Preview Morecambe

Newport County AFC will be aiming to return to winning ways when Morecambe make the trip to Rodney Parade on Saturday afternoon.

County remain top of the table with a game in hand over second-placed Cheltenham Town, but will want to extend their lead at the Sky Bet League Two summit.

Here, you can find all the facts and statistics ahead of this Sky Bet League Two fixture...

The opposition - Morecambe

Morecambe currently sit in 11th in the Sky Bet League Two table after accumulating 22 points from their 15 matches so far this campaign. The Shrimps have won six of their games, drawn four and lost five so far this term.

Morecambe started the season in positive form after securing four wins - against Cheltenham, Southend, Port Vale and Oldham - from their first five matches.

However, the Shrimps have struggled since then, picking up just two wins from their next 10 attempts. They will be hoping to pick up their form to drive them back up the table again.

Team news

Michael Flynn made several changes from the Emirates FA Cup victory over Salford City on the weekend against Forest Green, with the team reverting back to the 3-4-1-2.

Whether this will continue remains to be seen, but with many players gaining match minutes in a mid-week friendly, Flynn certainly has plenty of options at his disposal.

Morecambe are coming off the back of a league win and an FA Cup win, with very similar teams employed in both games. The Shrimps could name a familiar 11 on Saturday afternoon.

One to watch – Adam Phillips

Midfielder Adam Phillips has been Morecambe’s shining light this season after returning to the Mazuma Stadium on a season-long loan deal.

The 22-year-old, on loan from Burnley, scored four goals in 11 starts for the Shrimps in a loan spell at the tail end of the last season.

And he looks to have picked up where he left off with seven goals in all competitions so far.

The young Englishman started his career in the Blackburn Rovers youth setup before joining Liverpool, and has since gone on to sign for Norwich City and Burnley.

Manager – Derek Adams

Derek Adams took over at the Mazuma Stadium in November 2019 after replacing Jim Bentley, who had been in the position since 2011.

In his first season at Morecambe, Adams successfully guided them to safety after taking over with the club at the bottom of the table, and ended the campaign 10 points clear of the foot of the table.

The 45-year-old has also managed at Ross County in Scotland, where he won the Scottish First Division by a record 25-point margin.

He was also in the hot seat at Plymouth Argyle, where he achieved promotion from Sky Bet League Two in 2016/17.

Last meeting between the sides

The last time the two sides met was back in March in a tense affair in south Wales that saw the Exiles narrowly edge past the visitors with a 1-0 win.

A chipped finish from January loan signing Dale Gorman gave County the lead mid-way through the second half in a game of few chances.

County held onto that lead until the final whistle to pick up maximum points on home soil.