Fleetwood: So Superman IS Real After All…
Morecambe travelled the short distance southwards to the Fylde Coast today to face an old foe with which they have a long shared history. Fount of all Knowledge Wikipedia tells us:
“According to a 2019 survey called ‘The League of Love And Hate’, Fleetwood supporters named Blackpool (83%), Morecambe (74%) and Accrington Stanley (62%) as their biggest rivals.”
The first time I personally saw Fleetwood play was at Christie Park on Tuesday 26th August 1969, when they drew one goal each in the Northern Premier League. Six years later, the club went bust – not for the first or last time either. Long before that, though, Morecambe and Fleetwood had competed against each other in the old Lancashire Combination for decades at a time when being members of the Football League was literally an impossible dream for both clubs: the EFL was a Closed Shop. For old fogies like me, actually being in a League now whose membership was once only for an elite few still causes me to frequently pinch myself. So to constantly read griping comments on social media that the club is going backwards and the Manager should be sacked, I have just two words. No – not necessarily the ones you may be thinking of but two others: Get Real. No, we aren’t Little Old Morecambe anymore but we are a small club with an even smaller fanbase. Being in the EFL at all is a tremendous achievement for everybody concerned – to be promoted to League One is still as good as it gets – or ever has got, either. Stephen Robinson’s greatest achievement this season has been to keep the Shrimps out of the relegation positions so far. If he manages to do this until the end of the season, that is success in itself.
This afternoon, the Shrimps began the game in twentieth position in the table. Fleetwood were two places; a single point and one fewer game played behind them. So what could become an absolutely pivotal eight days began at Highbury today. If Morecambe could win and then overcome Charlton at home next Tuesday night; the prospect of their televised live game against Buxton next Saturday in the FA Cup could be seen as that much more of a bonus. They could also breathe a little more easily as far as survival in League One is concerned. If they lose, though, the struggle they are undoubtedly embarking on will become that much harder if only for the psychological burden of occupying one of the relegation places at the bottom of the division.
Neither the Cod Army nor the Shrimps played last Saturday due to World Cup qualifying call-ups. Alfie McCalmont – on loan from Leeds United – scored a brace in Northern Ireland Under-21’s 4-0 mauling of Lithuania last Friday in Belfast. Reading loanee Jökull Andrésson was also involved in the Iceland Under 21’s. Greg Leigh played the entire second half for Jamaica against the USA. I can’t remember this kind of thing happening when the club was based at Christie Park. It is a measure of how far Morecambe have advanced in the last few years that they have international players in the team at all. So let’s stay positive – all of us.
Having said that, the Shrimps started the game with an even poorer run of recent league form than their hosts: four games lost and a single draw out of their last five starts. For Fleetwood, it was three lost; one won and obviously one drawn. However, as Morecambe were beating Newport County at the Maz two weeks ago to dump the club from South Wales out of the FA Cup, the Cod Army were losing at home to Burton Albion in the same competition. Last time out, though, Morecambe lost tamely 0-2 at home in the relatively pointless EFL Trophy to a Carlisle United side which is looking at the realistic possibility of losing its Football League status altogether this season. Town lost at home by four goals to one to Accrington Stanley in the same competition – an arguably even more feeble result. In previous Football League clashes between the Shrimps and the Cod Army, the Fylde Coast club had won two of four matches and lost one.
Simon Grayson is the Cods’ Manager who many Fleetwood fans detest for the simple reason that he was once main local rivals’ Blackpool’s gaffer. To have been so for just the one time is a hanging offence on its own in their view but Simon has sat in the Hot Seat at Bloomfield Road on no less than two occasions. This unforgivable crime against Fylde Coast tribal sensibilities means that Mr Grayson is doomed to eternal damnation without hope of either forgiveness or redemption as far as some members of the Cod Army are concerned. The one positive thing that defeat against Morecambe today could guarantee – in their eyes – is that the current boss might be sacked. This is an eventuality that many long-term supporters of the club would doubtlessly welcome.
Putting this to one side, Mr Grayson said this earlier in the week about today’s game:
“I’m confident in what I’m doing and I want the players to buy into what we need to do, so we’re all in this together. It’s not an easy run we’ve been on with the fixtures we’ve had and some of the performances have been good. We now have a good spell of time to get on the training pitch to get some tough work into the players, which we need to do ahead of this next run of games. All things come into consideration; we’ll be looking at ourselves as staff as well, at what we need to do. We haven’t got a lot of players available and we’ve got a lot of younger players, but individuals wanting to make a career in the game have to make sure they learn from experiences like the Accrington game. It became too easy for Accrington and all these things can work against individuals when it comes to selecting the team for next week. They are the ones who cross the white line, they go out with instructions for how we want to play but they have to show hunger, desire, passion and a real attitude to knuckle down when the going gets tough. You get nothing for free or easily in life. You have to work hard for good jobs and to be well paid, and after the third goal went in against Accrington, we didn’t show enough leadership quality, passion, desire or hunger.”
The personal philosophy expressed in these words poses a conundrum which the Fleetwood supremo might struggle to unravel himself. If you truly `get nothing for free or easily in life; you have to work hard for good jobs and to be well paid’ then a question needs to be answered. If this is actually true, why is he still in charge of a club which has been struggling to get out of the relegation zone – and failing – so far this season? Or is he taking the Boris Johnson defence?: I’m the boss and I take the huge pay cheque for being so – but that doesn’t mean I’m responsible for anything, does it?…
Anyway, as far as today’s opponents in particular are concerned, Simon Grayson added:
“To get promoted proved everyone wrong and they have had some body blows. They had momentum at the start of the season and have dropped off a bit, but we cannot underestimate them as they do have some really good players.”
