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Morecambe away preview

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Morecambe away preview

Postby Sweden Stag » Mon Oct 22, 2018 7:13 am

Following the away trip down to Wiltshire and Swindon Town last Saturday, which earned the first Stags point there for 34 years due to a hard-fought and deserved goal-less draw, the Stags now embark on another away trip. This time, it is to the north-west and a side which the Stags have faced in every campaign since their FL return five years ago, namely Morecambe.

And last season’s fixture up there was won in dramatic fashion thanks to a Benning strike to a 2-1 winner in the fourth minute of injury-time, this becoming the second consecutive Stags injury-time victory last season, as the game prior to the trip to Morecambe last term was a home fixture against Cheltenham.

Morecambe are now in their twelfth consecutive League Two campaign, secured on the final day of last term due to a hard-fought goal-less draw at Coventry, and have during their FL stay called upon just TWO managers. The first one was Sammy McIlroy, in charge when the Shrimps gained their League Two ticket in 2007, and he stayed till the end of the 2010-11 campaign. He was then replaced by Jim Bentley, who has remained in the Morecambe hot seat ever since. And he will remain there for a further two, as he extended his managerial contract immediately after a home defeat against Crawley two months before Morecambe’s trip to the Stags just before last Christmas. Proof of not panicking when results go wrong.

After the game at Morecambe last season, securing the Stags’ third straight win there, the Shrimpers must have felt sick of conceding late goals against the Stags as the game between the sides at Mansfield was also decided late on, just two minutes before the final whistle of normal time.

Two seasons ago, the sides won their respective away games. On Boxing Day 2016, Morecambe won by the only goal of the game at One Call after a poor Stags display, while the revenge mission was completed on March 25 last year, when the Stags won 3-1 at Morecambe, all goals coming in the first half.

At Morecambe’s Globe Arena, the Stags turned a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 victory within the last five minutes of that game, the Stags’ winner in the 90th minute, which also meant that the Morecambe Shrimps lost at the same time. But the Shrimps did the other way when high-flying Portsmouth took the long trip up to Morecambe a week later. Then, of all players, Morecambe’s keeper Barry Roche, now having kept Morecambe goal in 413 FL games, a club record and an incredible feat, hit home the equalizer to a 1-1 scoreline in the fourth minute of injury-time (official time 90th minute) meaning that a Morecambe run of three straight defeats came to an end.

Three seasons ago, both fixtures were dramatic ones. At Morecambe, the Stags turned the game late on, as noted above. At One Call Stadium, goalie Scott Shearer saved TWO Morecambe penalties to preserve a 2-1 victory, the first time a Stags goalie has saved two spot-kicks during the same game during the Stags’ entire League history.

Four seasons ago, the Stags won 1-0 at home thanks to a 90th minute header by Alex Fisher which clinched the Stags’ first-ever home points against the Shrimps, as the two games before that between the sides at Mansfield, the first one seen by the previewer on February 12, 2008, had seen Morecambe come out as 2-1 winners. The second one, on November 30, 2013, saw the Stags’ last FL and cup penalty given for up to August 2015, but crucially missed at 1-1.

The 2009-10 campaign is so far Morecambe's best-ever one in their FL history. Then, they finished fourth, a position which in three of the Stags' promotion seasons from the basement (1962-63, 1974-75 and 1985-86 respectively) had guaranteed automatic promotion.

But Morecambe had to be content with the playoffs, where their hopes were dented big style by a 6-0 mauling at Dagenham & Redbridge, the side that followed Morecambe up to the FL in 2007, the Daggers as champions and Morecambe winning the playoff finals against Exeter.

Although Morecambe never had met the Stags in any competition before the 2007-08 season, the Shrimps had reached the third round of the FA Cup on three occasions. The first one was way back in 1961-62 after beating Chester away in the second round. In the third round, Morecambe were drawn at home to another non-league side, Weymouth. In front of a record crowd, over 9000, at Christie Park, the South Coast side went through by the only goal of the game and were rewarded with a good fourth round tie at Preston, losing only 3-1. Little did Morecambe and Weymouth know then, that the sides were to face each other chasing conference points some 44 years later! During the 21st century, Morecambe have reached the third round twice and on both occasions been drawn to Ipswich, one at home and one in Suffolk.

The sides have yet to draw a League fixture and in fact, Morecambe’s first-ever FL victory was achieved against the Stags at the Shrimpers’ old Christie Park venue to a 3-1 scoreline on August 25, 2007 after a poor Stags display.

Last season, the Shrimpers drew on nineteen occasions, while the Stags drew in eighteen. This season, the Stags have drawn six consecutive away games, now a club record, while Morecambe, who this season also may fight the drop out of the FL, have drawn just once so far, a 3-3 at Cheltenham a few weeks ago, but have lost their last two home fixtures sandwiched in between a good 2-0 victory at Carlisle.

Played for both sides: Dave Artell, Simon Grand, Kevan Hurst, James Jennings, Keith Kennedy, Fraser McLachlan, Vadaine Oliver, Adam Rundle, James Sutton, Brian Thomson, Neil Wainwright, Laurence Wilson.

Previous FL games:

Home games: P 6, W 3, D 0, L 3, GF 7, GA 7
Away games: P 6, W 4, D 0, L 2, GF 10, GA 8

Season Home Date Away Date

2007-08 1-2 2008-02-12 1-3 2007-08-25 League Two
2013-14 1-2 2013-11-30 1-0 2014-04-05 League Two
2014-15 1-0 2014-09-16 1-2 2015-02-10 League Two
2015-16 2-1 2016-02-06 2-1 2016-01-26 League Two
2016-17 0-1 2016-12-26 3-1 2017-03-25 League Two
2017-18 2-1 2017-12-23 2-1 2018-01-27 League Two

About time to end the away draws sequence with hopefully three points. Come on Mansfield!
Stockholm, July 4, 2008, 15.00 GMT. Good news came, K.H. gone. March 1, 2012. Ground purchased.
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Re: Morecambe away preview

Postby Spiritater » Mon Oct 22, 2018 7:45 am

Spencer scored the winner last season.
Theirs not to reason why
Theirs but to do and die
Into the valley of Death
Rode the Six Hundred
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