The Shrimps are back on the road on Saturday 1 October as they make the short trip down the M6 to take on Lancashire rivals, Accrington Stanley.

Morecambe will hope to make it back-to-back away wins following their 2-1 victory at Forest Green Rovers on 17 September, where former Accrington man Farrend Rawson clinched the points in the final minute.

Stanley beat Bristol Rovers by a goal to nil in their last outing, and John Coleman's men will be aiming to make it four games without loss on Saturday as Derek Adams' men make the journey to the Wham Stadium.

The opposition

Stanley currently sit 13th in Sky Bet League One with three wins, four draws and three losses after ten league games.

The hosts have been under Andy Holt’s ownership since October 2015 and were promoted to English football's third tier in 2018 after securing the Sky Bet League Two title against Yeovil Town in April that year.

The Lancashire side are currently managed by former Morecambe man John Coleman who has been at the helm since 2014. Coleman is currently the third longest serving manager in the EFL behind Gareth Ainsworth at Wycombe Wanderers (September 2012-present) and Harrogate Town boss Simon Weaver (May 2009-present).

Both games between the sides last season ended in draws, with a 3-3 thriller played out at the Mazuma just over a year ago, before the return fixture saw a 2-2 draw following two early Jonah Ayunga goals for the Shrimps.

Key players

Midfielder Sean McConville has been one of Stanley’s key players for a number of seasons. Since joining the club from Chester in 2015, the 33-year-old has scored 51 goals in 277 appearances for the East Lancashire side. The Liverpudlian is Accrington’s top scorer so far this season with four league goals, his most recent coming against Cheltenham Town earlier this month. 

Defender Mitch Clark has been influential for Coleman’s side going forward this season. The right-back has clocked up three assists so far, the most of anyone in the Accrington squad. The 23-year-old Welshman has spent time at Premier League clubs Aston Villa and Leicester City, and had three loan spells with Port Vale before moving to Lancashire permanently in 2021.

Similarly to McConville, Midfielder Joe Pritchard has been a key player for Accrington in recent years. The 26-year-old’s goal was the difference last weekend in Stanley’s 1-0 win over Bristol Rovers. Pritchard has been at the Wham Stadium since 2019 having spent his youth career with Premier League giants Tottenham Hotspur, before moving north to Bolton Wanderers in 2018, eventually joining Accrington a year later.

John Coleman's pre-match thoughts

Ahead of Saturday's Lancashire derby, Accrington boss Coleman explained why he feels the Lancashire derby between the two sides is a special affair.

He told the Stanley website: “The Morecambe game is always a bit special because the fans make it special.

“Everyone knows my affinity with Morecambe, I was delighted when they got promoted and I want to see them flourish, I have got a lot of friends there; I had my most prolific spell in football there.

“They are generally really good games, the fans make it a good atmosphere and Morecambe will travel in numbers.

“Once you have that atmosphere, the game hots up and there has always been plenty of goals in the games.

"You have got to hope we put them in one end and keep them out at the other.

“Derek has done a marvellous job when he got Morecambe promoted, once you get to know Derek, you see how passionate he is about football, that’s refreshing."

Meet the officials

James Oldham will be the referee for Saturday’s clash, he will be assisted by Christopher Ward and Declan Ford with Robert Madden completing the line up as fourth official. 

Oldham has taken charge of eight games so far this season across the EFL, in League's One, Two, the Carabao Cup and the Papa John's Trophy, and has issued a total of 21 yellow cards and three reds. 

Oldham took charge of two Shrimps games last season, most recently a 4-1 defeat to Wigan Athletic in March as well as Morecambe’s EFL Cup Round Two defeat to Preston North End in August 2021.