Meanwhile, opposite number Robbo assessed the forthcoming match in these terms:
“Fleetwood are a good side. They’ve got good players; I believe they’re in a false position in the league. I’ve watched a lot of their football and a lot of their games and they’ve got a very good manager. We know if we play how we can play, then we can be competitive with anybody. We know we want to win the game. We had a good result in the cup. We want to take that performance rather than the Papa John’s performance into Saturday. We know we’re more than capable; we’ve shown that against good sides. Everybody here has got their opportunities and chances and we’re working our very best with the players (who) are working extremely hard. They’re a really good bunch of boys, and they’re committed every day in training. They want to learn, they want to get better, so yeah, the ball is in their court so to speak. We’ve signed 17 players, we’ve put a squad together, and we know we need improvements. Whether we’re top of the league or bottom of the league, that would still be the case in January, so I don’t think there’s any extra pressure on the players that are here.”
It was grey and very windy as the match kicked-off and occasional thin rain gusted across the ground throughout the game. Morecambe – in an all black strip – looked more pumped-up for the occasion than their hosts right from the off. Fleetwood’s team looked young and inexperienced and woefully short of confidence throughout a first half which the visitors dominated. There weren’t many chances but the Shrimps’ Icelandic international goalkeeper Jökull Andrésson only had a single save to make throughout the entire 45 minutes – a good stop from Callum Morton after almost half an hour. At the other end of the field, though, it was a different story. Nine minutes were on the clock when Fleetwood conceded a free-kick just outside their own penalty area. The impressive Callum Jones stepped-up to take it – and scored with a sublime strike which beat home custodian Alex Cairns all ends up on its way into the back of his net. Goal Machine Cole Stockton was then denied by Cairns with a tremendous save which was hacked away for a corner just four minutes later. Greg Leigh than walloped a speculative effort high over the bar after about twenty minutes. Five minutes later, Arthur Gnahoua also had an effort blocked as the away team forced a number of corners which they failed to benefit from. So they returned to the Dressing Rooms half way through the game probably ruing their inability to stretch a deserved lead any further.
Town improved in the second half and Morecambe fell into the old trap of falling ever deeper into their own half as the match grew ever older. There weren’t many clear chances for either team but Fleetwood were on the front foot increasingly and forcing a number of corners towards the end. From one of these – with just ten minutes left to play – Morecambe conceded as Callum Johnson headed Danny Andrew’s dead ball kick home. Fleetwood had what momentum there ever really was in the game at this time and I for one feared that the Shrimps’ inability to defend either a lead or set-pieces was going to undo them yet again this season. Andrésson did really well to punch a further corner from the Town left away for another one from the right with just four minutes left to play and when Referee Darren Drysdale awarded four minutes of extra time, I for one would have settled for a point.
Oh me of little faith…
Cole the Goal was denied right at the death only by two fantastic blocks by Harrison Holgate. But today, he wasn’t going to be denied any longer. With almost the last kick of the game, he received the ball in the centre circle, spun and replicated his effort against AFC Wimbledon earlier in the season with a simply sublime lowish trajectory lob which seemed to travel in slow motion towards the Fleetwood goal, over Alex Cairns and finally into the net.
We went mad.
What a way to win the game. What a way to win any game. Superman Stockton has won Goal of the Month in League One for the last two months in a row. This strike guarantees his third win in succession – it was out of this world. The Referee handed Cole his shirt back – and booked him for taking it off in celebration in the first place in a clearly rehearsed way which was almost comical. Then Mr Drysdale sent off Fleetwood substitute Anthony Pilkington for mouthing-off at him virtually literally before he blew the final whistle.
The celebrations went on for ages after the game had ended. The only time I can remember a similar atmosphere was at Christie Park years ago when ten-man Morecambe came from behind to beat Crewe Alexandra with a last ditch header by Dave Artell of all people. But the sheer force of the emotions tonight as players, a Manager clearly on Cloud Nine and a rightly ecstatic Captain apparently only slightly lower in the sky combined with fans to celebrate together long after the contest was over.
This is something I – for one – will not forget in a hurry. What a win.
The three points saw Morecambe go above Gillingham and AFC Wimbledon into eighteenth position in the table. Fleetwood’s place in the mire was deepened by their latest defeat: they are now twenty-second.
After the game, their Manager went on record as saying “Luck isn’t going our way at the moment”.
There was nothing lucky about the Shrimps’ win today. I personally suspect that only Lady Luck herself will see Simon Grayson still in a job this time next week…
Fleetwood Town: 1 Alex Cairns; 3 Danny Andrew; 5 Tom Clarke (C) (27 Harrison Biggins 78’);
9 Callum Morton; 18 Harrison Holgate; 19 Gerard Garner (14 Joe Garner 67’); 22 Shayden Morris; 24 Daniel Batty; 20 Jay Matete (11 Anthony Pilkington (R) 78’); 26 Callum Johnson; 32 Paddy Lane.
Subs Not Used: 13 Billy Crellin; 17 Ryan Edmondson; 28 Max Clark; 38 Carl Johnston.
Morecambe: 20 Jökull Andrésson; 2 Ryan McLaughlin; 3 Greg Leigh; 4 Anthony O’Connor (C); 6 Callum Jones; 9 Cole Stockton (Y); 15 Ryan Delaney; 17 Jonah Ayunga (18 Adam Phillips 78’); 19 Shane McLoughlin (Y) (8 Toumani Diagouraga 75’); 24 Arthur Gnahoua; 25 Alfie McCalmont.
Subs Not Used: 12 André da Silva Mendes; 21 Ryan Cooney; 22 Liam Gibson; 28 Courtney Duffus; 31 Scott Wooten.
Ref: Darren Drysdale.
Att: 3545 (loads from Morecambe)
