Morecambe will be looking to make it four straight home wins on Saturday 28 January when they take on Bristol Rovers at the Mazuma Stadium in Sky Bet League One.
The Shrimps were beaten 4-0 by Ipswich Town away from home in midweek, which was Morecambe's first game in 18 days following two successive postponements. Derek Adams’ men will look to take confidence from their recent home form, having won their last three at the Mazuma Stadium.
Bristol Rovers have also taken an unexpected break and were last in action on January 14 when they were beaten 2-0 by Accrington Stanley at the Wham Stadium.
The Opposition
The Gas currently sit 11th in League One with ten wins, seven draws and ten defeats after 27 games.
Rovers were promoted to the third tier on the final day of last season following a 7-0 win over Scunthorpe United. They currently sit the highest in the table out of the newly promoted sides with Exeter in 13th, Port Vale in 14th and Forest Green in 24th respectively.
The Pirates are managed by Joey Barton who spent his career playing as a midfielder for Manchester City, Newcastle, QPR, Burnley and Rangers. Barton began his managerial career in 2018 when he took charge of Fleetwood Town. The 40-year-old left Lancashire in January 2021 and took the job in Bristol a month later. Barton’s side were relegated out of League One in his first season, but were promoted back into the division at the first time of asking in May 2022.
Key Players
Striker Aaron Collins is currently League One’s top scorer with 13 goals this season. The Gas frontman has also contributed ten assists to his sides’ campaign. The Welshman’s last goal contribution came on New Year’s Day when he scored the first and set up the second in Rovers’ 2-1 win over Cheltenham. Collins is a familiar name to Morecambe supporters, having spent the last four months of the 2018/19 season with the Shrimps. In that time, he scored eight goals and provided four assists in 15 League Two appearances.
Collins has developed a good relationship with his strike partner Josh Coburn, who has tallied nine goals so far this campaign. The 20-year-old is still learning his trade and is on loan in the West Country from Middlesborough. Coburn has made 23 appearances for Boro so far and scored five goals before he was loaned to the Memorial Stadium at the start of the season.
The Gas have a very experienced EFL striker in the ranks in the name of John Marquis. The frontman has three goals and four assists so far this season and brings a wealth of experience to Barton’s side. The 30-year-old scored 61 goals in 134 appearances for Doncaster Rovers before scoring 28 in 98 for Portsmouth. Marquis spent the end of last season at Lincoln before moving to Bristol in the summer.
Derek Adams’ Thoughts
Shrimps boss Derek Adams said he wants his side to continue their impressive home form on Saturday.
“They were very good wins for us,” he said.
“We scored a lot of goals, we created chances and we put ourselves in a much better position.”
Team News
Max Melbourne, Jake Taylor and Courtney Duffus all remain sidelined with injury.
Meet The Officials
Will Finnie will referee Saturday’s game and will be assisted by Danny Gratton and Kevin Mulraine with Paul Marsden acting as fourth official.
Finnie has taken charge of 20 games so far this season, eight in League One, seven in League Two, three in the FA Cup and one in each of the Carabao Cup and Papa Johns Trophy.
Finnie last refereed a Shrimps game in September 2021, a 1-0 defeat at Doncaster Rovers.
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