Following on from Tuesday night’s 2-1 win against Colchester, County return to Edgeley Park on Saturday knowing we will secure automatic promotion to League One with a point, and possibly end the day as champions should results fall favourably.
It was a night of big moments for County against Colchester, Nick Powell gave Dave Challinor’s side the lead before Cameron McGeehan equalised just before half-time. However, Paddy Madden restored County’s lead in the 61st minute before Ben Hinchliffe’s crucial penalty save secured a vital win in the automatic promotion race.
Elsewhere on Tuesday, Wrexham and Mansfield Town also clinched victories with wins against Crawley Town and Forest Green Rovers respectively. But with County maintaining a four-point lead at the summit of League Two, just a point against Morecambe would seal their promotion to League One.
Saturday’s fixtures present a compelling narrative. Second-placed Wrexham faces relegation-threatened Forest Green Rovers and the Welsh side could also seal a place in League One next season with a win, providing that MK Dons don’t beat Mansfield in a crucial match between the teams in third and fourth place, and Barrow drop points in their game at Gillingham.
However, should both Wrexham and Mansfield both lose, coupled with a County win against Morecambe, then the Hatters would finish the day on 86 points. This would not only see Dave Challinor’s side secure promotion to League One, but they would also clinch the title with three games to spare.
Morecambe were also in action on Tuesday, losing 1-0 at home to Crewe, which was a big blow for the Shrimps’ ambition of finishing in the playoffs. It was the second successive defeat for Ged Brannan’s side, who also lost to Doncaster last Saturday, but worse was to come for the club earlier this week.
On Thursday, it was announced that an Independent Disciplinary Commission had determined the club would be issued with a three-point deduction by the EFL for failing to adhere to the terms of an Agreed Decision. As a result, the side have dropped from 12th down to 14th, eight points adrift of the top seven with just three games remaining.
Things you need to know:
- Tickets for both of our final two home games this season have now completely sold out!
- With emotions understandably running high ahead of a potential promotion, we’d like to remind supporters that the pitch is for the players, and the stands are for the fans. For everyone’s safety, please do not enter the pitch at full-time. Click here for more.
- Don’t forget to turn up early to Edgeley Park to visit the County Courtyard, which will be opening its doors from 1.00pm! For more information on all the food and drink on offer this week, click here.
- Coming to the game on Saturday? Click here to view our Fan Information pack, containing all you need to know ahead of your visit to Edgeley Park.
- This fixture will be available for overseas supporters to watch over on Stockport County Live, whilst featuring live match audio commentary from Jon Keighren and Sam Byrne will be available for supporters in the UK. Click here to purchase your video match passes today.
Since we last met:
Following the departure of Derek Adams in November, Morecambe appointed first-team coach and former player Ged Brannan, who picked up his first point as full-time manager against County in a 1-1 draw back in December.
Morecambe were on a run of four consecutive defeats when they faced County, with Michael Mellon opening the scoring at the Mazuma Stadium. However, a Kyle Wootton equaliser three minutes from time rescued a point for the Hatters, which kept them top of the league table by six points after 21 games.
The Shrimps then followed this up with an emphatic 5-0 win away to Doncaster, but after this they went six games without a win in all competitions.
There were plenty of new arrivals at the Mazuma Stadium in January, with Brennan bringing in eight players in the Winter transfer window. This coincided with an upturn in results, with four wins from five against MK Dons, Crawley, Sutton and Tranmere from January 20th to February 13th, which left them one point from a playoff position.
However, since then they have only won four of their last 13 matches, losing seven, with inconsistent results and a poor defensive record causing issues for their 23/24 campaign. Having said that, they did recently record back-to-back wins, the first coming away to Accrington followed by a home victory to playoff chasing Barrow, both game finishing 2-1.
Morecambe have conceded 74 goals this season, with only three teams having allowed in more – Notts County (79), Salford (78), Sutton United (76) . However, they have been impressive in attack, scoring 63 goals, the 9th best in League Two.
Their top scorer Michael Mellon, who was on loan from Burnley, returned to his parent club back in January and has since been sent to Dundee FC in the Scottish Premiership. Jordan Slew is arguably now Morecambe’s biggest threat, with eight goals and five assists in the league this campaign.
Despite their struggles, Morecambe boats a decent away record going into Saturday’s match, having won 29 of their 70 points on the road. That points deduction, however, looks to have killed off any hopes of a top seven finish, with anything less than three points at Edgeley Park on Saturday consigning them to another season in League Two.
Match Stats
- This is the first time Morecambe has visited Edgeley Park since 2011, with the last fixture in SK3 being a 2-0 defeat for County,
- Following the 2-1 victory against Colchester, County are now the current top scorers in the division (84 goals), and also have the best defensive record (42 conceded).
- This will be just the seventh meeting between the two sides, the first of which was a 5-1 County win in 1978 – with goals from Terry Park (3), Eddie Prudham and Les Bradd.
- After Tuesday’s win, Dave Challinor’s side are now unbeaten in ten games, winning six of those fixtures.
