Morecambe 0 MK Dons 4: Clinical visitors sentence Shrimps to heavy home defeat

Matt O’Riley (2), Mo Eisa and Harry Darling found the net, sentencing the Shrimps to a comprehensive defeat.

Three of the four goals were eminently avoidable from a defensive point of view but the Dons possessed much the great cutting edge going forward.

Morecambe boss Stephen Robinson made one change from the side which drew against Charlton Athletic in midweek.

In came Wes McDonald with the Shrimps’ top scorer, Cole Stockton, absent through injury.

However, Arthur Gnahoua had recovered sufficiently from the illness which ruled him out in midweek to be named on the bench.

On the back of four points from two games, Morecambe began brightly and hustled their opponents into mistakes.

One such error inside the first two minutes saw McDonald’s 20-yarder tipped behind by Dons’ keeper Andy Fisher.

Courtney Duffus dragged an effort off target from the edge of the box moments later before the game began to settle down, albeit hindered by a blustery breeze.

The Shrimps were quick to close down their opponents who, despite enjoying plenty of early possession, didn’t do much with it.

That almost changed midway through the first half when Scott Twine’s cross found the unmarked Peter Kioso, whose goalbound volley was cleared by the recovering Ryan Delaney.

A minute later, however, the Dons led when Eisa was played clear down the left before cutting inside past Anthony O’Connor and finishing clinically.

At the other end, Stockton’s absence was all too keenly felt with Duffus, playing the central striker’s role struggling to get the better of Darling.

There were also two occasions when Morecambe got into good areas and played balls across the box that were crying out to be finished off.

The visitors doubled their lead on 40 minutes when Morecambe failed to clear Daniel Harvie’s cross and O’Riley took a touch before beating Jokull Andresson.

There was still time for Andresson to hold Kioso’s long-range effort and turn a Twine effort behind as the visitors held the initiative at the break.

Morecambe’s response at the break was a double substitution with Gnahoua and Liam Gibson replacing Duffus and Ryan McLaughlin.

Twine fired an early effort off target before Morecambe finally began to apply some pressure.

Fisher denied them twice within a matter of seconds, turning away Gnahoua’s shot before doing likewise to thwart Alfie McCalmont from the resulting corner.

However, it was game over just after the hour when, yet again, a set piece cost the Shrimps.

Twine’s inswinging corner from the left was allowed to travel across goal, where the unmarked Darling headed in from six yards.

Callum Jones fired wide and Ayunga could only send Gnahoua’s cross straight at Fisher before the Dons wrapped up the scoring on 82 minutes.

O’Riley took a quick free-kick to Twine, who advanced into the area before rolling it back to the former, who produced a fine first-time finish beyond Andresson.

It almost got worse for the Shrimps when the Dons broke late on but Kioso, having controlled a cross, fired across the face of goal and wide.

Morecambe: Andresson, McLaughlin (Gibson 46), O’Connor, Delaney, Leigh, McCalmont, Jones, McLoughlin, Ayunga, Duffus (Gnahoua 46), McDonald. Subs not used: Da Silva Mendes, Diagouraga, Phillips, Cooney, Wootton.

MK Dons: Fisher, O’Hora, Darling, Lewington, Kioso, McEachran, Robson (Boateng 64), Harvie, O’Riley (Parrott 90), Eisa (Brown 90), Twine. Subs not used: Ravioli, Watson, Jules, Baldwin.

Referee: Rebecca Welch.

Attendance: 3,700.

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