The Shrimps look to bounce back in Wales

24 November 2023

We return to Sky Bet League Two action following the international break with a trip to Wales to face Wrexham AFC.

The fixture is a return to action for the Shrimps, following the postponement of last weekend’s planned fixture vs Crewe Alexandra following international call-ups for Michael Mellon, JJ McKiernan and Eli King.

Morecambe will be looking to bounce back after defeat at Blackpool resulted in a group stage exit from the Bristol Street Motors Trophy. A late goal from defender Farrend Rawson was not enough for the Shrimps, the game finishing 2-1 to the Seasiders.

Wrexham travelled to Lancashire in their last outing, succumbing to a 2-0 defeat after a strong second half from hosts Accrington Stanley, ending the Red Dragons’ 11-game unbeaten streak across all competitions.

Saturday will be the first meeting of the two sides since the January of 2008, where the score finished 2-2 at Christie Park.

The Opposition

Despite Saturday’s defeat, Wrexham have started their Sky Bet League Two campaign strongly, finding themselves in 4^th position in the table after 18 matches. Nine wins, six draws and three defeats has left Phil Parkinson’s men on 33 points.

Parkinson has been at the helm at Wrexham since the July of 2021, and guided the side to the National League title last season with a record-breaking points tally of 111, beating fellow League Two competitors Notts County to the single automatic promotion spot.

Key Players

Midfielder Elliot Lee tops the goalscoring charts for the Red Dragons, racking up 10 goals so far this season, in his 18 Sky Bet League Two appearances. After joining in the summer of 2022, Lee has amassed 72 appearances for the Welsh outfit, with 24 goals to his name.

Wrexham’s attacking force is bolstered by Ollie Palmer, contributing five goals and two assists in his games this season. The 31-year old joined the club in January 2022, and proved to be a crucial part of their promotion season, netting 16 National League goals on their march to the title.

A Familiar Face

Ex-Morecambe forward Paul Mullin has been a crucial part of the Red Dragons recent success, racking up a total of 80 goals in 140 appearances.

Mullin played for the Shrimps from 2014-2017, making 140 appearances across three seasons and scoring 28 times.

The Man in the Middle

Referee Ben Atkinson will take charge at STōK Cae Ras on Saturday afternoon, in what will be his 15^thfixture of the season. In his previous 14 games, he has dished out a total of 70 cards, including 65 yellows.

He will be joined by assistants Richard Morris and Christopher Husband, alongside fourth official Steven Plane.

Ged Brannan’s Pre-Match Thoughts

Joint Caretaker Manager Ged Brannan will manage the Shrimps on Saturday alongside John McMahon, following Derek Adams’ departure at the start of the week.

Ahead of our trip to North Wales, Brannan spoke on the challenge ahead.

“I’ve really enjoyed it," he said.

"This week, we’ve come in, told the lads, had a chat with them. They’ve all been onboard with us, I’ve had little meetings with individual players, they’re all behind me and looking forward to the big game on Saturday.

“We’re going to have to go into this game full of confidence - we’re a good team as well - and stick to our gameplan.

“It’s going to be tough because we’ve had such little time with players, but we’ll have my own little twist on it.”

Team News

Stuart Moore remains side-lined with his long-term injury, and he will be joined on the touchline by Donald Love, who is out with an ankle injury.

Listen Live

Full match commentary of the Shrimps’ trip to Wrexham AFC will be available with an iFollow Shrimps audio match pass.

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Match Reports

Defeated at STōK Cae Ras

25 November 2023

A difficult afternoon in Wrexham sees the Shrimps leave empty handed.

In what was a quick start for the home side, Andy Cannon and Paul Mullin netted twice in two minutes with Jacob Mendy adding a third later in the half.

Two more Mullin goals in the second 45 before James Jones netted in the final minute rounded off the scoring for Phil Parkinson’s men.

The first chance of the game produced the opening goal, falling the way of the hosts. A well worked move saw a ball whipped in from the left, right onto the head of Cannon who nodded past Adam Smith.

Two minutes later, the Red Dragons doubled their advantage. Cannon turned provider with a cross which found Mullin, he managed to side-foot the the ball home from 10 yards.

Capitalising on a spell of questionable defending from the hosts, Michael Mellon looked to pull one back on 10 minutes, but his right-footed powerful volley flew wide of the near post.

Farrend Rawson, who netted in our last outing at Blackpool, came close to halving the deficit on 17 minutes; Adam Mayor’s free kick was sent deep into the box, Rawson rose highest, though his header cleared the top of Arthur Okonkwo’s crossbar.

Moments after the half-hour mark, our first corner of the game nearly resulted in a goal as Jordan Slew sent in a dangerous delivery, Rawson met it with a header which Okonkwo was equal to at the second time of asking.

Minutes later, Michael Mellon’s flicked on header teed up nicely for Slew to strike on the volley, but he couldn’t get the connection right.

Just as the Shrimps looked to pull one back, Mendy netted a third for Wrexham at the other end. The substitute picked up possession down the right, cut inside and evaded defensive pressure before striking into the top corner.

Half-time: Wrexham AFC 3 Morecambe 0

Eight minutes into the second half, a wonderfully hit through ball released Mellon one-on-one with the Wrexham goalkeeper. The Shrimps’ number nine managed to round Okonkwo before the shot-stopper made himself big and managed to smother the danger.

Smith was then called upon to deny Mullin his second of the game. The former Morecambe man cut inside and let strike from just outside the area, forcing Smith into a full-stretch diving save down to his left.

Just before the hour mark, the Shrimps were denied a penalty when Jacob Bedeau’s header inside the box appeared to hit the hand of a Wrexham man, the referee disagreed and waved away the protests.

A fourth goal for the hosts came on 67 minutes. The ball fell to Mullin on the edge of the Morecambe box, his strike took a deflection which wrong footed Smith before nestling in the back of the net.

Mullin completed his hat-trick ten minutes later. Tom O’Connor picked out the forward, his first touch took him away from the defender before firing a powerful strike across Smith and into the bottom corner.

Ethan Walker came close to a late consolation after connecting with Oscar Threlkeld’s touch in the box, but his acrobatic effort cleared the bar.

Jones completed the scoring in the final minute with a well-struck, left-footed volley into the top-right corner.

Full-time: Wrexham AFC 6 Morecambe 0

Wrexham AFC: Okonkwo, Tozer ©, Hayden, Palmer (Dalby, 80’), Mullin, Evans, Forde (Mendy, 27’), Cannon (Jones, 72’), O’Connor (Boyle, 81’), McClean, Lee (Davies, 80’).

Subs not used: Howard, Bickerstaff.

Goals: Cannon (05’), Mullin (07’, 67’, 77’), Mendy (35’), Jones (90+6’).

Bookings: Cannon.

Red cards: None.

Morecambe: A Smith, Bedeau (Stokes, 80’), Rawson ©, Bloxham, King, Mellon, McKiernan, Mayor, Senior (Threlkeld, 73’), Slew (Walker, 73’), Connolly.

Subs not used: Pedley, Songo’o, Davenport, C Smith.

Goals: None.

Bookings: McKiernan.

Red cards: None.

Attendance: 10,224 (1,128 away).

Ticket News

Important Wrexham AFC ticket collection information

23 November 2023

Supporters looking to collect Wrexham tickets are strongly advised to do so from the Morecambe FC Club Shop ahead of Saturday's matchday.

Ticket collection facilities are extremely limited at STōK Cae Ras, and heavy delays and queues could lead to supporters missing the start of the match.

Those looking to collect from the Mazuma Mobile Stadium can do so up until 17:00 on Thursday 23 November and 14:00 on Friday 24 November.