Boss Sammy McIlroy said he found it "difficult to come to terms'' with Morecambe's defeat at Port Vale on Saturday.

After Marc Richards's 95th minute goal condemned the Shrimps to the third successive away defeat he said: "I am gutted for everyone especially  the lads and the fans who were at the game.

"I thought we gave probably our best away performance of the season and to come away with nothing was cruel especially as all the lads are saying Luke Rodgers was offside before putting in the cross for the goal.

"I thought our shape was excellent and the way we played going forward was excellent with Adam Yates and Ryan McGivern doing well as wing backs and putting in some great crosses.

"To be honest I can't believe we lost the game and I found it really difficult to come to terms with it. Nothing seems to be going our way at the minute but it is up to us to do something about it. We have seen some decisions really go against us in the past couple of games but we have to stay strong and get through it together, starting with Tuesday's game against Accrington.''