the first half made it even more difficult for us.

“But the togetherness of the group, the organisation, the resilience, the mental strength to keep going means that I can see a group who are giving absolutely everything for themselves and for the football club.

“We have to use that as energy, as fuel to move forward. It’s obviously a really disappointing result. We have to go again at home against Oldham and we have to use that siege mentality – it’s us against the world.”

The win lifts County off the bottom and out of the relegation zone, to the delight of manager Christian Fuchs.

“It’s very important,” said the Exiles boss. “When you are down at the bottom for such a long time, it lifts the group [to be out of it]. It lifts the spirits.

“It’s definitely a great feeling, but it’s just the first step. We know that Barrow have two games in hand, we are aware of that.

“We now have seven points from the last four games and there are a lot of positives to build on.

“Every game is a cup final for us now, and that is how we’re going to approach it. Not a single game is easy but we want to build momentum.

“I’m very proud of the players because it’s not easy to play against a team with one man down. They stayed very patient, stuck to the plan and got what they deserved.”