Morecambe boss Jim Bentley's tribute to supersub Kevin Ellison

Morecambe welcome Yeovil Town to the Globe Arena tomorrow, hoping to emulate one of their more notable wins from last season.
Kevin Ellison snatched a point for Morecambe last weekendKevin Ellison snatched a point for Morecambe last weekend
Kevin Ellison snatched a point for Morecambe last weekend

The two sides met in December 2017 with the Shrimps scoring four times in the last 20 minutes to claim a breathless 4-3 victory.

Kevin Ellison netted the winning goal in added time and hopes to retain his place after a crucial intervention last weekend.

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With Jim Bentley’s players trailing at Newport County AFC, the 39-year-old came off the bench and scored his first of the season to salvage a point.

Ellison has been in and out of the starting line-up this season as a rejigged squad sees the Shrimps with new attacking alternatives.

“Kev has obviously been one of the first names on the teamsheet over the years,” Bentley said.

“This season, he hasn’t hit the heights and we know what he can do.

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“The likes of A-Jay Leitch-Smith, Rhys Oates and Liam Mandeville have been playing large spells in the positions that he’s been playing. They have been scoring goals and he understands that.

“If he feels he should be playing then he lets you know and vice versa.

“I pulled him on Saturday, said I was leaving him out and he said it was no problem.

“What he does though is he works extremely hard and does things that go unnoticed. He does the near post at corners and, at the other end, he gets under people’s skin.”

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Ellison’s goal also meant the Shrimps avoided an unwanted hat-trick of one-goal defeats following losses to Colchester United and Mansfield Town.

“We couldn’t have three one-nils so it was a big point,” Bentley said. “The subs affected the game and, overall, I was pleased to get the point.”