Mansfield Town earn a respected draw against Morecambe

Morecambe faced Mansfield Town with the Shrimps losing last time out against Grimsby and the Stags drawing against Newport.

Stags’ boss John Dempster opted to begin with the same XI that staged a spectacular, second-half fightback at Rodney Parade last week.

Kellan Gordon and Otis Khan came in for Ryan Sweeney and Jacob Mellis, with the latter suspended after picking up a red card against Newport.

Mansfield made a fast start as Otis Khan took aim from the edge of the box, however, it instead was the visitors who struck early.

Sam Lavelle had crept round to plant a firm header in the back of Conrad Logan’s net to give his side the advantage.

Danny Rose showcased his penchant for winning headers with a deft flick that set Maynard free; only for the striker to be denied by a combination of two Morecambe defenders.

In the 21st minute, the visiting side notched their second. Kevin Ellison drilled a superb pass towards Lewis Alessandra whose header looped beyond Logan and gave his side room to breathe.

In the 39th minute, the ball landed at the feet of Alex MacDonald and, despite his effort being palmed away by goalkeeper Barry Roche, it trickled towards Maynard who halved the deficit with a simple finish.

A defence-splitting pass made its way to Maynard, but Barry Roche had hurried away from his post to deny the striker with a fine, fingertip save.

In the 72nd minute, Alex MacDonald’s phenomenal cross was met by Danny Rose who powered a header into the far side and restore parity to the delight of the home crowd.

Minutes from the end of the game, Matt Preston was shown a straight red card for a sliding challenge on Alessandra that meant the Stags would search for a winner with one less man.

Andy Cook was introduced in the latter stages and he was soon left disappointed after he saw his strong penalty appeal waved away in added time.

Mansfield were forced to settle for a point despite dominating large parts of the second half, but will look to exact revenge when they again face Morecambe in the Carabao Cup this forthcoming Tuesday.

Team Lineup:

STAGS’ XI: Logan (GK); Benning, Preston, Pearce ©, Bishop; MacDonald, Khan, Maynard (Sweeney 84’), Gordon, Hamilton; Rose (Cook 88’).

MORECAMBE XI: Roche (GK) ©; Buxton, Conlan, Old, Tutte (Kenyon 76’); O’Sullivan (Cranston 67’), Alessandra, Stockton (Miller 76’), Ellison, Wildig; Lavelle.