Shrimps cannot handle the '˜Ex' factor

Exeter City 4 Morecambe 1Morecambe went down to their heaviest defeat of the season with a poor display at high-flying Exeter.
Morecambe scorer Vadaine OliverMorecambe scorer Vadaine Oliver
Morecambe scorer Vadaine Oliver

The game started badly with the Shrimps losing goalkeeper Barry Roche to an injury in only the second minute of the game when he was hurt in a collision with Exeter striker Reuben Reid.

Dan Nizic came on and went on to pick the ball out of the back of the net three times in a poor first half.

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He did well on 21 minutes to save from Reid who had made the most of Steven Old’s slip but he could do nothing to stop Troy Brown’s shot at the far post after a left-wing corner was flicked on.

Three minutes later the home side added a second as they took advantage of some poor Morecambe defending.

Exeter worked an opening down the right and the ball fell to Jayden Stockley who hammered home a right foot shot from an acute angle to beat Nizic to his right.

The Shrimps showed some spirit with Michael Brough and Adam Campbell firing efforts wide .

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Jim Bentley’s side pulled one back on 36 minutes after home keeper Christy Pym spilled Garry Thompson’s volley and Vadaine Oliver reacted sharply to slot home the rebound.

The comeback came to a crashing end in the sixth minute of first-half injury time when Stockley scored a fine second goal when he showed great skill to volley the ball past Nizic after a neat turn in the box.

It then went from bad to worse as the Grecians added a fourth just three minutes after the restart. Lund lost the ball in midfield and Exeter took advantage as they countered quickly with Stockley teeing up Dean Moxey who slid the ball under Nizic.

Morecambe did look to reduce the deficit with Oliver drilling a low shot inches wide from the edge of the box and home keeper Pym saving sharply at his near post after a Michael Rose free-kick was diverted goalwards.

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But the home side looked constantly dangerous with Stockley, seeking his hat trick, heading straight at Nizic from a good opening and Reid firing into the keeper’s body after a fantastic piece of skill in the box.

Nizic then saved superbly from Hiram Boateng.

Stockley and Jake Taylor went close again for the home side in the final stages as the home side had to settle for four on a day to forget for the Shrimps.

Exeter: Pym, Sweeney, James, Brown, Woodman, Moxey (Edwards 72) Tillson (Boateng 42), Croll, Taylor, Reid (Jay 86), Stockley. Subs (not used): Hamon, Archibald-Henville, McAlinden, Wilson

Morecambe: Roche (Nizic 3), Lund, Old, Muller, Brough, Fleming (Kenyon 68), Rose, Thompson (Lang 77), Campbell, Ellison, Oliver. Subs (not used): McGowan, Lavelle, Osborne, Turner

Ref: B Huxtable

Att: 3,651