Morecambe crisis: 'I would love to manage the Shrimps one day', says former club stalwart

But the ex-Shrimps stalwart could see his long-held ambition die within days if the club fails to find a way out of its current ownership crisis.

The Shrimps, who were relegated out of the Football League last season after finishing bottom of League Two, are at risk of folding.

While the football season at all levels – barring the Premier League – got underway at the weekend, the terraces at the Jakeman Community Stadium were eerily silent.

The Shrimps were due to visit Boston United on the opening day of the new National League campaign.

However, rather than plotting their first steps to regaining their status as a Football League club against the Pilgrims, Morecambe have had their membership of the National League suspended.

The gravitas of the situation is bound to be felt even more this weekend as the Shrimps, who are managed by Derek Adams, were scheduled to entertain Brackley Town in their first home game at the Mazuma Stadium.

The ground’s turnstiles will remain locked on Saturday, though, and it remains to be seen whether they will remain shut for good – certainly under the club’s present guise.

Having met at the beginning of July to issue Morecambe with a suspension after discovering player and staff wages had gone unpaid, the league’s compliance and licensing committee is due to meet again on Wednesday, August 20 where the club could face expulsion.

That would be catastrophic and would almost certainly sound the death knell of the club.

Owner Jason Whittingham, of Bond Group Investments, put the club up for sale in 2022 but a buy-out has not been done.

London-based sports investment company Panjab Warriors have been in talks to buy the Shrimps for over a year, and a deal appeared to have been accepted but has still not been completed.

Whittingham announced a new buyer, named as a consortium led by Jonny Cato, had been found earlier in July, but it remains unclear where that bid also stands.

Parrish spent eight years with the Shrimps after being signed by Sammy McIlroy in 2008 from Bury.

He later went on to to skipper the club under the management of Jim Bentley as the club continued to defy the odds year-on-year and remain a strong Football League outfit.

Parrish recalls a stable club which was a huge part of the community and admits he has been shocked by the sudden deterioration in its situation.

“Without knowing the ins and outs of what has gone on, it would be such a shame to see the club go out of business,” said Parrish, who implored the powers-that-be to come together and find a solution ahead of next Wednesday’s National League deadline.

“It’s all a bit of shock to me really because since I left the club in 2016, I have watched the club enjoy a period of progression and success.

“They got promoted to League One and things appeared to be going well.

“Looking back at my time at the club, you had people like Peter McGuigan as chairman and Rod Taylor was on the Board.

“There was good people who had the club at heart and it was a stable club.

“I was at the club when it moved from Christie Park to the Globe Arena or the Mazuma Stadium as it is now.

“Although Christie Park had its charm, the move to the new stadium was progress. We had these fantastic facilities and the club was put on a more professional footing.

“On the pitch we always seemed to do well. I know everybody on the outside would write us off but not in the changing room.

“We always believed that we could do well. We had a run to the League Two play-offs one year.

“I am still in touch with a lot of people at the club and it’s such a shame what’s going on.”

Only 37-years-old, Parrish has remained in the game as a coach in youth development since retiring from playing.

He has spent a number of years with Manchester United before moving to Bolton Wanderers where, currently, he looks after the club’s Under-16s squad.

Having gained his coaching badges, he is eager to progress and believes moving into senior football management is his next step.

“I was only talking about this to my family the other day, but my goal is to go back to Morecambe as a coach or manager,” he said.

“I feel like that coaching in the senior game is my next step. I feel like I am ready to take that step - I’ve got all my coaching qualifications.

“With my knowledge of Morecambe from my time spent there as a player, I really feel like I could do something there.

“I’ve always thought that I would go back to Morecambe as a manager or coach.”

Whatever happens regards Parrish’s professional future, the former defender is keeping his fingers crossed that there is some good news by the time the National League committee meets once again later this month.

“We’ve got until August 20, so let’s hope a solution can be found,” Parrish added.

“A club like Morecambe is such a big part of the community – we used to do a lot of work in the community when I was a player there.

"The word I would use is pride. The club had a lot of pride in what it stood for.

“I would hate to see a club like Morecambe go the same way as the first club I played for – Bury.

“It would be devastating.”