Match Preview: Morecambe v Portsmouth

The Shrimps return to action on home soil as they take on Portsmouth in Sky Bet League One on Monday 18 April.

Morecambe head into the Bank Holiday clash on the back of an excellent 3-2 win over Charlton Athletic on Good Friday. Cole Stockton netted his 23^rd league goal of the season before Arthur Gnahoua struck the bottom corner of the net, putting the Shrimps 2-0 up at the break. Jayden Stockley pulled one back for the Addicks eight minutes into the second half, but just six minutes later, Morecambe regained the two goal advantage as Gnahoua provided a stunning thunderbolt which hit the crossbar before finding the back of the net. With just nine minutes to go, substitute Chuks Aneke met a cross and headed home, but it proved to be a consolation as the final whistle saw the Shrimps heading back with all three points.

Since 2013, Morecambe have met with Pompey just nine times, most of those meetings in League Two. They have two wins, four draws and three losses against the side.

The Opposition

Pompey come into the game on mixed form. They have two wins, two draws and one loss in their last five games. Last time out, they faced Lincoln City at Fratton Park, which resulted in a 3-2 win for the home side. George Hirst opened the scoring from the penalty spot, and a second goal from Michael Jacobs steered them ahead, but less than 10 minutes later, Teddy Bishop and Ben House both netted to equalise. Not long after, Ronan Curtis slotted the ball into an empty net to secure three points for Portsmouth.

Manager Danny Cowley was part of the Academy at Wimbledon and went on to play for non-league clubs such as Barking, Romford, Brentwood Town and Concord Rangers, before retiring early in 2007 due to injury.

Shortly after, he was offered the Assistant Manager role at Concord Rangers and went on to be Manager of the first team, where he won three promotions and reached the FA Cup First Round. Cowley spent a season at Braintree Town and secured them their highest ever finish, before moving on to Lincoln City where he oversaw the club’s promotion back to the Football League as well as being the first Non-League club to reach the Quarter-Final of the FA Cup. The 43-year-old spent a season at Huddersfield Town before arriving at Fratton Park in March 2021.

Key Players

George Hirst came through the ranks at Sheffield Wednesday and made his debut for their first team in the EFL Cup at the age of 17. Hirst spent a season playing for Belgian club OH Leuven before returning to England and joining Premier League side Leicester City, where he is currently on loan from. The centre-forward also has caps for England at U17s to U20s level.

Born in Bristol, Louis Thompson started his career at Swindon Town, following older brother Nathan Thompson through the youth set up. After three years with the first team, he moved to Norwich City, but returned to Swindon Town on multiple loans, the last time coming during the 2018/19 campaign. Thompson also made appearances for Shrewsbury Town and MK Dons, before making a permanent move to Portsmouth on a one-year contract in August 2021.

Hayden Carter arrived at Portsmouth on loan from Blackburn Rovers in the January transfer window and has made 15 appearances for Pompey since. Carter began playing youth football at Manchester City, but moved to Rovers’ Academy in 2014, where he signed his first senior contract.

Pre-Match Thoughts

Speaking ahead of the clash, manager Derek Adams was full of praise for Monday's opposition having faced them many times throughout his managerial career to-date.

"It's a football club I know very well from my time when I was at Plymouth Arglye," he said.

"We obviously came up against them a number of times in the Play-Offs, and I love the way their supporters support their football club.

"It's [Fratton Park] one of the best venues I've ever been to to manage, and I think come Easter Monday, there'll be a fantastic support from them and ourselves."

Meet the Officials

Robert Madley will be the man in the middle on Saturday and will be assisted by linesmen Kevin Mulraine and Joe Simpson. Matthew Parry will complete the line-up as Fourth Official.

Since the start of the season, the Yorkshire-based referee has taken charge of 34 games and has handed out 118 yellow cards and six red cards.

Madley officiated in the Football League from 2010 and was one of the youngest officials to progress to the top-flight of English football, refereeing primarily in the Premier League between 2013 and 2018. He has previously taken charge of both Morecambe and Portsmouth, most notably for the Shrimps, he refereed the club's Sky Bet League Two Play-Off Final victory over Newport County.

iFollow

Can’t make it to the Mazuma Stadium to back the boys against Portsmouth on Monday afternoon?

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