Joel Colwill’s ‘little bit of magic’ delights Cheltenham boss Michael Flynn

Cheltenham boss Michael Flynn hailed Joel Colwill’s “little bit of magic” after his late goal secured a 1-0 home win over Tranmere.

The Cardiff loan midfielder fired an angled shot across goalkeeper Luke McGee and inside the bottom left corner in the 89th minute for his sixth goal of the season.

His strike secured the Robins their sixth League Two win of the campaign and lifted them to 14th in the table ahead of Saturday’s fixtures.

“Joel was excellent tonight and I thought it was a deserved win because we were the better team and looked more dangerous,” Flynn said.

“Tranmere have experienced players and they are tough to play against, but I thought a little bit of magic would decide the game and thankfully Joel managed to provide it.

“It was a real team performance though and I’ve just praised Matty Taylor in there in front of the boys for three headed clearances right at the end, which shows the importance of putting the team first.

“He is going to be frustrated that he’s not starting games, but he’s not chucked his toys out of the pram, he’s kept his head down and he has just shown what being a team player and a squad player is all about, so fair play.

“That’s the environment we are trying to breed here.”

The first half was cagey, with neither side able to create much in the way of clear-cut chances.

Robins goalkeeper Joe Day parried well from Omari Patrick before Colwill went down in the box looking for a penalty, but his appeals were ignored.

Colwill fired two efforts off target and also had the ball in the net before half-time, but the offside flag was raised.

Cheltenham winger Jordan Thomas saw a shot blocked by Connor Wood early in the second half before Luke Norris forced Day into a diving save in the 58th minute.

But with the game seemingly heading for a stalemate, Colwill – the game’s outstanding player – had the final say.

Tranmere boss Nigel Adkins felt his side were unfortunate to come away with nothing.

“It’s a tough one to take at the end,” he said. “The players worked hard and it was a competitive game.

“We started well and Omari Patrick had that chance when he was through and we thought we could cause them a few problems from set pieces and we did.

“We have tried to come here and win the game, that was the intent. We had four or five lads close enough to get a challenge in on the lad for their goal and he’s put it in from an angle.”